Search - Jean Langlais :: Langlais Joue a Notre-Dame De Paris

A truly splendid document

Mark Swinton | 09/28/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This disc brings together three analogue recordings of Jean Langlais performing his own music at recitals in Notre-Dame Cathedral, Paris, during the late 1970s and early 1980s. According to the booklet notes, they were not recorded during the performances themselves but rather during the final rehearsals for them, without audience. Knowing this does not dampen the pure thrill of listening to them, however, and it is wonderful that they have been digitally remastered and commercially released.Langlais was just as well-known for his skill as a performer as he was for his many compositions. That he was blinded at the age of two makes this skill seem all the more marvellous. And whilst this recording is not technically perfect (he makes mistakes here and there, although this is more likely to be a result of his failing health at the time) listening to it still gives a taste of the awe he must have inspired in his many pupils, some of whom are considered to be today's leading organists.The disc opens with his "Huit Chants de Bretagne," eight exquisite examples of his wholly distinctive style. There are some really delightful moments in all of these- particular favourites of mine being the second ("Disons le chapelet"), third ("Angelus") and eighth ("Pensez a l'eternite") in which the traditional melodies are clothed in some absolutely delicious harmonies. It is advisable to turn the volume down for the "Trois Equisses Gothiques," in which Langlais explored the possibilities presented in some French churches by the presence of two organs. Sure enough, the first of these three 'monolithic' pieces opens with the Grand Organ of Notre-Dame played at full volume, a sound that terrifies and amazes. Marie-Louise, his second wife, plays the more subdued passages for Choir Organ from the other end of the building, and her playing is as electrifying as Langlais' own. Again, this is a work of profound beauty and splendour, perhaps best revealed at the start of the second movement with its quiet ecstatic writing (evocative of Langlais' lifelong friend Messiaen).The best of all, however, is saved until last. "Offrande a une ame" is dedicated to the memory of Langlais' first wife Jeannette, who died tragically in 1979. Marie-Louise Langlais muses in the notes that this huge piece was in fact the closest he came to writing a Requiem; it uses as melodic material nearly all the Gregorian chants from the Missa pro defunctis but in a truly symphonic-style backdrop. In this premiere performance, Langlais milks the Notre-Dame organ and acoustics for everything they have, the result being an unforgettable and powerful rendition that combines sorrow and joy in a very special way.This whole disc is a gem for organists and enthusiasts of Jean Langlais. As a listening experience, it is comparable to Benjamin Britten's recording of his own "War Requiem"- it delights and thrills, but is at the same time very poignant. Certainly, one can see why Langlais was often referred to by family and friends as a "bear." The intensity he reached in composition and execution, captured on this disc, will surely enthrall any that hear it. A most powerful and splendid CD!"