BUXTEHUDE: Complete Organ Works – Rene Saorgin, organ – Harmonia mundi HMX 2901484.88 (5 CDs), 337:43 *****:
This is the second time the path-breaking and seminal release of the compete organ works of (Danish) composer Dietrich Buxtehude has been put on silver disc by Harmonia mundi; the first time, in 1993, is still available on the web at around 60 bucks. This new issue, complete with a nice pop-up display for easy retrieval, and discs that are pressed to look like miniatures of the original 1967-70 LP releases, is also going anywhere from 60-80 dollars. Regardless, this is an essential release despite the fact that the set has garnered much competition (and excellent competition) over the ensuing years. But listening to these again now I am struck by several things—the incredible originality of the work, surely some of the most-spontaneous sounding and fastidiously interesting organ works ever penned (the themes of the fugues are simply amazing), and the fact that these recordings maintain almost audiophile quality after all these years. Well, I shouldn’t be too surprised; the late sixties were a bellwether period of recording for many companies, Harmonia mundi obviously being among them.
As I said, the sound is simply stunning; rarely will you hear such power and clarity coming from the speakers in any organ recording. The basses thunder, and Rene Saorgin’s spectacularly realized registrations (he is known for his brilliantly shifting colors and timbres) go a long way to giving this music the undoubted clarity and sense of cutting-edge bedazzlement that so marks the musical genius of the composer. One can see easily why Bach walked so far to hear the composer play. No doubt he would have walked just as far if Rene Saorgin was playing also. This was, is, and always will be a five-star release, and should occupy a pride-of-place position in any collection worthy of its salt. If you don’t know Buxtehude (and many don’t), hasten with all due expediency to rectify this gap in knowledge. Forget samplers—once you hear this man’s music you will want it all and you should. And this is a fundamentally sound place to start.
— Steven Ritter
