Mattias Wager Organ Treasures Hybrid Multi-Channel & Stereo SACD

Organ Treasures is like a small concert also for those who prefer melodic, soft and cozy organ music, but who never earlier "dared" to buy an organ recording, while so much organ music can be both difficult and complex. We will hear four known works by Bach, but also music by less known composers, but who also composed harmonic and cozy organ music, like Pierne and Elert.
"Organ Treasures" contains a program that is intended to appeal to listeners who have so far shied away from buying an organ recording. The album is intended as an introduction to this great instrument and contains four well-known works by Johann Sebastian Bach as well as music by less prominent composers such as Gabriel Pierné and Elert. A highlight is certainly the extremely entertaining and at the same time extremely virtuoso arrangement of Ives' "God Save The Queen" (Variations Of America). The recording is rounded off with Widor's famous "Toccata". The recordings were recorded with Mattias Wager, a luminary who has made many other Opus 3 Records releases legendary.
"Organ Treasures" is the Swedish label's first multichannel hybrid SACD on which Jan-Eric Persson uses the bass channel. There are good reasons for this: To really do justice to an organ recording, Persson uses the advantages of a true 4.1 configuration, i.e. a subwoofer channel that can reproduce the deep bass of the organ in Stockholm's Hedvig Eleonora Church, which reaches down to below 30 Hz. To ensure a perfect balance of bass reproduction between the front channels and the subwoofer, microphone specialist Jörgen Thuresson developed a special Linkwitz-Riley crossover network with a crossover frequency of 24 dB/60 Hz. This not entirely insignificant technical effort is justified by the excellent tonal result. The multichannel hybrid SACD from Opus 3 Records contains a booklet with detailed information on the recording technology and miking used.
From Ives, we can enjoy his entertaining and virtuous arrangement of "God save the Queen," i.e. "Variations of America." The Recording is rounded off by Widor's very famous Toccata!
Opus 3 is happy to once again record Mattias Wager, who was part of the duo on "Live at Vatnajokull" and also participated on the SACD "Musica Sacra."
Super Audio CD - 4.1
This is the first SACD where Opus 3 uses the bass channel (LFE) and the reasons for this is a very strong case! In order to give this recording full justice, this is a true 4.1 recording, which means that we have taken the advantage of the bass channel, i.e. the channel that feeds the sub-woofer, while no normal speakers can reproduce the very deep bass that the organ in Hedvig Eleonoras church in Stockholm have - i.e. to down below 30Hz.
In order to do this in the best possible way, we asked Mr. Jorgen Thuresson to custom make a special crossover network based on the Linkwitz-Riley principal, at 24dB per octave with a crossover frequency at 60Hz. This frequency has been chosen in order to be able to use like more normal high quality front speakers, without destroying the total bass reproduction, i.e. that the matching to the sub-woofers works well.
""Organ Treasures" creates an abysmal, poignant sense of space with Mattias Wager on the organ keys of Stockholm's Hedvig Eleonora Church. Thanks to the specially switched bass channel of the 4.1 recording, the trouser legs flutter..." - Audio 2/2004

Features:

• Super Audio CD
• SACD Multi-Channel SACD Layer
• SACD Stereo SACD Layer
• This Hybrid SACD contains a 'Red Book' Stereo CD Layer which is playable on most conventional CD Players!

Selections:

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
1. Toccata & Fugue In D Minor
2. Jesus bleibet meine Freude (arr. by M. Duruflé)
3. Sinfonia, from Cantata 29 (arr. by A. Guilmant)
4. Air (arr. by S. Karg-Elert)
Cesar Franck (1822-1890)
5. Piece Heroique
Charles Ives (1874-1954)
6. Variations on "America"
Gabriel Pierne (1863-1937)
Trois pieces, Op. 29
7. Prelude
8. Cantilene
9. Scherzando De Concert
Sigfrid Karg-Elert (1877-1937)
10. Valse Mignonne, Op. 142
Charles-Marie Widor (1844-1937)
11. Toccata from Symphony, No.5