DVD “Records” by Anne Schneider
MUSIC by Rolando de Nassau
(Dedicated to reader Hugo Carlos Cavalcanti, from Recife, PE)
To commemorate 25 years of career (1985-2010), the organist Anne Schneider made available videos from her personal collection so that “Estúdio Móvel” could produce the DVD “Registros” in March 2011. Anne is the daughter of the Lutheran organist and composer Leo Schneider (1910-1978), author of five oratorios (“Calvary”, 1943; “St. John the Baptist”, 1946; “Purification of the Temple”, 1947; “Conversion of Paul”, 1948; and “Jesus Nazarene”, 1950). On Leo and Anne we have already published two articles (OJB, 05 Nov 06 and 06 Mar 11), which demonstrated their important contribution to evangelical music in Brazil.
Anne Schneider (1946- ) studied organ at UFRGS and was director of the Conservatory of Music of the Colégio Americano (Methodist) in Porto Alegre. She is titular organist of the (Lutheran) “Martin Luther” Parish, coordinating series of recitals and meetings of organists. For more than 20 years she has participated in international organ festivals in the Americas and Europe.
In this DVD, Anne performs works by Guilmant, Bach, Alain, Duruflé, Saint-Saëns and Handel Cecilio, on organs of five churches. In the 20th century, periodically, the Roman Church reaffirmed the prescription that the Church’s own music be purely vocal, allowing accompaniment by the organ as long as it supports, never to cover the singing; but not allowing the organ to precede the singing with long preludes.
In the (Catholic) basilica of Niterói (RJ), where the organist Marcello Martiniano Ferreira still pontificates today, Anne used the largest pipe organ in South America. Inaugurated on April 15, 1956 by Fernando Germani (1906-1998), organist of the Vatican; at the time I could not see it because it was in the gallery. It has five manual keyboards, each with 61 keys, a radial pedalboard with 32 notes, 11,000 pipes and 132 registers (OJB, May 7, 89 and Feb 24, 11). On November 23, 2000, Anne played on another large organ, also of “Tamburini” manufacture, in the (Catholic) church of Bom Retiro, in São Paulo (SP). Once again, from the top of her rostrum, situated between heaven and earth, Anne chose pieces of excellent technical level. She played the 3rd movement of the First Sonata in D minor, op. 42, by Alexandre Guilmant (1837- 1911). 1911). Under the influence of César Franck (1822-1890), the “Allegro assai” presents a “toccata” movement, as opposed to a harmonized “chorale”. harmonized “chorale”.
In the (Catholic) church “São José” in Porto Alegre (RS), Anne performed the “Fugue” from BWV-543, by J.S.Bach (1685- 1750). It is a well-known theme, similar to motifs explored by Vivaldi and Pachelbel. In the exposition of three episodes, four voices enter; in the last one, there is an important pedal part. In the peroration, the prelude of the same BWV-543 is recalled by its symmetry. The “Litanies”, together with the “Variations on a theme by Clèment Janequin”, are among the most beautiful works by Jehan Alain (1911-1940); they are ardent supplications, in the words of Bernard Gavoty (see: Jehan Alain. Paris: Albin Michel, 1943).
The “Fugue on the name of Alain”, op. 7, by Maurice Duruflé (1902-1986), reveals the liturgical tradition (love of Gregorian Chant) and the aesthetic tradition (respect for classical training) maintained by him in a succinct work, from which emerge the “Requiem” (1947) and the “Missa Cum Jubilo” (1967). *Tollite Hostias” by Camille Saint–Saens (1835-1921) is the tenth and last part of the “Christmas Oratorio”. Its beautiful musical language, while serving to mitigate its professions of atheism, corroborates our claim that not all religious music is sacred. In the 1950s, the Choir of the ACE of Rio de Janeiro had in its repertoire this page by Saint-Saëns, probably translated by Heitor Argolo (1923-2008). This number featured the “25 de Julho” choir, conducted by maestrina Lúcia Teixeira.
In the Lutheran parishes of Germany, the organ was very quickly reduced to the role of simple accompanist, but in the Alsatian region of Strasbourg, under the influence of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) and Albert Schweitzer (1875-1965), singing and the organ became equally prestigious. In October 1778, Mozart was in Strasbourg; in two churches he played organs by Gottfried Silbermann (1683-1753). Schweitzer, in 1906, started a movement for a return to the organ-building technology adopted in Bach’s time (see: Marie-Louise Girod, L’Orgue et le Protestantisme. Paris: 1950).
In the (Lutheran) church “Martin Luther’, Anne played on the organ “Rieger”, Opus 2.733, the prelude to Bach’s BWV-543, when a parade of “toccata” formulas and articulated improvisations took place, ending in a dialog between pedalboard and keyboards, and the “Royal Fanfare” by Handel Cecilio, which we had heard on the occasion of the inauguration of the digital organ of the Memorial Baptist Church.
The “25 de Julho” Choir, accompanied by an orchestra conducted by maestro Manfredo Sch-miedt and the organ of Anne Schneider, in the (Lutheran) church of Reconciliation, in Porto Alegre (RS), performed the organ version of the “Lux eterna” from Duruflé’s “Requiem”. Schmiedt has performed with orchestras in Caxias do Sul and Porto Alegre (RS); he was a student of Eleazar de Carvalho, Emílio de César and Lutero Rodrigues.
Finally, at the (Lutheran) church of Trindade in Ivoti (RS), Anne and violinist Hella Frank played Bach’s “Aria for the fourth string” (BWV-1.068). Hella is associated with chamber orchestras in Canoas and Porto Alegre (RS).
For lovers of the “king of instruments” (the organ, in Mozart’s opinion) we recommend this DVD by Anne Schneider.
