Interlude on "Picardy"

Inspired by Agnus Dei's recent uploads of some hymn tune voluntaries by Henry Coleman, I've reached for another of his collections of hymn-based compositions.

Published in 1961 by OUP, Coleman's "24 Interludes based on Communion Hymn Tunes" is a collection of gems in miniature. I bought my copy in 1975 during my second year as a parish organist - which was also my first year of formal organ study.

All these lovely preludes are written on 2 staves with optional pedal. They were immensely useful to me as a beginner organist, especially since I was pretty well thrown in the deep end with minimal support at my first appointment.

Here's just one of them - a haunting rendition of "Picardy".

The Salisbury sample set does a far better job than the mediocre instrument I played back in then. Registration is at the player's discretion - I start out on the Choir diapasons 8 and 4, moving later to the Great 2nd Diapason and 2nd Principal 4, then ending on a cluster of 8-foot stops (including the Oboe) on the Swell. Score and MIDI file are attached.