THE annual organ series at St Michael's in Dun Laoghaire entered its second, month last night with an a by the Italian organist Alessandro Bianchi.
His programme was nothing if not adventurous, surrounding a well known prelude fugue by Bach with music by lesser stars of the organ firmament (Stanley, Guilmant and Alain), and topping and tailing the lot with works by virtual unknowns, Arturo Clementoni and Max Drischner (who both died in 1971) and Aloys Claussmann (who died in 1926).
The unfamiliar pieces were all in an outgoing style fully in keeping with the extrovert musical temperament of the performer.
Clementoni's "symphonic chorale" Cristo Risuscito displayed an unhealthy obsession with augmented chords, the Toccata by Claussmann had something of the second hand quality of a hit from a West End musical, and Drischner's Passacaglia in E went at speed through well trod patterns with high spirited facility.
A touch more of high spirits and speed would have been welcome in the finale of Guilmant's Second Sonata and a greater sense of reserve would have benefited the 8th century suite by the blind Englishman John Stanley. Both pieces showed signs of the over projection that marred the most frequently heard pieces on the programme Bianchi's handling of Alain's Choral Dorien and Choral Phrygien was both loud and lumbering, and Bach's Prelude and Fugue in D, BWV32, needed to breathe a little more freely.
