Melbourne Conservatorium of Music - Theses
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Item'A strange madness': organ festivals in Australia 1968—1973( 2011)In the six years 1968–1973 seventeen pipe organ festivals were held across four Australian cities, a phenomenon that had not occurred elsewhere. This thesis considers the activities of the small number of people who drove the festivals’ establishment, the newly-built ‘neoclassical’ organs and harpsichords that were integral to the festivals’ success, and the circumstances that brought these agents for change together. The period studied here was one of considerable movement— political, social, technological and musical. This thesis shows that the festivals were part of a wider generational push to embrace ‘the new’ in diverse areas. They resulted from a development of new interests among a disparate group of specialists, which fortuitously converged with those of an isolated but developing audience for ‘new’ musical experiences. Until the 1960s the organ in Australia was relatively isolated from mainstream music, its role mainly confined to liturgical functions. However in Europe the organ was undergoing considerable change as part of the organ reform movement that stimulated a reconsideration of organ building, taking into account the principles on which the historic instruments of the eighteenth century were constructed. Importantly, the organ reform movement also linked with and formed part of the concurrent early music movement. By the 1960s, sound recordings had made newly discovered historic instruments and their repertoire accessible to most Australian musicians and music lovers for the first time. Their impact on a number of young Australians was to have a profound effect on organ building and organ performance in this country. Two young organists, David Rumsey and Sergio de Pieri, inspired by European experiences, took a leadership role to bring to the attention of local organists and organ builders the latest developments in performance and organ building, through the establishment and direction of this series of organ festivals. This thesis examines the goals they held for these festivals: to provide performance and educational experiences; to broaden the repertoire performed in Australia to include early music up to and including J. S. Bach and contemporary works; to encourage the acquisition of neoclassical organs that were best suited to the major repertoire of the organ; and to develop a collegial and supportive community for organists. The documented success of these festivals confirms the achievement of Rumsey’s and de Pieri’s goals for the organ in Australia.