Final (Sonata 6, mvt. 5)/Andante: Difference between revisions

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The final movement for Sonata no. 6 serves as a great starting place for learning Mendelssohn. It is only thirty-six measures long, and it is in the accessible key of D Major. The piece modulates from D Major to F# Minor, to C# Minor, and back to F# Minor before finally returning to D Major. The chief difficulty in performing this piece lies in the manual parts: for the most part there are only three voices in the manuals, but a handful of measures have four manual voices. It is at these points that the fingering is the most difficult.
The final movement for Sonata no. 6 serves as a great starting place for learning Mendelssohn. It is only thirty-six measures long, and it is in the accessible key of D Major. The piece modulates from D Major to F# Minor, to C# Minor, and back to F# Minor before finally returning to D Major. The chief difficulty in performing this piece lies in the manual parts: for the most part there are only three voices in the manuals, but a handful of measures have four manual voices. It is at these points that the fingering is the most difficult.
"Mendelssohn was one of the finest organists of his day. The Three Preludes and Fugues op.37, dedicated to Mozart's pupil Thomas Attwood, form a pendant to op.35. The Six Organ Sonatas op.65 (1845), teeming with artful fugues and chorales, summarize and epitomize Mendelssohn's rediscovery of Bach, and may have inspired Schumann's six fugues on B–A–C–H op.60." - Grove Music Online: "Mendelssohn, Felix, §10: Keyboard music" [http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/public/;jsessionid=5701B9854571ADE261FAA746B9D58717]
Visit the Wikipedia page on the Organ Works of Felix Mendelssohn for additional information - [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organ_Sonatas,_Op._65_(Mendelssohn)]


==Registration and Organs==
==Registration and Organs==


The dynamic for this piece is <b><i>p</i></b>, which for Mendelssohn meant "a combination of several 8-foot stops." On a two manual organ you might consider coupling the manuals and using one or two of the softest 8' stops from each manual, ensuring that the stops blend well with each other. Soft 16' and 8' stops in the pedal with the manuals coupled would work well.
The dynamic for this piece is <b><i>p</i></b>, which for Mendelssohn meant "a combination of several 8-foot stops." On a two-manual organ you might consider coupling the manuals and using one or two of the softest 8' stops from each manual, ensuring that the stops blend well with each other. Soft 16' and 8' stops in the pedal with the manuals coupled would work well.


==Fingering and Pedaling==
==Fingering and Pedaling==
 
Both the Peters and Dupre Editions of Mendelssohn's Organ Works contain fingering suggestions. Refer to both and you can adjust them to your hands as necessary. The Novello contains no fingering or pedaling.
The edition below includes some fingerings and pedal indications. They are a guideline only, and you can adjust them to your hands as necessary.


==Articulation and Phrasing==
==Articulation and Phrasing==


This piece should be played with a very smooth legato. Mendelssohn's phrasing marks are difficult to interpret because they don't seem to make musical sense. Most of the phrases seem to be about four measures long, but the slurs often only cover one measure. Look for prominent cadences to help you decide where the phrase breaks should fall.<BR>
This piece should be played with a very smooth legato. Mendelssohn's phrasing marks are difficult to interpret because they don't seem to make musical sense. Most of the phrases seem to be about four measures long, but the slurs often only cover one measure. Look for prominent cadences to help you decide where the phrase breaks should fall.<BR>  
Different editions contain different phrasing marks in the score. The Novello edition has a system that shows which phrase marks are used in what editions. Refer to that edition to compare phrasing as you make your own musical decisions.
<BR>
<BR>
The piece starts on an anacrusis with only the pedal moving on the downbeat. Make sure that your treatment of the anacrusis does not obscure or weaken the downbeat of the first measure.
The piece starts on an anacrusis with only the pedal moving on the downbeat. Make sure that your treatment of the anacrusis does not obscure or weaken the downbeat of the first measure.
Line 27: Line 31:


==Scores and Editions==
==Scores and Editions==
Refer to general Mendelssohn page for info on scores and editions[http://organplayingwiki.byu.edu/index.php/Felix_Mendelssohn]


[[File:Mendelssohn_Sonata_6_Finale.pdf]]
[[File:Mendelssohn_Sonata_6_Finale.pdf]]


==Recordings==
==Recordings==
Replace this text with any specific information on recordings
Refer to general Mendelssohn page[http://organplayingwiki.byu.edu/index.php/Felix_Mendelssohn] for info on recordings


===Free Online===
===Free Online===
Replace this text with any specific information on online recordings that are available free
Refer to general Mendelssohn page[http://organplayingwiki.byu.edu/index.php/Felix_Mendelssohn] for info on free recordings


