Lasting just two minutes, this music nevertheless whips up a sense of epic adventure! That's why it's been so widely used for sports events, film & video game trailers, commercials and festivals.
This organ arrangement starts with a sombre, hymn-like introduction as we prepare for the adventure to come. The volume and excitement then quickly build until we hit finally Full Organ on a suitably epic final chord. You could paraphrase the thematic progression of the music in three words: trepidation, exhilaration, splat. Hence the thumbnail.
The increased intensity of pedal notes from 1:23 onwards, repeated in octaves, reflects a racing pulse rate as our musical sky-dive nears its inevitable, earthly conclusion ...
On a personal note given the title of this track ... I remember first playing the organ at Christ Church for two consecutive morning services when I was around 16 years old. I was terrified by the sheer size of the instrument and by the fact that it involved such a huge physical effort to play compared with more modern instruments with their programmable thumb pistons, crescendo pedals and the like. It was massively daunting to sit at this venerable Victorian console and be expected to play hymns, psalms and voluntaries ... and I don't expect that I did a particularly good job of it back in 1981! Moving on, I was appointed organist here some 15 years later and, over almost 30 years since then, I've grown to appreciate this fantastic instrument as an absolute musical wonder. What was once terrifying is now something like a marriage. I hope this love comes across in my videos.
Played by Paul Broadhurst on the vintage "Father Willis" organ of Christ Church, Birkenhead, UK.
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