Sigfrid Karg-Elert (born Oberndorf am Neckar, 21 Nov 1877; died Leipzig, 9 April 1933)
Op 65 no 37 Ich dank dir, lieber Herre (Antiphonie)
A long overdue addition to my Op 65 collection this time on the recent Königslutter sample.
Opus 65, 66 organ pieces composed between 1906 and 1908. They were first published in 1909 and dedicated to Alexandre Guilmant. Op 65 includes the well known Nun danket alle Gott.
Music here;
http://conquest.imslp.info/files/imglnks/usimg/f/fe/IMSLP05767-Karg-elert-65-4.pdf
The youngest of 12 children, Siegfried Karg (as he was born) came to revere J S Bach, was encouraged by Grieg and in thrall to Debussy, and became a natural heir to Wagner, Strauss and the Late Romantics. In 1916 he succeeded Reger as professor of composition at the Leipzig Conservatory. His great fecundity resulted in 158 works with opus numbers and 90 without including important additions to the sonata repertoire for flue, clarinet and saxophone, helped, no doubt, by his experiences as a German Army bandsman during the First World War. He was also prolific song-writer, leaving over 125 settings.
His favourite instrument to compose for was the Kunstharmonium, a versatile French creation that allowed him the range of colors he preferred. From 1924 he gave weekly radio harmonium recitals from his house. To see Karg-Elert's creativity and the flexibility and range of colours offered by the Kunstharmonium have a look at;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FZgplce0ZtY&frags=pl,wn