Windows of the Spirit Jens Korndörfer

• Joseph Gabriel Rheinberger (1839 - 1901):
• 1 Rheinberger: Sonate Nr. 8 in e-Moll, Op. 132. Introduktion und Passacaglia 10:57
• Arthur Foote (1853 - 1937):
• 2 Foote: Oriental Sketch, Op. 41.5 04:15
• Pamela Decker (b. 1955):
• 3 Decker: Windows of the Spirit 09:49
• Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 - 1750)
• 4 Bach: Toccata in F-Dur, BWV 540 08:44
• 5 Bach: Fuge in F-Dur, BWV 540 05:47
• Max Reger (1873 - 1916):
• 6 Reger: Phantasie über den Choral „Ein’ feste Burg ist unser Gott‟, Op. 27 15:06
• Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827):
• 7 Beethoven: Symphonie Nr. 5 in c-Moll, Op. 67. II. Andante 10:07
• Richard Wagner (1813 - 1883):
• 8 Wagner: Ouvertüre zur Romantischen Oper „Der fliegende Holländer‟ 10:33
• Howard Shore (b. 1946):
• 9 Shore: Concerning Hobbits (from: The Lord of the Rings) 03:16
• 10 Shore: Rohan (from: The Lord of the Rings) 02:29
• Total Runtime 01:21:03

Info for Windows of the Spirit

"Windows of the Spirit", the first recording on the renovated and enlarged Klais/Schlueter organ at First Presbyterian Church of Atlanta.

About the Recordings: The organ, as a system of mechanical relays and artificially created and operated lungs and pipes, would seem to be antithetical to the production of emotive music. Indeed, Igor Stravinsky famously derided the instrument by saying “the monster never breathes”. Yet for hundreds of years, musicians and organ builders strove to have this hybrid of pipes and keyboards mirror the particular musical expression expected by the culture of the time.

In the early seventeenth century, Michael Praetorius crowned the organ with the title “King of all instruments” because it could replicate and participate in the polychoral music in vogue during his time. During the explosion of the art of orchestration in the nineteenth century, Hector Berlioz acknowledged that both the orchestra and the organ were kings “or rather, one is emperor and the other pope”: they were to be used for different tonal purposes and did not mix well together. During the remainder of the nineteenth century and beyond, cutting edge technologies were often employed to push this seemingly inert instrument to an esthetic interpretation equal to or beyond that expected and normally experienced by its culture.

The arrangements of works from The Lord of the Rings motion picture trilogy performed herein originated from Alfred Music’s piano/vocal folio entitled ”The Lord of the Rings: The Motion Picture Trilogy“ (www.alfred.com/the-lord-of-the-rings/p/00-32034).

The newly renovated and enlarged Klais/Schlueter organ (IV/112) at First Presbyterian Church of Atlanta continues in this tradition; this album’s offerings – including arrangements and premiere recordings by the organ virtuoso Jens Korndörfer – were chosen for the illustration of its orchestral capabilities.

Jens Korndörfer, organ

Dr. Jens Korndörfer
is Director of Worship and the Arts, and Organist at First Presbyterian Church of Atlanta, GA, and instructor for organ at Georgia State University. He maintains a busy concert schedule at major venues and festivals around the world. Highlights include solo concerts at Davies Symphony Hall in San Francisco, Duke University Chapel, the Montreal Bach Festival, the Cathedrals in Berlin, Paris, Salzburg, Oslo, and Moscow, Westminster Abbey in London, Suntory Hall and Metropolitan Art Space in Tokyo, Kyoto Concert Hall, and the Cultural Centre in Hong Kong.

He has concertized with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, the Sapporo Symphony Orchestra, the Filarmonica Arturo Toscanini, and the Hofer Symphoniker. His repertoire reaches from the Renaissance to the 21st century, including commissions and world premiere performances.

Dr. Korndörfer graduated with highest honors from the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique in Paris, the Oberlin Conservatory, the Musikhochschule in Bayreuth, and McGill University in Montreal. His teachers include Michel Bouvard, James David Christie, Olivier Latry, and Ludger Lohmann.

He served as organist in residence at the Concert Hall Kitara in Sapporo, Japan, during the 2005/06 season, and is a triple prizewinner of the Canadian International Organ Competition, held in Montréal in 2008 and 2011. His performances and recordings have been broadcast on the radio and online in North America and Europe. The artist has recorded four CDs and published numerous articles in international music journals.

Dr. Korndörfer is frequently invited to give presentations and master classes at conventions and universities around the world. He is represented by Karen McFarlane Artists, Inc., in North America.

Booklet for Windows of the Spirit