There are three problem areas that need to be considered when preparing for a performance of this work: obvious misprints, whether the given performance indications match the composer’s intentions and the possibility of a major error in the printed edition.
Obvious misprints are quite thin on the ground here. My own selection includes:
A mis-alignment of the hands at the 7th beat
of page 6
The last note of page 9, line 2, where perhaps
the alto B should be a semibreve to match the soprano
Page 11, line 3, bar 1, surely the pedal should
move from C via E flat and E natural to the A
in the next bar, rather than the left hand taking
over this line
Page 11, line 4, 4th beat left hand should be
A flat
Page 12, line 4, 5th beat, mis-alignment
Page 15, line 2, bar 4: I am inclined to feel that
the alto should be D natural rather than D sharp
Page 20, line 2, 3rd quaver must be E, not
D sharp
Page 22, line 1, bar 3, pedal must be C sharp
not C natural
Obvious misprints are quite thin on the ground here. My own selection includes:
A mis-
of page 6
the alto B should be a semibreve to match the soprano
Page 11, line 3, bar 1, surely the pedal should
move from C via E flat and E natural to the A
in the next bar, rather than the left hand taking
over this line
Page 11, line 4, 4th beat left hand should be
A flat
Page 12, line 4, 5th beat, mis-
the alto should be D natural rather than D sharp
Page 20, line 2, 3rd quaver must be E, not
D sharp
Page 22, line 1, bar 3, pedal must be C sharp
not C natural
Page 22, line 3, 8th quaver, alto must be F sharp
not F natural
not F natural
The performance indications in many of the later works seem to have been added to by Sceats, and one has to make inspired guesses as to what the composer actually wanted. Of course, Sceats actually knew Karg-Elert, so what he wrote could range from the composer’s particular request to Sceats’ own ideas. In Kaleidoscope it seems to me that the tempo and mood indications are probably original, whereas the metronome marks probably aren’t. That is not to say that they are wrong, just that they need not be regarded as gospel. Registration markings could similarly be either the kind of thing that the composer wanted, or something that was used on a particular organ. Particular points of interest are:
The inclusion of the Tierce in the main material at page 1, line 3. The implication is that this should be used every time the material appears, but this could be cloying. On the other hand, the piquant effect of the Tierce would make the listener aware that the material was being recapitulated. But not many organs have Tierces in enclosed divisions, so there has to be a compromise here. I personally feel that the use of an enclosed division for these sections is more important than the exact stops selected.
Another strange one is the Solo flute suggested on page 4. It simply doesn’t work against the Great at the start of the page, and perhaps it is best here to override what is written and play the start of page 4 on an enclosed division with the box shut at the entry of the flute.
The detailed changes on page 9, line 2 do work rather well, but again they probably indicated the sort of thing the composer had in mind, rather than a specific request.
The Scherzo section beginning at page 14 has very specific demands which are unlikely to be realisable on many organs, and I think we must just take these to indicate the lightness of touch required.
There seems to be one major error from page 21 into page 22. It is obvious to me (although not all members of the Archive agree) that the engraver went off for lunch having finished page 21, and slipped a line or two before starting page 22.
Time-signature, harmony and part-writing are all nonsensical. If you compare the end of page 21 with page 3, line 3, you will see that (firstly) the 5 bars of Vox humana (after which we go into 3/2) have been omitted. And (secondly) we need to modulate, since pages 4 and 22 are in different keys. My version reinstates the 5 missing bars, and then adds another two which take us from the G major tonality which starts page 4 to the A minor-ish tonality which begins page 22:
The inclusion of the Tierce in the main material at page 1, line 3. The implication is that this should be used every time the material appears, but this could be cloying. On the other hand, the piquant effect of the Tierce would make the listener aware that the material was being recapitulated. But not many organs have Tierces in enclosed divisions, so there has to be a compromise here. I personally feel that the use of an enclosed division for these sections is more important than the exact stops selected.
Another strange one is the Solo flute suggested on page 4. It simply doesn’t work against the Great at the start of the page, and perhaps it is best here to override what is written and play the start of page 4 on an enclosed division with the box shut at the entry of the flute.
The detailed changes on page 9, line 2 do work rather well, but again they probably indicated the sort of thing the composer had in mind, rather than a specific request.
The Scherzo section beginning at page 14 has very specific demands which are unlikely to be realisable on many organs, and I think we must just take these to indicate the lightness of touch required.
There seems to be one
Time-
It is only one possible solution, and if someone else has a better, I would be delighted to hand over the laurels.
