Karol Mossakowski (organ)
The Organ of Saint-Sulpice, Paris
Marcel Dupré (1886-1971)
Trois préludes et fugues, op.7 (1912)
Charles-Marie Widor (1844-1937)
Trois nouvelles pièces, op.87 (1934)
Jean-Jacques Grunenwald (1911-1982)
Diptyque liturgique (1956)
Daniel Roth (b.1942)
Fantaisie fuguée sur “Regina caeli” (2007)
rec. 2025, Saint-Sulpice, Paris
Aeolus AE11491 [68]
It has been many years since I heard the organ of Saint‑Sulpice in Paris. It was not a service or a recital but an organist’s practice. The piece was “Carillon sur la sonnerie du Carillon de la chapelle du Château de Longpont (Aisne)”, the ninth number in Book 2 of Louis Vierne’s Vingt-quatre pièces en style libre. The organist may have been Jean-Jacques Grunenwald.
The instrument is one of the most significant in Europe, if not in the world. The large five-manual organ was built in 1781 by François‑Henri Clicquot. After a less than successful rebuild between 1835 and 1845, it was remodelled and expanded by the legendary Aristide Cavaillé‑Coll. It retains the five manuals and has one hundred stops. This symphonic organ unites French classical tradition with a Romantic aesthetic. It remains one of Cavaillé‑Coll’s few instruments not to have electric action. The liner notes give the all-important specification.
The recital begins auspiciously with an inspiring performance of Marcel Dupré’s landmark Trois préludes et fugues,op.7. He sketched the collection in the summer of 1912, whilst he was preparing for the Grand Prix de Rome (which he later won with his lyric scene Psyché). The work was performed in 1917 at the Salle Gaveau in Paris but remained unpublished until 1920. It is widely regarded as establishing the composer’s reputation. Each piece is dedicated to a recently deceased French organist: No.1 in B major to René Vierne (younger brother of Louis Vierne, killed in WWI), No.2 in F minor to Augustin Barié, and No.3 in G minor to Joseph Boulnois (also killed in WWI).
An anecdote recounts that when Charles-Marie Widor first saw Dupré’s score, he declared that the first and the third preludes were unplayable. Indeed, even a cursory glance at the sheet music reveals formidable technical challenges: rapid tempi, intricate passagework, and demanding pedal parts. The first P&F, my favourite, is a regular warhorse. The more restrained No.2 nods, as some have suggested, towards Claude Debussy. No.3, in contrast, has a magical “spinning wheel” prelude and a ferocious fugue that retains much of the momentum of the opening movement. The inspiring performance on the organ that Dupré once played is exemplary.
Charles-MarieWidor’s Trois nouvelles pièces, op.87 represents his final, reflective contribution to the organ repertoire, written at the age of ninety. They serve as a serene swan song, dedicated to three of his former American pupils: Albert Riemenschneider, Charlotte Lockwood and Frederick Mayer.
If you expect the fireworks of Widor’s earlier symphonies for the organ, you will be disappointed. With a neo-classic economy, he generated the mood of the three imaginatively titled movements: Classique d’hier, Mystique, and Classique d’aujourd’hui. He has used chromatic harmonies, sometimes creating an impressionistic mood. Karol Mossakowski brings out the structural elegance uncluttered by overt virtuosity of the music – even if the last piece is no cinch – with this pensive farewell to the French Symphonic tradition that Widor himself helped create. Absolutely beautiful.
I listened to Jean-Jacques Grunenwald’s Diptyque liturgique and am still processing this massive soundscape. The two movements provide a huge contrast. Preces is meditative and prayerful, punctuated with intense moments, whilst Jubilate Deo radiates joy and vivacity. The work reflects Grunenwald’s synthesis of the French Symphonic organ tradition with the more “mystical textures” of his era as evinced in the music of Jehan Alain and Olivier Messiaen. It also acknowledges the “renewed prestige of improvisation” found in the French School at this time.
The work was commissioned for the 150th anniversary of St. James’ Episcopal Church on New York’s Upper East Side. It feels particularly well structured: a nod to the fact that the composer was both a master architect and Marcel Dupré’s successor at Saint-Sulpice.
The final track on this disc is by another celebrated titular organist at Saint-Sulpice, Daniel Roth. His Fantaisie fuguée sur “Regina caeli” is based on the Gregorian Marian antiphon traditionally sung during Eastertide. It creates a balance between the improvisatory tone of the Fantaisie and the rigorous construction of the “dancing” Fugue. Firmly rooted in the French Symphonic style, it calls for a wide range of registration and orchestral effects. Despite Roth’s modern harmonic language, the work never loses sight of the ancient plainsong melody.
The Polish organist Karol Mossakowski specialises in interpretation and in improvisation. He has won several important awards, among them the Prague Spring Competition and the Grand Prix de Chartres. In 2023, he was appointed titular organist of Saint‑Sulpice, sharing the duties with Sophie-Véronique Cauchefer-Choplin. He has performed internationally, including Tokyo’s Musashino Hall, Madrid’s Auditorio Nacional and many European cathedrals. Mossakowski is also noted for his imaginative silent‑film improvisations including a notable accompaniment to Dreyer’s Jeanne d’Arc, released on DVD by Gaumont after the Lyon Festival Lumière performance. His recordings include Poulenc’s Organ Concerto and Jongen’s Symphonie Concertante.
Vincent Genvrin’s liner notes give a good introduction to the recital. As I noted, there are details of the organ’s history along with a full specification. A resume of Karol Mossakowski is included. The well-illustrated booklet is in translations into French, German and English.
The disc successfully explores the grandeur of the Saint‑Sulpice Cavaillé‑Coll organ. A well-thought-out programme spans Dupré, Widor, Grunenwald and Roth, and each composition illustrates a different facet of the French symphonic tradition. The recording honours a remarkable lineage and the organist now entrusted with it.
John France
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