Splendour & Fantasy: The North German Organ Tradition

"Thanks to subtle inventiveness and diligent reflection, the organ has reached such a state of perfection that it lacks nothing; it needs no further experimentation or development at all," wrote the famous German composer and music theorist Michael Praetorius in 1619. Many composers, from the North Sea to the Baltic, celebrated the great richness of this instrument: his homonym Hieronymus Praetorius, Dietrich Buxtehude, but also Tunder, Weckmann, Leyding, Druckenmüller, Hanff and Bruhns, helped to build up a dedicated repertoire, thus giving rise, between the 16th and 18th centuries, to a true North German organ tradition. This program was recorded in Dübendorf, Switzerland, on an organ built by Bernhardt Edskes. Dirk Trüten pays a vibrant tribute here to a heritage that was to inspire J.S. Bach, amongst others, and which reveals the beauty of this fascinating instrument.