All-French Recital Programme (50 Minutes)

All-French Recital programme (50 minutes)

Prélude et Fugue in B major (Op. 99, No. 2) Camille Saint-Saëns

Récit de Tierce en taille (from the Gloria) Nicolas de Grigny

Offerte du cinquième ton « Le Vive le Roy des Parisiens » André Raison

Allegro vivace (from Symphonie No. 5 in F minor: Op. 42, No. 1) Charles-Marie Widor

Impromptu (Pièces de fantaisie, Suite No. 3: Op. 54, No. 2) Louis Vierne

Deuxième Prélude Profane Jehan Alain

Transports de joie (from L’Ascension) Olivier Messiaen

Born in Paris, Camille Saint-Saëns (1835-1921) was an highly regarded pianist, organist and composer, who was a central figure of the Belle Époque movement. So fine a musician was he, that the revered piano virtuoso Franz Liszt proclaimed Saint-Saëns to be the finest he had ever heard. He was organist of L’église de la Madeleine, Paris, and despite serving the church for twenty years, producing a number of outstanding compositions for organ, Saint-Saëns is often only known for his Symphony No. 3 in C minor, Op. 78 ‘Organ Symphony', leaving many fine works in the shadows.

Following almost a thirty-year hiatus of organ composition, the Trois Préludes et Fugues (Op. 99) were written in 1894. The second of this set, and arguably the most popular, Prélude et Fugue in B major, was dedicated to fellow French organist Alexandre Guilmant. The Prélude, reminiscent of salon music, floats along elegantly, with gentle flutes and strings accompanying a beautiful cantabile melody, heard in canon between the left-hand and pedals. To contrast, Saint-Saëns presents a more characterful and playful fugue subject, in a fugue that builds with intensity and excitement towards the end.

Nicolas de Grigny (1672-1703) is regarded as one of the greatest organists and composers of his time. Due to his short life-span (following his untimely death at the age of 31), his compositional output is modest, with the only surviving organ music, Premier Livre d’Orgue (1699), a collection of music for the mass, as well as five hymn settings.

The music for the mass consists of: 5 Kyrie versets, 9 Gloria versets, an Offertory, 2 Sanctus versets, an Elévation, 2 Agnus Dei versets, a Communion, and an Ite Missa Est verset. In France at this time, the organ versets would have been interspersed with sung plainchant, following the alternatim tradition.

The Récit de tierce en taille is the fourth verset from the Gloria. The opening descending arpeggiaic motive is imitated through the parts, before sequential figures lead to rising roulades. The music begins to slow down, as more static harmony is held over a recitative style melody. One of the most controversial parts of any of the French Baroque repertoire exists in this piece. In Bar 35, the last seven notes of the solo tierce are extraordinarily expressive, and perhaps slightly out of character. It is believed that these are in fact printed a tone too high. J.S. Bach copied this passage from the original precisely, however J.G. Walther decided to amend it a tone lower.

André Raison (c. 1640-1719) was an influential figure of French organ music, and described as one of the highest-ranked organists of his time. Educated at the seminary of the Church of St. Geneviève, Rasion states in the preface to his Premier Livre d’Orgue (1688) that the seminary was the place where he found his purpose of his life. A deeply religious man, his musical output was limited to just two collections, the Premier Livre d’Orgue, 1688 containing music for the liturgy, and the Deuxième Livre d’Orgue in 1714 containing predominantly noëls.

The Offerte du cinquième ton « Le Vive le Roy des Parisiens », was written in 1687 to celebrate the recovery of King Louis XIV, following an operation to remove an anal fistula, without the aid of anaesthetic. This multi-sectional piece exploits the various colours and idioms of the French Classical organ and period, with the Grand Jeu, Duo, Trio and Trompette en taille. The final section sees a four- note motif repeated, with the words ‘Vive le Roy’ (‘Long live the King’) written above the relevant notes in the score.

With the rise of the organ builder Aristide Cavaillé-Coll, composer and organist, Charles-Marie Widor (1844-1937) revived and developed French organ music. He was a particularly influential figure as Professor of Organ and Composition at the Paris Conservatoire, and long-time organist at Saint-Sulpice.

It was his position at Saint-Sulpice, and the masterwork Cavaillé-Coll inside that inspired him to write ten symphonies, with the warm, symphonic sound that resonated around the building. Symphonie No. 5 in F minor, Op. 42, No. 1 is, arguably, his most popular symphony, with the final movement, Toccata, often played as a stand-alone piece. Composed in 1879, and first performed by the composer at the Palais du Trocadéro; the first movement, Allegro vivace, comprises of a theme and variations. The main theme is stated softly on the swell organ, before three variations, lead to a section on the foundation stops. A Scherzo-like variation sets up a thrilling crescendo to the reinstatement of the theme on full organ.

French organist and composer, Louis Vierne (1870-1937), was the titular organist of Notre-Dame de Paris between 1900-1937. The 24 Pièces de Fantaisie, Op. 54 were composed between 1926-1927 and contain some of Vierne’s most varied and elegant compositions. Each of the four suites contain six pieces, however, unlike his 24 Pièces en style libre, Op. 31 with a piece in each major and minor key, there is no significance regarding tonalities.

One of the better-known compositions from the collection is the Impromptu, with its improvisatory character, as the title suggests. The piece is in ABABA form, with the A sections comprising of fast semiquaver figures, and the B section with an homophonic chordal texture above a pedal ostinato. The lack of a tonal centre, presented in the semiquaver flourishes, successfully creates a mystical atmosphere, underpinned with a sense of anxiety and uncertainty. Despite this tonal ambiguity, Vierne decides to settle on an F major chord, which helps create a sense of stability amongst the chromatic haze.

Despite only living to the age of 29, the musical output of Jehan Alain (1911-1940) is modest but frequently played. His compositional style was influenced by composers such as Olivier Messiaen, and Claude Debussy, in addition to interests in the culture of the far east, particularly following the Paris Colonial Exhibition of 1931.

The two Préludes Profanes were originally scored for piano, containing the titles ‘Wieder an’ and ‘Und jetzt’. Alain then scored them for the organ in 1933, changing both of the markings to ‘Andante’. The Deuxième Prélude Profane has the text: “They worked for a long time, without hope and without relaxing, then, little by little, they penetrated the great rhythm of life”. With the lack of bar lines, and the registration built on mutations, this gives the piece a mysterious atmosphere. The melody repeats twice, the first time under static chords, and then later under repeated, rhythmic and insistent chords. As an organist, Olivier Messiaen’s (1908-1992) strong Catholic faith, largely guided him into his compositions. He often composed cycles of pieces/meditations to suit the various liturgical seasons (the Nativity, Pentecost, Trinity, etc.), allowing the music to create vivid images to those who listen. His unique musical language was largely driven by his rare neurological condition, synaesthesia, where a sound would allow him to see a colour, and his use of newly found modes and scales, known as the modes of limited transposition.

The cycle of four meditations, L’Ascension, was originally written for orchestra in 1932-33. Just days before the orchestral premiere in 1935, an organ version was published and performed. Three of the four movements exist both in orchestral and organ form, however it is the third movement which is different. ‘Alléluia sur la trompette, Alléluia sur la cymbale’ from the orchestral cycle was deemed to be unsuitable for the organ, and instead, Messiaen, composed a dazzling toccata, ‘Transports de joie’. This movement’s fanfare chords, powerful pedal lines, and virtuosic figurework in the manuals, build to the final outburst of joy on full organ.