Charles-Marie Widor (1844-1937)
Variations sur un Thème original, op.29 (1892)
Carnaval, op.61 (original version) (1889)
Cinq pièces op.71 (c.1895, rev. publ. 1923)
Nocturne: Andantino, from Conte d’Avril, op.64 (1892)
Toccata. Allegro (arr. Widor), from Organ Symphony No.5 op.42 (1879)
Daniel Grimwood (piano)
rec. 17-18 December 2025, Sir Jack Lyons Concert Hall, University of York, York, UK
Danacord DACOCD 1008 [77]

Ever since the late Francis Jackson powered through the recessional at York Minster at the Duke and Duchess of Kent’s wedding in 1961, Widor’s Toccata has held a special place in the hearts of blushing brides and grooms. How many organists have made a poor fist of battling on an inadequate instrument through this warhorse with its plethora of notes and figurations? I understand discussions about music at weddings often revolve around “Widdor’s Tock-Atta”, certainly if the voluntaries chosen are not renditions of Ed Sheeran or Celine Dion.

Organ buffs might have explored Widor’s ten organ symphonies and discovered that their movements are good and perhaps indifferent. For those of us who indulge in obscurity, there may have been adventures with one or the other of Widor’s piano concertos, the Symphony No.1, the Violin Concerto, or the Piano Trio and Quintet. That said, I imagine precious few will have discovered the piano music.

As the advertising flyer explains, Daniel Grimwood recognised that Widor was “so famous and so unknown” after reading John R Near’s definitive modern biography – and he became aware of the solo piano music. It has, until now, remained in the shadows.

The recital opens with the Variations sur un Thème original, a recrafting of the 1867 Variations de concert sur un thème original, op.1. The liner notes suggest that this work most approximates Widor’s organ music style but also includes nods to the baroque era. “Charming” is the best description of most of this work; Variation No.4, Adagio, is quite profound.

Grimwood rightly suggests that Widor’s Carnival is modelled on Schumann’s eponymous album. He describes this twelve-movement collection as “sexy, profound, whimsical, dangerous, [and] occasionally silly”. Like the elder composer’s work, this vivid sequence of character pieces portrays masked revellers, friends, lovers and alter egos: Widor presents a “varied cast” without always giving a hint as to who is who.

The collection is framed by two marches, Timbales et Trompettes and the cheeky Finale. The loveliest is Francesca; it may or may not nod to the Italian noble woman of Rimini, portrayed by artists, writers and composers since Dante. This ravishing music could well stand alone. There are various dances here, including a fine Bal masqué, a vibrant Hongroise and an elfin Entrée turque. And one wonders who Zanetto (a young poet and minstrel from the later Pietro Mascagni 1896 opera?) and Rosita were modelled on. The pieces in this wonderful collection  typically should be heard together, with the aforementioned exception.

The notes explain that Widor’s Cinq pièces, probably completed around 1895, were not published until 1903; there followed revisions and later editions. The stunning opening Valse gaie has several contrasting sections, staccato, complex whimsical and with clear nods to Schumann. This is succeeded by the brief, lugubrious Valse triste, excessively chromatic. The Kermesse carillonnante has been described as “Widor’s most bravura style piano piece, made to measure for concert use…” This is a celebration of a saint’s festival, and features insistent chromatic runs, bell-like sonorities, vivid arpeggios and hints of waltzes.

Different in mood is the desolate Valse oubliée, but relief is brought about by a delightful Schubertian waltz as the contrasting theme. This is a love lost and recalled. Daniel Grimwood provides a suggested narrative for Après la fête, which implies “morning-after recollections of a party stabbed through with pangs of guilt a drunken misdemeanour or other”. I am not quite so sure about this contention: again, some angst here may suggests a misunderstanding with the beloved… Overall, the graceful textures and virtuosity of Cinq pièces place them within the French piano tradition shaped by Saint‑Saëns, Franck and Fauré.

The delicious Nocturne was originally part of the incidental music for Auguste Dorchain’s play Conte d’Avril, based on Shakespeare’s comedy Twelfth Night. The liner notes suggest that this transcription came by way of the third movement (there a Romance) of the Suite for flute and piano, op.34 (1884).

It does not come as a shock to discover that the final track on this disc presents Widor’s own piano transcription of his most legendary movement from his best-known organ work, the Toccata. The pedal part is cleverly absorbed by the left hand, and the beloved figurations are still complete in the right. It makes a splendid conclusion to an interesting and novel recording.

Daniel Grimwood is noted for his performances of 19th-century virtuosic piano repertoire, particularly of the works of German composer Adolph von Henselt. He has appeared at significant venues worldwide, including the Wigmore Hall, and Symphony Hall in Birmingham, as well as venues in Europe, Egypt, Lebanon, Oman and Australia. Grimwood, a Research Associate at the University of York, specialises in 19th-century performance practice. Enthusiasts of British music may note his recording of works by Doreen Carwithen and William Alwyn (Edition Peters, EPS007, 2019), warmly received by critics.

With clear, vibrant sound and scholarly liner notes, this release successfully rescues Widor’s piano output from the shadows of his organ symphonies. Daniel Grimwood proves to be the ideal advocate for these “character pieces”, and successfully navigates their varied moods. It novel, refreshing recording leaves the listener with a single thought: why has it taken this long to hear them?

John France