American Record Guide

Carson Cooman is outrageously prolific. This program includes recent works that are Opuses 1358, 1362, and 1365. 1358, called ‘Preludio del Ricordo) is my favorite of this group. It takes only 5 minutes, but it is the perfect organ piece, with both variety and grandeur. There are two chorale preludes on English hymn tunes (one is Hyfrydol), a suite, and a number of almost impressionist nature sketches. It’s all pleasant music, none of it mere noise, but perhaps not in the “greatest” category. I could listen to it for hours, but some of it slips into the background.

If you like the organ, this one is very special. It was built by Fleiter in 2014 (in Billerbeck, Germany) and incorporates many French elements and Cavaille-Coll voicings. I find it much more satisfying than the many neo-baroque organs we hear (on records and in churches). Both the organ and the music are in the general “romantic” category, though a living composer like Cooman can take excursions beyond.

I know: how to recommend one disc when there are 13 previous volumes? I can only say that these are some of his latest pieces (though he is not yet 40 years old!) and that they appeal to me as a lover of organ music. I have certainly not heard the previous 13 volumes, but we have reviewed a few of them. In fact, we have reviewed 23 discs of his music, most of it for other instruments or voices.

As I said, outrageously prolific. But maybe the inspiration just keeps coming, and a number of gems may be found among the many pieces. I hear a few here.

—Donald Vroon