Noël in the Musiikkitalo
Jan Lehtola (organ)
rec. 2025/26, Helsinki Musiikkitalo, Finland
Toccata Next TOCN0048 [74]
The advertising brief tells us that the recently installed Rieger organ in Helsinki’s Musiikkitalo is now the largest modern concert‑hall organ in the world. In its first solo recording, Jan Lehtola puts the instrument thoroughly through its paces. His unusual programme brings together seven sets of variations on Christmas melodies, five by French composers, one by a Franco‑Lebanese, and one by an Englishman. The sequence is as distinctive and varied as the instrument itself.
A French Noël in music typically refers to vernacular Christmas carols from the medieval or renaissance eras. They are infused with the lilting rhythms and rustic dance figures that French composers, from the Baroque organistes to the 20th‑century school, have woven into variation sets and liturgical pieces.
Naji Hakim wrote Fantaisie sur Adeste fidèles for a concert at Sacré‑Cœur in Paris. It was conceived for two instruments, Grand Organ and Choir Organ. It is heard here on one organ. For me, this is something of a curate’s egg: sections I admire sit alongside others that seem less convincing, not least the near‑halt in the middle, which can feel awkward. Still, the liner notes correctly call it “an exceptionally powerful piece”. When it fills the Montmartre Basilica after midnight Mass, one can indeed be in no doubt that Christmas has arrived.
Frenchman Jean-Jacques Grünenwald is largely a closed book to me. I may have heard the odd anthem or organ work, but somehow his music is neglected these days. He studied with Marcel Dupré and became his assistant and later his successor as organist of St Sulpice. The reference books show he was also a prolific composer. The Variations brèves sur un noël du XVIe siècle are noticeably short, under three minutes. The piece moves with a clear, bright texture, economical registration, and a straightforward recasting of an old tune in modern harmony.
Gaston Litaize’s Noël Basque is inspired by folk music. As the title implies, it is based on a Basque Christmas carol. The liner notes wrongly downplay it as less sophisticated and more rustic than some of its contemporary Noëls. Concise, yes, with occasional dance forms, these seven variations are still a thoughtful meditation on the Season. Well known for his improvisations, Litaize seems to indulge in a little of that skill here, though I believe it is all exactly notated.
I have not heard all Litaize’s Douze Pièces, but I understand that the entire sequence – published in chronological order – gives an impressive overview of his stylistic development. Variations sur un Noël angevin consists of an energised statement of a tune from Anjou. The succeeding variations present a wonderfully diverse account of Litaize’s craft. Here are dance rhythms, Impressionist harmonies, and constantly changing textures, all leading to a “grand fantasia-like conclusion”. One last thought: these were meant to have been of “moderate difficulty”, an aim he failed to meet.
Martin Stacey’s Variations on a Ukrainian Theme: Carol of the Bells transforms Mykola Leontovych’s folk‑derived tune – Shchedryk, a New Year celebration song – into an accessible virtuoso piece. After a brief meditation, four contrasting variations lead to a joyous finale. Written to Jan Lehtola’s commission and premiered in Lucerne, the work honours the tune’s Ukrainian origins while offering a year‑round message of goodwill. This impressive work shows Stacey’s command of form, rhythmic vitality and organ scoring.
Jean Langlais’s Noël avec variations is in three sections, each one based on an old French Noël. The overall structure comprises three sets of variations group, and hints at a sonata layout: quick outer movements framing a slower central one. Each behaves differently. The first unfolds as a chain of brief variations, the second operates as a single expansive variation, and the third introduces two melodies that Langlais ultimately brings together. This is dark and austere, and certainly does not have the joy or magic of Christmas at its heart. The liner notes include a highly detailed analysis of this piece.
This remarkable recital closes with Marcel Dupré’s best‑known composition, the Variations sur un Noël. Anecdotally devised during a train journey on his first American tour, the set forms a remarkably inventive sequence. The variations appear in different guises: the melody left unaltered while the interest lies in the accompaniment; the air hidden within surrounding activity; and those in which the tune is heard in canon, chasing itself around the figurations. The expanded final variation gathers these elements into a lively fugato and then a brilliant toccata, in full French mode. The work demands, and receives here, vivid, sharply contrasted registrations. This is one of the best pieces of Christmas organ music in the book.
Jan Lehtola, one of Finland’s leading organists, trained in Helsinki, Amsterdam, Stuttgart, Lyon and Paris. He appears with major Nordic orchestras, performs at international festivals, and has given many world and regional premieres. He has recorded widely, and currently teaches organ at the Sibelius Academy.
Much of this music is new to me. I have been charmed and impressed by Jan Lehtola’s performance – his technical acumen, and his imaginative and sympathetic registrations.
The Rieger organ, inaugurated in 2024, sounds impressive and is complemented by a vibrant recording. The liner notes are most helpful, if at times a little technical. The full organ specification is included in the booklet.
Overall, this distinctive programme, splendidly played, is a welcome reminder of how much life still flickers in the old Noël tradition.
John France
Contents
Naji Hakim (b. 1955)
Fantaisie sur Adeste fidèles (1986)
Jean-Jacques Grünenwald (1911–1982)
Variations brèves sur un noël du XVIe siècle: Je me suis levé par un matinet (1949)
Gaston Litaize (1909–1991)
Noël Basque (1949)
Douze Pièces (1931–1937): No. 12, Variations sur un Noël angevin
Martin Stacey (b. 1976)
Variations on a Ukrainian theme: Carol of the Bells (2025)
Jean Langlais (1907–1991)
Noël avec variations, op.204(1979)
Marcel Dupré (1886–1971)
Variations sur un Noël, op. 20 (1922)
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