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Abstract
This document considers the advantages and disadvantages of the historical and modern approaches to touch and articulation on the organ. The chapter on Touch and Articulation in Historical Perspective, provides an introduction to the topic and review of the literature on touch and articulation. It cites primary sources from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, particularly those written in English or available in English translation, and also reviews the secondary literature on eighteenth- and nineteenthcentury performance practice. The next chapter, Approach to Teaching Touch and Articulation, is a comparative study of four widely-used contemporary organ methods. It compares the ways in which various methods are influenced by historically informed approaches to performance practice, the style of touch they recommend, and the kinds of exercises they include. The final chapter, Conclusions and Recommendations, states my own approach to teaching touch and articulation including recommendations of original literature useful for this purpose. The document concludes with a bibliography of primary sources, secondary sources, and pedagogical works.