"Byggeklosser" and "Bausteine": two new publications
Look through the books and buy them here:
Byggeklosser /
Bausteine.
You can also buy Bausteine here.
These are chorale preludes for those times when you want to be able to adjust the length of the music on the spur of the moment in order to match it to something else that is happening — a prosession, Communion or whatever. They are based on hymn tunes that are popular in Norway and Germany respectively — but very many of these are also in British and American hymn books.
The "building bricks" referred to in the titles consist of a series of short segments, generally of 4 or 8 bars. You will normally begin with segment A and end with the "Coda", but between the two you can use the segments in any order and as many times as required.
The music is deliberately straightforward and easy to play, for the benefit of organists who want to be able to focus on adapting the length to the situation. There is however no reason not to elaborate or ornament the music — in fact, it's absolutely encouraged!
The intention of the collections, however, is not so much that these pieces will be used as repertoire, but rather that they will be used as patterns or examples of how to create similar solutions for other hymns and thereby develop a kind of simple and easy "planned-improvisation" technique.