===Pay to Listen===
===Pay to Listen===
Replace this text with any specific information on online recordings that are available for a fee
Refer to general Mendelssohn page[http://organplayingwiki.byu.edu/index.php/Felix_Mendelssohn] for info on recordings available for a fee


==Other Resources==
==Other Resources==
Replace this text with any information on other resources pertinent to performing these works
''Mendelssohn and the Organ'' by Wm. A. Little (New York: Oxford University Press, 2010)<BR>
An Analysis of Mendelssohn's Organ Works; A Study of their Structural Features. For the use of students ([1898]) - [https://archive.org/details/analysisofmendel00hathuoft]
p.69-78 contains a musical summary of what is happening in Sonata 6.


==Notes==
==Notes==
<references/>
<references/>
''This space is for automatic insertion of footnotes.  To enter a footnote from anywhere in the article, start by typing the tag <nowiki><ref> and then enter the text, and type the tag </ref></nowiki> to end the footnote. The footnote will then appear in this "Notes" section automatically.''
''This space is for automatic insertion of footnotes.  To enter a footnote from anywhere in the article, start by typing the tag <nowiki><ref> and then enter the text, and type the tag </ref></nowiki> to end the footnote. The footnote will then appear in this "Notes" section automatically.''

Latest revision as of 23:51, 28 March 2015

from Sonata 6 (Op. 65) by Felix Mendelssohn

Background

The final movement for Sonata no. 6 serves as a great starting place for learning Mendelssohn. It is only thirty-six measures long, and it is in the accessible key of D Major. The piece modulates from D Major to F# Minor, to C# Minor, and back to F# Minor before finally returning to D Major. The chief difficulty in performing this piece lies in the manual parts: for the most part there are only three voices in the manuals, but a handful of measures have four manual voices. It is at these points that the fingering is the most difficult.

"Mendelssohn was one of the finest organists of his day. The Three Preludes and Fugues op.37, dedicated to Mozart's pupil Thomas Attwood, form a pendant to op.35. The Six Organ Sonatas op.65 (1845), teeming with artful fugues and chorales, summarize and epitomize Mendelssohn's rediscovery of Bach, and may have inspired Schumann's six fugues on B–A–C–H op.60." - Grove Music Online: "Mendelssohn, Felix, §10: Keyboard music" [1]

Visit the Wikipedia page on the Organ Works of Felix Mendelssohn for additional information - [2]

Registration and Organs

The dynamic for this piece is p, which for Mendelssohn meant "a combination of several 8-foot stops." On a two-manual organ you might consider coupling the manuals and using one or two of the softest 8' stops from each manual, ensuring that the stops blend well with each other. Soft 16' and 8' stops in the pedal with the manuals coupled would work well.

Fingering and Pedaling

Both the Peters and Dupre Editions of Mendelssohn's Organ Works contain fingering suggestions. Refer to both and you can adjust them to your hands as necessary. The Novello contains no fingering or pedaling.

Articulation and Phrasing

This piece should be played with a very smooth legato. Mendelssohn's phrasing marks are difficult to interpret because they don't seem to make musical sense. Most of the phrases seem to be about four measures long, but the slurs often only cover one measure. Look for prominent cadences to help you decide where the phrase breaks should fall.
Different editions contain different phrasing marks in the score. The Novello edition has a system that shows which phrase marks are used in what editions. Refer to that edition to compare phrasing as you make your own musical decisions.
The piece starts on an anacrusis with only the pedal moving on the downbeat. Make sure that your treatment of the anacrusis does not obscure or weaken the downbeat of the first measure.

Ornamentation

Replace this text with any specific information on ornamentation

Tempo and Meter

The meter is compound duple (6/8) and the indicated tempo is 100 eighth notes per minute.

Scores and Editions

Refer to general Mendelssohn page for info on scores and editions[3]

File:Mendelssohn Sonata 6 Finale.pdf

Recordings

Refer to general Mendelssohn page[4] for info on recordings

Free Online

Refer to general Mendelssohn page[5] for info on free recordings

Pay to Listen

Refer to general Mendelssohn page[6] for info on recordings available for a fee

Other Resources

Mendelssohn and the Organ by Wm. A. Little (New York: Oxford University Press, 2010)
An Analysis of Mendelssohn's Organ Works; A Study of their Structural Features. For the use of students ([1898]) - [7] p.69-78 contains a musical summary of what is happening in Sonata 6.

Notes

This space is for automatic insertion of footnotes. To enter a footnote from anywhere in the article, start by typing the tag <ref> and then enter the text, and type the tag </ref> to end the footnote. The footnote will then appear in this "Notes" section automatically.