A guide to organ music /

A chronologically arranged series of descriptions of the careers/works of a selection of organ composers. Lukas is less thorough than C.R. Arnold, Organ Literature (CH, Oct'84): no bibliography, Arnold has 41 pages; about 65 publishers identified only by city, Arnold locates more than 300 with full addresses; fewer work-titles and anthology-inclusions for each composer; about 300 composers, Arnold includes about 2,000. Arnold also gives many plate-numbers. Lukas includes musical examples, many of doubtful usefulness (though those for J.S. Bach chorale settings are good in quoting not themes but characteristic figurations). Omissions are inexplicable (e.g., Bach's "Herzlich tut mich verlangen"); and many of Lukas's preferences (positive and negative) can annoy those with different opinions (Arnold maintains an even-handed lack of critical "juiciness"). Arrangement is not always intelligible: BWV 599-644, 669-689, 651-668, 645-650--why not in strict BWV order? The index is arranged by these published groups and thus adds nothing, i.e., individual titles are thus more difficult to find. Currency is improved by Lee Garrett's 17-page addendum on British and American composers (with unexpectedly long quotes). Although competing works such as Arnold have their own serious flaws, Lukas can be recommended only for exhaustive collections. -J. M. Perreault, University of Alabama in Huntsville