Visit to Norway
On my recent visit to Norway, I was very struck with beautiful surroundings between airport and hotel, a journey taking 2 hours, involving long, deep tunnels, a very efficient ferry service across a large fjord, and observing housing at largely low level. It felt like rural parts of Scotland. Being Pentecost weekend, like the UK, it is a bank holiday, so shops were closed and streets empty. Apart from a little late night revelry, which affected those on the front and side of the hotel, it was quiet, civilised and very refreshing. Any new and obvious developments seemed to be the result of wealth created by the oil industry.
Two churches were the venues for two concerts and a Sunday service.
Our Saviour’s Church in the centre of Haugesund was large, lofty, spacious, clean, very well cared for, warm and inviting. In the west gallery was a new three manual and pedal classical tracker action organ built by the Dutch company Verscheuren Orgelbau, replacing the 1950’s Steinmeyer organ. At the front, is a new single manual and pedal chamber organ by Robert Gustavsson. Both organs are lovely to play. The chamber organ was used to accompany Purcell anthems, and as the choir left the church, an organ lesson on the west gallery organ had already started.
Click the the link to see these two organs: http://www.slickpic.com/share/jI,NMzNTTTGwOQ/albums/Haugesund/?wallpaper&play.
St Olav’s Church in Avaldsnes dates from medieval times, and is where the kings of Norway came from. Situated at the top of a hill, it can be seen for miles around, accessible by road via a large bridge. At the bottom of the hill is a Viking settlement. There were two organs, a larger west end organ in the gallery by the Danish company, Marcussen, a two manual and pedal classical tracker action organ and at the front, a single manual and pedal tracker action organ, also by Marcussen. Again, very lovely to play and look at. Organs are clearly valued!
Click the link to these two organs: http://www.slickpic.com/share/Ny3zEjmNxM1Iyc/albums/Alvasdnes/?wallpaper&play
Playing the organ for the Lutheran service was such a thrill. I was grateful for the experience of playing for services at the Norwegian Church in Rotherhithe from time to time. For the concerts in particular, audiences filled the pews, and were enthusiastic in their reception of the choir, Concordia, who sang a varied programme of English and Russian music, including Purcell, Vaughan Williams, Holst, Cecilia Macdowell, and Hristov, Dubra and Rachmaninov. Fitting the choir into the building for the concerts was no problem, as singers could stand in the chancel, but for the service the choir had to sit in the front pews, turning round to face the congregation when anthems were sung at three points in the service.
Congregational singing is traditional and strong, and the resident organist, Arnfinn Tobiassen, a former organ scholar at St Michael’s Croydon, was content to let parishioners sing communion hymns in harmony with no conductor. This was a real lesson in allowing people just to sing hymns in harmony on their own with no lead. Does this happen in any of our churches?
Given quiet surroundings, and the miles between what looked like small settlements, it was heartening to see large numbers of people turning up to the service and the concerts. They appeared and disappeared, almost into thin air, and were appreciative of their English visitors. Everything was dignified and simple, and their classical organs very grand indeed.
Marilyn Harper
