T-46 B is for...

My latest request is for music by Fats Waller. I hadn't realised that Waller was a classically trained organist and often played Bach to small groups. He was also the first person to record jazz on a full-sized church organ. His compositions included "Ain't Misbehaving" and "Honeysuckle Rose". Here is a clip of Waller playing "Sugar" in 1927 and here is arguably his best-known composition, "Ain't Misbehavin'"

B is for Bach, of course, and I shall be featuring some of the master's greatest works. Other composers I may feature this hour include Beethoven, Brahms, Barber, Bernstein, Britten, Bridge & Buxtehude.

T-56 A is for...

Although it runs for twenty-four hours, I will not actually be playing non-stop! As a general rule, I will be taking a fifteen minute break at forty-five minutes past each hour. There will also be longer breaks - approximately forty-five minutes - before and after the recital. This means that there will be about seventeen and a half hours of actual music.

In the run-up to the recital, I shall be outlining some of the pieces I shall be playing each hour. Other than the recital, each hour is devoted to a particular letter of the alphabet

The first hour (1200) is devoted to the letter A.
Composers I may feature include:
Richard Addinsell ("Warsaw Concerto")
Jehan Alain
Adolphe Adam ("O Holy Night")
Stephen Adams ("The Holy City")
Tomaso Albinoni (Adagio in G minor)
Leroy Anderson ("Sleigh Ride")
Anton Arensky
Harold Arlen ("The Wizard of Oz")
Thomas Arne ("Rule Britannia")

A is also for Andrew Lloyd-Webber, and I shall be playing a medley of some of his greatest hits

A is also for anniversary, and I may feature music written by Richard Wagner (b1813), Giuseppe Verdi (b1813), Benjamin Britten (b1913) and Paul Hindemith (d1963)

There may of course be other pieces which have been specifically requested for the particular hour which are not linked to the relevant letter!

T-65

The following is an article I have written for the Marathon publicity

 My second St Edmund’s Organ Marathon – the first was five years ago and raised over £5000 – is in aid of the organ restoration appeal. The present instrument was originally installed in St Dunstan’s Church, Stepney in 1902. It was moved to St Edmund’s about twenty-five years ago and is currently in need of some serious attention. The theme of the event is “A Musical Alphabet” with each hour being devoted to a different letter. There is also an evening ticketed recital entitled “From Advent to Trinity” featuring music from the liturgical year by Bach, Walton, Howells and Boellmann. There will also be a limited number of post-recital super tickets available. On the Monday afternoon there will be a children’s experience where I shall be demonstrating how the organ works and playing requests with a chance to have a go on the instrument.

You can support me in a number of ways. Firstly you can sponsor me for the event and encourage your family, friends and work colleagues to do the same. For a minimum donation of £10 you can request a particular piece of music to be played at a time of your choosing with a dedication in the souvenir programme. I would be grateful for as much notice as possible for your requests as I may need to source the sheet music and I cannot guarantee to be able to play your request. Finally, it would be great to see you in the audience on the day (and night!).

Sponsorship forms are available at the back of the church. If you would like a request then please contact me directly. My email address is hammond@cantab.net. During the event itself you will be able to contact me at the console on Twitter. You can follow @hammondmarathon or use the hashtag #hammondmarathon. I have a marathon blog at www.organ-marathon.blogspot.co.uk and will also have a webcam running on my website www.mark-hammond.co.uk.