Hovhaness: Complete Works for Solo Organ

Featuring

Tom Winpenny
Peter Wright
Alan Hovhaness

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Composer's Artistic Vision

Hovhaness's Armenian heritage was a strong source of inspiration for his music, particularly in the early decades of his career.

Composer Biography

Hovhaness worked as a church organist and choir director during the Depression, and improvised on ancient Armenian church mode scales using the few good-sounding stops on a poor organ.

Critical Reception

Hovhaness's music has long been popular, leading to a well-documented life and work, including an extensive website curated by pianist Marco Shirodkar.

Composer Biography

Alan Hovhaness, born in 1911, was one of the most prolific composers of the twentieth century, producing 67 symphonies and hundreds of other works.

Composer's Artistic Vision

Hovhaness learned about the art of healing the broken spirit through music when he observed how changing modes on the organ could calm a grieving mourner at a funeral.

Composer's Artistic Vision

Hovhaness's unique musical style consciously blended archaic Western elements with Eastern musical cultures, influenced by research trips to India, Japan, and Korea.

Compositional Technique

Hovhaness tried to imitate the 'heavenly sound' of the Japanese shō, an ancient pipe-like instrument, in his Western orchestral music by dividing strings in the upper registers.