Niels Rosing-Schow

Triptykon / Triptych

Triptykon / Triptych for Organ solo by Niels Rosing-Schow. Triptych is written for the celebration of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation in 2017, commissioned by The Danish Society of Organists and Cantors. From the preface: The three movements of the work are musical images or situations, with the middle one, Toccata, as its axis. The latter is intended as an image of the dispute between Luther and the ecclesiastical authorities, which is the origin of the Reformation. Two of Luther's Reformation Hymns are more or less palpably present in the music. The other two movements can be regarded as 'before' and 'after'. The first, Exordíum, is a 'fluid' situation, but also a preparation, which gradually accumulates a suspense pointing towards the discharge of energy of the Toccata. The third movement, Hymn, represents a serene situation, where a wealth of hymnal fragments grows out of an underlying structure, repeated several times (technically speaking, a passacaglia). There are also elements, however, which are derived from the previous movements. Niels Rosing-Schow (2016)