Carson Cooman is many things musical – organist and Composer in Residence at the Memorial Church, Harvard University; writer, critic and consultant, concert organist, and above all a highly prolific composer of music in a wide variety of genres, from orchestral to song. Recent counts show over 3000 tracks of his music available online with over 300 compositions written for him by more than 100 composers. His organ compositions come in many styles, from liturgical models, to substantial secular pieces such as his organ symphonies, preludes and fugues. On this album a range of works, most composed between 2013 and 2020, wonderfully realized on a fabulous instrument. Erik Simmons is a superb organist, making his 14th Cooman organ album for Divine Art. We hear the gorgeous voices of the organ of Propsteikirche St. Ludgerus in Billerbeck, Germany, recorded through the Hauptwerk system.

July 17, 2019, marks the date Christ Cathedral (formerly the Crystal Cathedral) is dedicated to be the liturgical and artistic center for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange. The music for that service is presented here, which includes many original works commissioned for the occasion. Dr. John A. Romeri is the Director of Music and Organist for Christ Cathedral, Los Angeles. He is the conductor of the newly-formed Cathedral Choir, Vietnamese Cathedral Choir, Diocesan Children’s Choir, and the Diocesan Adult Choir. Dr. Romeri earned a Bachelor of Music degree in Organ Performance, Magna cum Laude, from the Conservatory of Music, University of the Pacific, Stockton, California, and a Master of Sacred Music degree from Westminster Choir College, Princeton, New Jersey. Juilliard-trained organist David L. Ball serves as organist and assistant director of music at Christ Cathedral. David completed both the Bachelor and Master of Music at The Juilliard School in New York City, studying under Mr. Paul Jacobs. He was recently named one of The Diapason’s 20 under 30.

How fascinating must it have sounded when Johann Sebastian Bach competed with an entire orchestra at the organ? Under the direction of Jörg Halubek, the baroque ensemble il Gusto Barocco becomes a musical think tank. Together, they attempt to reconstruct three of Bach's organ concertos, which today are primarily treated as harpsichord concertos. The recordings of the soloist ensemble presented here convey a tangible and unique impression thereof.

Petr Eben (1929 – 2007) was born in Žamberk, northeastern Bohemia. The son of two teachers, he studied music from an early age, becoming “conscripted” as organist when the men from his town were away at war. Eben was raised in his mother’s Catholic faith but because of his father’s Jewish heritage he was captured and imprisoned by the Nazis in Buchenwald, remaining there for the duration of the war. After the war he was admitted to the Prague Academy for Music, and there he studied piano with František Rauch and composition with Pavel Borkovec. A rising star, he refused to join the Czech Communist Party and continued openly attending church, thus forfeiting many career advancements before 1989. After the Communist government crumbled, however, he was given several important appointments and awards, among them presidency of the Prague Spring Festival (1989). In 1991, Eben was awarded the title of Knight of the French Ministry of Culture, Arts and Letters, evidence of his manifold international contributions to the art of music and cause of artistic freedom.

Over more than half a century Eben produced music in diverse genres. He wrote numerous vocal, choral, symphonic, piano, and chamber works, but it was organ music which remained his greatest love and in which he was most prolific. Stylistically, Eben was uncompromising when others were willing to write politically correct music. Eben was considered a master at improvisation on the organ and his music has been widely performed and recorded since about 1980, with his popularity still apparently on the rise. Janette Fishell is Professor of Organ and Chair of the Organ Department at the Jacobs School of Music, Indiana University, where she teaches Applied Organ and Organ Pedagogy.