Musical contribution - October 2020

Trio sonata in B-flat major (part 3) Gottfried Heinrich Stölzel (1690-1749)

Here at last is the third part of the Trio Sonata. In terms of registration, we will treat this third part in the same way we did the first part. The following is what I wrote about it last year:

When playing a trio, all stops are equal. It doesn’t matter what registration you use, as long as they are roughly equivalent in strength. These may include:

-2 x flute 8’ and 4’ and pedal board 16’, 8’.

-8’, 4’ instead of 8’, 2’

-8’, 3’ instead of 8’, 2’

-8’, 4’ instead of a reed

-8’, 4’, 2’ instead of 8’, 4’ sesquialtera

- and so on.

You can achieve the most beautiful effect if the first and last parts of a Trio Sonata are transparent.

Personally, I try to keep a third part a little more light-hearted than a first part, so that the closing part feels like something of a finale.

If you’ve got a taste for this composer’s work, I’m afraid I’m going to have to disappoint you. Apart from one other work (Trio Sonata in C), there is little or nothing else for the organ among his extensive oeuvre. So we will just have to make do with this. Enjoy!

Warm regards,

André van Vliet