Meditation on "Amazing Grace"

I have no information at all for the American organist and composer, Claude Leon Murphree, except for his dates. He was born in 1906, and died on June 17, 1958.

The "Meditation on 'Amazing Grace'" was published by J. Fischer & Bro. in 1951. It is Dedicated to Dr. Elbert Adams.

The work is somewhat "fussy" and will require some "nimble handling" as there are CONSTANT "oscillating" chords, and a fair number of "details" to get right, or it can sound stiff.

I would not suggest that you "sight read this" for a Lenten prelude, or you may find yourself surprised - and more than once. :-)

In order to play this, you'll need a full 61-note manual compass, or figure out how to work around this at the end.

Salisbury may not be the "perfect choice" for this, but nothing can match the quality, color, and variety of the solo stops, which are needed in this piece.

Also, there are two mistakes in the score:

On the first page, the left hand remains in the treble clef until the start of the melody on the second system. At the end of the first page, the "quarter note rest" in the pedal in the third measure, fourth system is correct, so, "remove the dot" from the dotted-half D. :-)

The score is attached below, as well as a picture of Leon Claude Muphree.

The organ he is playing looks like a Wicks or a Tellers, based upon the console "markings," but I have no idea.

COMING SOON for the first day of spring, "Idyll No. 1" by Alan Gray.