Mobile Toccata
As part of the Calgary International Organ Festival,
finalists compete for the improvisation prize. The 1998 prize was awarded to Aaron David
Miller for his interpretation of a rather quirky musical gesture, which we have called
Mobile Toccata.
Simon Preston, head of the Jury at the Calgary
International Organ Festival, dealt with any musical queries and he gave Aaron David
Miller an envelope shortly before his improvisation. A fragment of music was inside, which
later became one of the jokes of the festival, as it was a theme taken from Simon
Prestons mobile phone consisting of 13 notes in total. On opening the envelope,
Aaron David Miller was given 7 minutes to think about how to treat the theme, which
registrations to choose and how to develop it, and he decided to treat it as a French
toccata (a common method for improvisation).