The Seifert organ in Kevelaer, built in 1907, was designed for a soft, orchestral sound with an abundance of string and reed stops, including unique 'seraphones' with double-nicked pipes for intensive sounds.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Hansjörg Fink and Elmar Lehnen, the performers and arrangers on this album, combine the age-old tradition of the requiem mass with the vibrant joie de vivre of jazz elements.
Performer Biography
Elmar Lehnen, the organist, succeeded his mentor Wolfgang Seifen as organist of the papal basilica of St. Marien in Kevelaer in 2000, after studying at the Schola Cantorum in Paris.
Interpretation
The performers, Hansjörg Fink (trombone) and Elmar Lehnen (organ), incorporate improvisations, a practice loved by organists of all times and much-used by jazz trombonists, into the traditional requiem structure.
Performer Biography
Hansjörg Fink, the trombonist, has been the first trombone of the World Famous Glenn Miller Orchestra since 1996 and has toured to over seventy countries across all continents.
Instruments
The organ used for this recording, the Seifert organ in the Basilica of St. Marien in Kevelaer, was once the biggest organ in Germany with 122 stops and now boasts 149 stops.
Compositional Technique
The album features a rare combination of church music and jazz, blending composed and improvised music within the framework of a requiem.
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Aria
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Improvisationen (an der grossen Kuhn-Orgel des Mindener Doms)
