Announcing an exciting recording project

A “confluence” of colours and composers on a historic instrument

Message from Larry Beckwith

I have known and admired organist, conductor and composer Matthew Larkin since our paths crossed briefly as undergraduate music students at the University of Toronto more than a few years ago, and I have followed his career with keen interest. In recent years, we have had occasion to collaborate — at the Confluence launch event and in January 2019 when he was a featured artist in our presentation Centuries of Souls — and I have experienced first hand the absolute magic that happens when Matthew tucks into a piece of music.

He has a rare, profound and unencumbered connection to the mysteries of music, and a special eloquence I know his many admirers appreciate very deeply. His brilliance needs to be captured on recording.

Matthew has proposed a typically exciting, eclectic and powerful program, and we plan to start recording in mid-June, in these days of social distancing when public concerts are on hold. 

To do this properly, we will need to raise $7,500, which will go to rental fees, engineering, mastering, post-production, promotion and – we are insisting – a respectable fee for the performing artist. 

The Board of Directors of Confluence Concerts have enthusiastically approved our organizational support for this significant project. Every donation will be acknowledged by a charitable tax receipt and we will find other ways to thank you, the many “recording angels” we know will support this project generously. I should also emphasize that every single penny raised will go directly to this project.

In his letter below, Matthew talks about the instrument and the repertoire planned. He is eloquent, self-effacing, humble. I would like to be more direct:

Please give generously to this important recording. It will be a gift to the musical world that we will all treasure for years to come. 

Larry

To support the project, you can:

Donate online by clicking the button below (a tax receipt will be automatically emailed)

OR

Mail a cheque (payable to Confluence Concerts and noting Recording Fund on the memo line) to Confluence Concerts, 383 Huron St., Toronto, ON, M5S 2G5 (a tax receipt will be mailed).

If you have questions, please contact julia@confluenceconcerts.ca

Listen to Matthew at the organ of St. Paul’s Anglican Church Toronto, where we will record

The conclusion of Healey Willan’s Prelude and Fugue in C Minor, St. Paul’s Church, Toronto, January 2020

Message from organist Matthew Larkin

I hope that everyone is well, staying healthy, and staying positive through these very challenging times. I've been keeping myself busy with a series of live-streamed performances, “virtual” choir productions, and much more, biding my time until we can perform again in public. 

Circumstances being what they are, it hasn't been possible to think beyond any given day, but a longtime project, long since shelved, has shown signs of roaring back to life. I'm excited to tell you about it.

A few years ago, when I was doing some recording for Naxos, they approached me with the idea of recording the organ works of Healey Willan, the release of which would coincide with the fiftieth anniversary of his death. I agreed enthusiastically to the proposal, and as 2018 drew nearer, I began to plan repertoire, and to think about organs that would be suitable for this purpose. Well, none of this ended up happening. Naxos backed off the project, first because of some industry restructuring, and then secondly because of some time-sensitive projects they were anxious to complete before moving on to newer ones. I resigned myself at that point just to let the idea go, and forget about it.

Well, as fortune would have it, two very good friends and colleagues have worked assiduously to persuade me to think again about doing a recording of organ works, and while the notion of this has been through some iterations, we are getting set to begin this project in June, under the sponsorship of Toronto's Confluence Concerts. 

I am scheduled to record a collection of works that will offer the full kaleidoscope of organ colours and sounds, on one of Canada’s most historic and iconic instruments, the Casavant Opus 550 instrument, at St. Paul’s Anglican Church, Bloor Street, Toronto. 

Luminaries Healey Willan, Charles Peaker, and John Tuttle have served as organists at St. Paul's, and the organ has been played by some of the world's finest recitalists over the years, including E. Power Biggs, Sir Ernest MacMillan, Francis Jackson, Marie-Claire Alain, Diane Bish, Virgil Fox, David Briggs, and so many others. This was my go-to practice and lesson instrument during my time as John Tuttle's student at the University of Toronto, and I have been privileged to play it in concert on dozens of occasions over the years, most recently in a series organized by the current music director of St. Paul's, Thomas Bell.

The list of pieces, while not as yet finalized, may include works by Ager, Bach, Couperin, Duruflé, Elgar, Franck, Howells, Jarrett, Larkin, Mahler, Messiaen, Peeters, Reger, Vaughan Williams, and yes, Healey Willan.

Confluence Concerts’ Artistic Producer Larry Beckwith has been an esteemed colleague and friend for over thirty years. He and board member Julia Armstrong are offering the opportunity to be part of the stewardship of this production, by way of financial sponsorship. All contributions would be fully tax deductible, through Confluence Concerts. If you would like to support this exciting venture, you can do so below.

With sincere thanks, and very best wishes,

Matthew Larkin, FRCCO, STD
Founding Artistic Director,
CAELIS Academy Ensemble, Ottawa
Concert Organist and Conductor
613-862-4106