Review: Marvelous organ concert given by James O'Donnell at Holy Rosary Church

An exceptional concert of organ music was given by James O’Donnell at Holy Rosary Church on January 26th. O’Donnell’s performance celebrated the thirtieth anniversary of the dedication of the organ, which was built by Bond Organ Builders in order to replace a previous organ that was destroyed because of a fire at the church. The program featured works by J. S. Bach, Antonio Vivaldi, William Byrd, Maurice Druflé, Cesar Franck, and Olivier Messiaen – all of which received superb interpretations by O’Donnell.

O’Donnell has an impeccable resume which includes a 23-year tenure as Organist and Master of the Choristers at Westminster Abbey and numerous appearances and recordings with eminent ensembles, such as the London Philharmonic Orchestra. He now is Professor in the Practice of Organ at Yale School of Music and the Yale Institute of Sacred Music in New Haven, Connecticut.

Boasting 34 stops and 37 ranks, the Bond Organ at Holy Rosary was an ideal instrument for O’Donnell. He conveyed the full panoply of sound with his skill and artistry at the keyboard. The first three pieces had a Germanic flair - based on Bach. Bach’s Sinfonia from Cantata 29 (“Wir danken dir, Gott”) – arranged by Marcel Dupré launched the performance with gusto. Bach’s arrangement of Vivaldi’s Concerto in A minor (BWV 593) followed with an equal amount of elan. Next came Bach’s Prelude and Fuge in C (BWV 547), which danced delightfully in the first section and built to a power climax in the second.

The English repertoire was represented by Byrd, whose “Ut re mi fa sol la” offerred an eloquent reflection that was built around a six-note scale pattern (hexachord).

The French had the final three numbers. I didn’t get the hang of Duruflé’s “Prelude et Fugue sur le nom d’ Alain,” which he wrote in tribute of Jehan Alain, an organist and composer who died in WWII. Duruflé used a five-note motif ADAAF and quotations from Alain’s work in the piece. I will have to hear it again some day. Easier to grasp was Franck’s “Prélude, fugue et variation” with its overarching lyrical melody. The concert ended grandly with “Dieu parmi nous” (from “La Nativite due Seigneur) by Messiaen in which three inspired themes are interwoven into a marevlous finale.

The audience gave O’Donnell at thunderous standing ovation, and Cliff Fairley, who retired from Bond Organ Builders a few years ago and is a veteran attendee of many organ concerts, felt that O’Donnell’s performance was the best he had ever heard.

P.S. Apologies for the lateness of this review - life got in the way!