INTERNATIONAL RECORD REVIEW:
David Hamilton offers as good a cross-section of Buxtehude’s organ music as one could wish for, and does so with conviction. All the old favourites are here, not least the delightful Gigue fugue in C, which dances as happily and freshly here as a new-born lamb – and the balance between the extended praeludiae and the more intimate chorale-based works seems ideal. Hamilton, whose credentials for recording Buxtehude (if one needs such things) include periods spent studying at the North-German Organ Academy, sets his cards out straight away woth a solid account of the famous G minor Praeludium. Statuesque and grandiloquent, it lacks the improvisatory panache of Bine Bryndorf (on Dacapo), and certainly has none of the sheer excitement of Lionel Rogg’s seminal 1960s recording of the work on EMI, but in his slow, measured way, Hamilton reveals the music’s inner strength and underlying power. In his careful weighting of every note and painstakingly precise realization of each improvisatory flourish – not least the cadenza-like passage leading to the final cadence- there is a danger of ponderousness, but any such tendency is prevented by the wonderfully forthright tomes of the 2004 Bernard Aubertin organ of Aberdeen University’s King’s College Chapel.

This lovely organ, full of beautifully voiced and perfectly complementary stops, comes very much into its own with the more delicate chorale-like works. There’s a captivating set of variations on Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern, which sparkles like the brightest morning star, while a chirpy solo registration transforms the all-too-often pedestrian prelude on Vater unser in Himmelreich. Perhaps some of the most magical organ sound comes in Nun lob mein Seel’ den Herren, where Hamilton is clearly relishing the lovely collection of sounds at his disposal. All this is caught with impeccable presence and realism by Divine Art’s recording; like the playing, it’s unspectacular but all the more worthwhile for that. There is no doubt that the principal focus here is the music itself rather than the sound (lovely as it is) of the organ, or the personal virtuosity (about which I have no doubt) of the player.

The best performances come with a powerfully paced and gloriously fluent account of the Ciacona in C minor (where, for the only time, some extraneous action noise creates a slight distraction) and the Magnificat primi toni, which perfectly combines celebratory gestures with more intimate reflection; this performance reveals it to be nothing other than a vivid song without words, the almost human tones of the organ lending it even greater charm.

All in all, this is a thoroughly enjoyable disc, and, coupled with some immensely readable and fascinating notes (complete with welcome musical illustrations) from Hamilton himself, it is one of the more imposing releases in this Buxtehude tercentenary year.
Marc Rochester

GRAMOPHONE:
This CD could be subtitled “Buxtehude’s Greatest Hits” as it consists of some of the composer’s most characteristic and best –known organ works. The programme contains three types of pieces: short intimate chorale preludes, longer multi-sectioned chorale fantasias with vivid word-painting, and dramatic preludes, fugues and chaconnes.

David Hamilton’s impeccable performances serve the composer wells noticeable that allegro passages aren’t played too fast, thus allowing the music to speak clearly and strongly. On the other hand, the fugues in G minor and F sharp minor are a little on the slow side, and another small reservation I have is the frequent stop changes in the C minor Ciacona. One can understand Hamilton’s eagerness to show off the may colours of the wonderful Aubertin organ but there’s already plenty of variety in Buxtehude’s colourful and inventive writing. On the plus side, Hamilton;s well paced performance of the C major prelude is first-rate, while the C major Gigue fugue dances beautifully.

Hamilton’s measured and unfussy approach to Buxtehude is heard at its best in all the chorale-based compositions and he finds some lovely sounds from the 2004 three-manual organ. This outstanding instrument is one of the most important new organs to have appeared in Britain recently and the opportunity to hear it on CD is a cause for rejoicing. Hamilton provides exemplary programme notes and this CD is certainly a worthy addition to the Buxtehude discography.
Christopher Nickol

CHOIR AND ORGAN:
To mark the tercentenary of Buxtehude’s death, recordings of his output flow as never before. If you know little of his organ music, the most fascinating and original of the generation before Bach, then this recording is as good a selection as any. Three contrasting examples of Buxtehude’s Preludes (in G minor, C major and F sharp minor) and the splendid C minor Ciaconna are interspersed with a selection of attractive chorale preludes, including a charming account of “In dulci jubilo”. The programme is expertly played by David Hamilton, a specialist in this repertoire, on an ideal instrument. ×××××
Philip Reed

MUSICWEB:
Although Buxtehude composed a significant amount of vocal music and a small amount of chamber music, his reputation as a composer really lies in his compositional output for the organ. Indeed, he was the greatest precursor to J.S. Bach as a composer for organ, and had a significant influence on the following generation notably J.S. Bach himself.

Aside from the appropriate year of release – 2007 marks the tercentenary of Buxtehude’s death – this CD is a well-chosen and varied collection of some of Buxtehude’s finest organ works. There is representation of some of his larger scale Praeludiae, which are composed in the stylus phantasticus – a form that incorporates toccata-like sections, virtuoso passage-work and fugues; and also smaller chorale-based works which tend towards the devotional and prayerful. The majesty of the fine organ at the King’s Chapel, Aberdeen can be heard in these large-scale works, none more so than in the opening and concluding tracks, but it is a pity that the wonderfully named Buzene pedal reed (a type of trombone stop) is absent at the end of the Praeludium in F sharp minor, BuxWV146. The Magnificat primi toni,BuxWV203, showcases the instrument’s range of reed stops, while the dialogue between the different werk of the organ in Non lob, mein Seel’ den Herren, BuxWV212 highlights the versatility of the instrument, not to mention Hamilton’s thoughtful registrations. A highlight for me is the Fuga in C major, BuxWV174 , a perky fugue which simply utilises a delightful 4ft flute.

David Hamilton is clearly something of a specialist in this genre, his meticulous playing and well-researched sleeve notes being obvious indications of this. The extremely informative and detailed sleeve notes written by the performer add considerable interest to those concerned with the more technical and academic analysis of the construction of the works.
Max Kenworthy

NEW CLASSICS:
Diderich ‘Hansen’ Buxtehude (1637–1707) was born in Denmark, and was active as an organist, composer, and cultural entrepreneur in Denmark and Sweden as well as in Germany, where he became known as Dieterich Buxtehude. He grew up in Helsingør, Denmark, and served as organist in Helsingborg (now in Sweden) and Helsingør before accepting one of the most prestigious musical positions in North Germany, that of organist at St. Mary’s Church, Lübeck, in 1668. During his nearly forty years of service there he achieved fame not only as an organist but also as the composer and director of a concert series known as the Lübeck Abendmusiken. Although he left an impressive corpus of arias, sacred concertos, and cantatas for voices with instruments as well as two printed editions of sonatas for strings, it is chiefly his organ works that captured the attention of performers both in his day and in our own. Marking the tercentenary of Buxtehude’s death, this CD features fine new performances of thirteen of the great baroque master’s organ works, recorded by David Hamilton and played on the Aubertin organ at the University of Aberdeen. David Hamilton studied at the University of Glasgow, the North-German Organ Academy and Zwolle Conservatory, and has performed throughout western Europe as well as in North America and Russia. He has a particular interest in music of the north-German Baroque (Sweelinck-Buxtehude) and this album makes an excellent introduction to a composer who paved the way for the great J S Bach.
Unnamed reviewer