Improvisation: "Komm, Schöpfer Geist" for organ (op. 85c, 1983)
Melody: Cologne 1741 (GL 245)
Instrumentation
Organ
Duration: 2.5 minutes
Autograph
Title: Improvisation: Komm Schöpfer Geist - Length: 3 pages - Date: 83 - Location: Bayerische Staatsbibliothek Munich
Publisher
Free sheet music download
Neue Presse, Coburg
, 7 May 2005
His "Prelude in d", op. 85b, the improvisation: "Komm, Schöpfer Geist", op. 85c and the postlude: "Laßt uns erfreuen herzlich sehr", op. 85d ranged from touching stillness and nature-inspired sublimity to disconcertingly doubtful and powerful to mighty confessions of faith. A fresh and new experience of organ music, which the composer was looking forward to as Marius Popp's project, but unfortunately did not live to see.
If Gregorian chant is the Catholic Church's very own music after the Council, then Hummel's organ music is particularly characterised by this idea - here again one of his answers quoted above applies: Gregorian chant is indispensable as a source of inspiration for all genuine church music. After Gregorian chant, hymnody is the next source of inspiration. If it is not direct passages or particles from Gregorian chant or hymns, then Hurnmel invents modes as building blocks, which are modified as tone sequences from memory or from models and with which it is possible to work contrapuntally and harmonically.
This way of working can be seen and heard particularly clearly in the short pieces he wrote for the "Augsburger Orgelbuch für den gottesdienstlichen Gebrauch". (Four volumes published by Böhm & Sohn, Augsburg). These are: a prelude in d (booklet 2), an improvisation: "Komm, Schöpfer Geist" (GL no. 245) (booklet 3) and a postlude: "Laßt uns erfreuen herzlich sehr" (GL no. 585) (booklet 4).
In the improvisation, the melodic alienation of the beginning of the song towards the modal characterises the whole piece and the song itself is nevertheless suggested to the listener.
(from: Franz A. Stein, "Die Kirchenmusik Bertold Hummels", Tutzing, 1998)