Latest news with #ToccataandFugue
The Guardian
24-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
King of Kings: Orchestral Transcriptions of Bach by Andrew Davis album review – the late conductor's first love
Long before he became a conductor, Andrew Davis was an organist. As a teenager he had played the organ at the Palace theatre, Watford, and in the 1960s studied at the Royal College of Music before becoming organ scholar at King's College, Cambridge; he began his professional career as the keyboard player for the Academy of St Martin in the Fields. In the last two years of his life, Davis returned to the music that had been his first love by making orchestral versions of some of JS Bach's organ works. In 2023, he began to record a selection of his orchestrations with the BBC Philharmonic for Chandos, but when he died in April last year just four arrangements had been recorded, and Martyn Brabbins stepped in to complete the project with the orchestra the following September. The result is a sequence that begins with the Toccata and Fugue in D minor, which Davis has orchestrated in a relatively restrained way, especially when compared with the spectacular version that Leopold Stokowski famously concocted for Walt Disney's Fantasia, and it ends with the E flat St Anne Prelude and Fugue, while in between there is a series of chorale preludes, arranged like the bigger works in an unshowy but always thoroughly musical way: for instance, the Trio super Herr Jesu Christ, Dich zu Uns Wend becomes a busy instrumental movement that could have come out of the Brandenburg Concertos. The most interesting of the arrangements, though, is the one that Davis made a decade earlier than all the rest, of the great Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor, whose more fastidious, almost pointillist orchestration recalls Webern's famous version of the six-part ricercare from Bach's Musical Offering. Modest these pieces may be, but they are a touching memorial to a fine, much missed conductor. This article includes content hosted on We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as the provider may be using cookies and other technologies. To view this content, click 'Allow and continue'. Listen on Apple Music (above) or Spotify
Borneo Post
27-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Borneo Post
11-year-old organist to perform at St Peter's Church Padungan opening
Kai (left) and Kenzie (right) seen during rehearsals at St Peter's Church here yesterday, in preparation for their upcoming performances. – Photo by Beverly Chan. KUCHING: At just 11 years old, Sarawakian-Australian Kai Laird is one of the rare few in his age group to master the pipe organ, an instrument typically associated with seasoned musicians. The young organist is set to perform during the opening ceremony of the newly completed St Peter's Church in Padungan, which will be consecrated in a week-long celebration starting today until July 5. The church, poised to become one of Kuching's latest architectural and spiritual landmarks, features a custom-built Allen digital organ imported from the United States. It is on this instrument that Kai will perform several specially selected pieces over two days. He will be playing 'You Raise Me Up' by Josh Groban and 'Prière de Notre Dame' by Léon Boëllmann, today. On Tuesday, his set will include J.S. Bach's 'Toccata and Fugue' in D minor (BWV 565), 'Be Thou My Vision', and a duet performance of the 'Skye Boat Song' with his younger brother Kenzie Laird, 7, on violin. Kai began his musical journey with piano lessons at the age of three, taught by his mother. Today, he plays four instruments: the pipe organ, piano, cello, and drums. Kai Laird – Photo by Chimon Upon His parents — Robert Wallace Laird from Australia and Beverly Chan from Kuching, Sarawak — are both professional pianists and run a music studio in Australia where they also teach. 'My parents asked me if I wanted to try the pipe organ, and I said 'Okay'. When I played it at St Mary's Cathedral (Perth), I thought, 'Oh my gosh, this is so crazy',' Kai said when met by The Borneo Post. He now practises the organ twice a day for about 40 minutes, and the piano for 20 minutes. Both he and Kenzie are home-schooled, giving them the flexibility to focus on music full-time. Kai enjoys the pipe organ for its sound, versatility, and complexity. 'You can mix all the sounds, adjust them, and even play with your feet. Sometimes I get confused with the pedals or the sounds, but I can fix it afterwards. It's fun!' he said enthusiastically. He owns a digital organ built in 1982, which allows him to practise from home. He looks forward to navigating the significantly larger organ at St Peter's, made by the same company, on performance day. 'There is a lot to get used to with each organ. Some pedal boards are curved, some are flat. The number of keyboards also changes. St Peter's has four manuals, which is really cool,' he said. Kai has already performed in Malaysia, Australia, Scotland, and England, and is currently the youngest organ scholar at St Mary's Cathedral in Perth. Robert and Beverly with their sons, Kai and Kenzie, photographed during the interview. – Photo by Chimon Upon Following his performance at St Peter's, the family will travel to the United Kingdom next week for another recital. In October, he is set to compete in his first organ competition in Sydney. In a field where young players are rare, Kai continues to build a name for himself with discipline, focus, and genuine love for the music, and may well inspire more children to explore the organ too. Related report: Week-long celebration to mark consecration of new St Peter's Church in Padungan Kai Laird Kuching pipe organ St Peter's Church Padungan
