Emilie Marsh à Même la Nuit

Influenced by dance, theater, and the fine arts, composer/clarinetist Louis Sclavis once again illustrates his increasing relevance to modern music thanks to this impressive 2002 effort. With his fifth outing for ECM Records, Sclavis continues his path of artistic excellence. This is a soundtrack for a recently exhumed French silent movie, though viewing the film shouldn't necessarily be a prerequisite for letting one's imagination delve into the visual aspects of this reconditioned antique. On this release, the clarinetist utilizes a dual string section to complement accordionist Jean-Louis Matinier's Parisian cabaret-type musings amid the quintet's shrewd instillation of movement.

Anyone who calls an organ piece a "Grande Pièce Symphonique" should not be surprised if this very title one day serves as a yardstick to determine the legitimacy of the attribute. This is exactly what the organist, composer and pedagogue Zsigmond Szathmáry did at the instigation of his young colleague Christian Schmitt when he examined César Franck's "great symphonic piece" for its orchestral possibilities. The result of this examination brings us the world premiere of a concert piece in which the queen of instruments and her personified registers, i.e. the orchestra, form a captivating synthesis. Via Franck's well-known tone poem "Les Éolides" ("The Daughters of Aeolus"), the program finally leads to a discographic rarity by Charles-Marie Widor - a "Walpurgis Night" that easily rivals the most famous witches' dances in Romantic literature.

Heir to a true French pianistic tradition, Michel Dalberto studied with Vlado Perlemuter, who was a favourite pupil of Alfred Cortot and was coached by Maurice Ravel. He reveals that precious legacy here, in the fourth part of this cycle devoted to French music.