James Lancelot - Sweelinck: Works for Organ (2020)

For too long, Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck’s reputation has rested almost entirely on two works – the harpsichord variations on the secular song Mein junges Leben hat ein’ End’ and the Christmas motet Hodie Christus natus est. Yet in his day Sweelinck was revered as the pre-eminent organ teacher (“the maker of organists”, as he was known in Germany) and a master of improvisation (“the Orpheus of Amsterdam”). If those gifts have understandably been forgotten with the passage of time, it is nevertheless harder to comprehend the neglect of his compositions, both vocal and keyboard. This recording sets out to try to remedy the situation as regards the organ works.