Symphonie Romane: Organ music by Dupré, Widor and Tournemire
Peter Stevens plays works by three towering figures of the French organ world. Charles-Marie Widor’s Symphonie Romane is a radiant meditation on the Gregorian chants of Easter Sunday, and the Fantaisie-Choral from Tournemire’s L’Orgue Mystique is a deeply spiritual reflection on two of the best-known chants of Pentecost: Veni Sancte Spiritus and Veni Creator Spiritus. Two contrasting pieces by Marcel Dupré bookend the programme: his Cortège et Litanie is probably his best-loved work for the organ, while the uninhibited confidence of the Deuxième Symphonie shows a different side of the composer’s personality; its visceral and hard-hitting textures given electrifying voice by the Ruffatti organ of Buckfast Abbey.
‘Stevens’ sense of the symphony’s architecture is…supported by a fine technique, a sumptuous organ and a glorious acoustic. This is a very impressive recorded performance indeed… A certain impudence with a slightly sarcastic edge informs his superbly perky performance of the second movement, while the swashbuckling Toccata with which the Symphony concludes comes across full of swagger and self-confidence… A super performance to round off a really super disc.’ (MusicWeb International)
★★★★★ ‘I heartily recommend this recording to people who, like me are partial to French organ music from this era.’ (Organists’ Review)
★★★★ ‘Buckfast Abbey’s Ad Fontes label adds to its early lustre with Peter Stevens’s richly – in places, rapturously – played tribute to three ‘pivotal’ figures of French romanticism.’ (Choir & Organ)
‘Widor’s treatments of these chants across four movements are nothing short of ingenious, and Peter Stevens’s excellent playing gives them breath and space… Coupled with an excellent recording, there is a real sense of sitting in a Parisian church… Anyone unable to take the Eurostar for a Parisian organ binge (with or without tonic wine) could do worse than snap up this CD.’ (RSCM Church Music Quarterly)
Track List
1
Marcel Dupré
Cortège et Litanie (Op. 19, No. 2)
6:19
£0.99
Charles-Marie Widor
Symphonie Romane (Op. 73)
33:12
2
Moderato
8:01
£0.99
3
Choral
9:25
£0.99
4
Cantilène
5:58
£0.99
5
Finale
9:48
£0.99
6
Charles Tournemire
Fantasie-Choral (L'Orgue Mystique, No. 25:
In Festo Pentecostes)
9:08
£0.99
Marcel Dupré
Deuxième Symphonie (Op. 26)
20:14
7
Preludio
9:05
£0.99
8
Intermezzo
4:50
£0.99
9
Toccata
6:19
£0.99