Leen De Broekert - Koorkerk Middelburg Music CD

Leen De Broekert present his own Van Vulpen organ in the Abbey in Middelburg with adventurous music. With music by Buxtehude, Böhm, Bach, Mozart, Mendelssohn and Boëly. Included on this CD: Aria: La Capricciosa is by far Buxtehude's most extended composition for keyboard instrument. In 32 variations the composer unleashes his imagination on the Bergamasca, a 15th-century dance-tune from the region of Bergamo. Many 16th- and 17th - century composers took the melody and/or harmonic scheme of the Bergamasca as a starting point for a series of variations. Perhaps, being a manualiter work, La Capricciosa is firstly conceived for the harpsichord. However, if one concentrates on the variations written in an idiom appropriate for the organ, the variations 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 11, 12, 15, 20, 19, 24, 29, 30, 13 and 1 may be convincingly arranged as a cycle of 16 parts. Whilst still a boy of fourteen, Felix Mendelssohn composed the Ostinato in C minor. It is obvious that he must have modeled this work on Bach's Passacaglia in C minor. As towards the end of the piece Mendelssohn's writing seems to have become more and more sketchy, the danger of an anti-climax looms. By putting, where necessary, some flesh on the bare bones of Mendelssohn's composition, Leen De Broekert tried to bring the work to a convincing culmination. He also added a short introduction. Leen De Broekert (1949-2009) studied Piano and Organ at the Royal Academy of Music in The Hague. He graduated in both subjects. He also qualified as a harpsichord player and fortepianist with Jos van Immerseel. In 1979 he was one of the laureates of the International Contest for Organ in Bruges, with an honourable citation for his Interpretation of Bach. As a fortepianist and organist he was frequently asked for concerts in Germany as well as in Holland. He also performed in England, France, Belgium, Sweden, Austria, Italy and Switzerland and recorded several CDs both on pianoforte and organ. Leen De Broekert was the organist of the Koorkerk (Abbey church) in Middelburg. He died, at the age of sixty, after a short illness, in Middelburg on 29 July 2009.