Dale Carr | Hinno Aue maris stella by Girolamo Frescobaldi performed by Dale Carr in Pilsum on 5 May, 2007 @dalecarr6361 | Uploaded April 2022 | Updated October 2024, 3 hours ago.
Hinno Aue maris stella by Girolamo Frescobaldi {1583-1643}, from his Secondo Libro di Toccate {&c.} {Roma, 1637};
performed by Dale Carr on the organ in St. Stephanus (Kreuzkirche) in Pilsum {Ostfriesland} on 5 May, 2007

The hymn consists of 4 melodic phrases, each of which is recognizable in each of the 4 verses. But there is no formal exposition of a subject; the verses are more like improvisatory musings on the available motives, in more or less the 'right' order, but not always; and the different subjects often overlap. Occasionally a secondary subject, unrelated to the hymn, is introduced, and even treated in inversion, but it may disappear after 2 or 3 statements. The scale is so small that there's no time for 'development': each verse lasts but a minute. The texture is sparse: when a voice finishes stating a motive, it often drops out until it is needed again; it may even stop before completing the motive.

The polyphony is heard clearly, but since the works were published in a book of toccatas, the placement of notes on the staves indicates which *hand* plays a note rather than which *voice* the note belongs to: the rests in the voices are often not indicated.

The organ in Pilsum {2 manuals & pull-down pedals} was made by Valentin Ulrich Grotrian in 1694, revised in 1772 by Dirk Lohman, & restored in 1991 by Jürgen Ahrend.

Registrations:
1. 8' Principal {Werck}
2. 4' Gedaktflöte {Brustpositiv}
3. 8' Regal, 4' Gedaktflöte {Brustpositiv}
4. 8' Gedakt, 4' Gedaktflöte, 2' Super-Octav, 1½' Quint {Brustpositiv}