Cesar Franck Organ Works

At the time César Franck was born in Liège, Belgium, on 10 December 1822, Beethoven had not yet composed his 9th symphony, or his last string quartets. When Franck died at the age of 67 in 1890, Claude Debussy had already made his mark with works including the Cinq poèmes de Charles Baudelaire; it is perhaps not surprising, therefore, that a composer whose life spanned such extremities, had trouble finding his own voice.

David M. Patricks latest project is to record Cesar Francks organ music for Guild on the magnificent Harrison & Harrison organ of St. Albans Cathedral. The first album contains some of Francks greatest music, including the three Chorals, the Pastorale and Grand Piece Symphonique. Superbly recorded by Paul Crichton, Davids interpretations certainly eschew the sacred approach to Francks organ music. David M. Patrick who was born in Devonshire, England, is one of the most brilliant British organists of his time. He pursued his musical education at the Royal College of Music with distinction winning the Stuart Prize for organ in 1967 and going on to gain the coveted Walford Davies Prize the following year. His early decision to specialize in the romantic and modern French repertoire followed logically from his impulse to accept the highest technical and artistic challenges that the organ presents. Patrick has performed public concerts at many major venues in Great Britain, the USA, Canada, and Europe, as well as numerous recitals for BBC Radio 3.

César Franck gradually abandoned his career as a virtuoso pianist as he completed his training under various Parisian masters, one of whom was the organist François Benoist. Franck then served as organist in various important Parisian churches from 1853 onwards before accepting a position at Sainte-Clotilde, where he benefited from Cavaillé-Coll's brand new instrument. He composed works for the organ as well as in other genres that became part of the apotheosis of what is now termed Le Renouveau français. Franck also composed pieces specifically intended for the harmonium. We are proud to mark the bicentenary of his birth with a reissue of his complete works for organ and for harmonium, in which Joris Verdin's fascinating interpretations have incorporated Franck’s own recently discovered metronome markings.