ONB-476. This piece, dating from 1992, was commissioned

by, and dedicated to Diane Meredith Belcher. The reference

to the key of "E minor" is perhaps something of a misnomer

with respect to the Prelude, whose principal thematic ideas

are founded upon an octotonic scale. The first is a freely

rhythmic, "exploratory" theme, which rises to a chordal

climax of Messiaen-like luminosity. The second is a

rhythmically incisive theme in which the right hand

and pedal (and later, all parts) play in octaves. A rhythmic

intensification features repeated chords in remote

triadic relationships, but the Prelude as a whole is

characterized by frequent returns to the root-tone. The

Fugue, though more diatonic, covers a much wider range of

tonalities. Its subject unfolds in a distinctly expansive

rhythm, consisting of two measures of 3/4, two measures of

2/2, and one measure of 3/2. This rhythmic attribute is

made even more prominent by the use of rising thirds (as in

Bach's Wir glauben all', BWV 680, the so-called "Giant's

Fugue"). After an initial exposition, the subject is again

treated systematically in two, three, and then four voices,

with a predilection for widely spaced textures. About

two-thirds of the way through, the form loosens, and a new

triplet rhythm gives rise to a final climax which includes

an augmented chordal version of the subject, and a grandly

rhetorical recollection of the theme from the opening

movement. This work is mostly not difficult, and is

accessible enough to appeal even to audiences who are not

yet completely attuned to contemporary organ music.