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The Genesis of the Victorian Organ Sonata

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  17 June 2015

Iain Quinn
Iain Quinn*
Affiliation:
The Florida State University Email: iquinn@fsu.edu
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Abstract

In the English mid-nineteenth century, organist-composers sought an idealistic course that created an alliance between the unimpeachable musical language of the Classical era and the much celebrated ‘Victorian’ organ. As a result, we witness the birth of a new musical genre with the ‘English organ sonata’ that was to provide a model for organ composition into the twentieth century. However, the works in question were not merely pastiche compositions, despite some bold illusions, but rather pieces based on revered models, restyled for an age that was familiar with transcriptions of orchestral repertoire on the organ. Further, the English organist-composers adhered to both an old model in a continuance of the ‘lesson-sonata’ tradition as well as developing a new one, here styled the ‘portfolio sonata’ whereby the purpose of the sonata would serve multiple ends. In an age of prestige and betterment, the sonatas that emerged were a testament to a profession that was determined to be seen anew.

Type
Research Article
Information
Nineteenth-Century Music Review , Volume 12 , Issue 1 , June 2015 , pp. 53 - 70
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2015 

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