Reger: Organ Sonata No. 2 / Organ Pieces, Op. 65 / Chorale Fantasia No. 2, Op. 52

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Cat No: 8557186

Release Date: 02 January 2005

Label: Naxos - Nxc / Naxos Classics

Packaging Type: Jewel Case

No of Units: 1

Barcode: 747313218622

Genres: Classical

Composer/Series: REGER

Description
Max Reger (1873-1916): Organ Works 5Organ Sonata in D minor, Op. 60 Organ Pieces, Op. 65, Nos. 7-12Chorale Fantasia on 'Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme', Op. 52, No. 2Max Reger owed his earlier interest in music to theexample and enthusiasm of his father, a schoolmasterand amateur musician, and his early training to the townorganist of Weiden, Adalbert Lindner. Reger was bornin 1873 at Brand in the Upper Palatinate, Bavaria. Thefollowing year the family moved to Weiden and it wasthere that he spent his childhood and adolescence,embarking on a course of training as a teacher when heleft school. Lindner had sent examples of Reger's earlycompositions to his own former teacher, Hugo Riemann,who accepted Reger as a pupil, at first in Sondershausenand then, as his assistant, in Wiesbaden. Militaryservice, which affected Reger's health and spirits, wasfollowed by a period at home with his parents in Weidenand a continuing series of compositions, in particular forthe organ, including a monumental series of choralefantasias and other compositions, often, it seems,designed to challenge the technique of his friend KarlStraube, a noted performer of Reger's organ music.In 1901 Reger moved to Munich, where he spent thenext six years. His position in musical life was in someways an uneasy one, since he was seen as a champion ofabsolute music and as hostile, at this time, to programmemusic, to the legacy of Wagner and Liszt. He wassuccessful, however, as a pianist and was gradually ableto find an audience for his music. The period in Munichbrought the composition of his Sinfonietta, of chambermusic, and of fine sets of keyboard variations on themesby Bach and Beethoven, followed in later years by hiswell-known variations on a theme by Mozart.1907 brought a change in Reger's life, when he tookthe position of professor of composition at theUniversity of Leipzig, at a time when his music wasreaching a much wider public. This was supported by hisown distinction as a performer and concert appearancesin London, St Petersburg, the Netherlands, and Austria,and throughout Germany. In 1911 he was invited by theDuke of Saxe-Meiningen to become conductor of thecourt orchestra, an ensemble established by Hans vonB??low and once conducted by Richard Strauss, at theoutset of his career. Reger held this position until thebeginning of the war, when the orchestra was disbanded,an event that coincided with his own earlier intention toresign. He spent his final years based in Jena, butcontinuing his active career as a composer and as aconcert performer. He died in Leipzig in May 1916 onhis way back from a concert tour of the Netherlands.The music of Max Reger has a special position inorgan repertoire, and he is regarded by many as thegreatest German composer of organ music since Bach. ACatholic himself, he nevertheless drew on Lutherantradition and the rich store of chorales, the inspirationfor chorale preludes, chorale fantasias and other works.The esteem in which his organ comp
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