Maguerite And Gaston

The Orgelbüchlein (Little Organ Book) BWV 599−644 is a set of 46 chorale preludes for organ — one of them is given in two versions — by Johann Sebastian Bach. All but three were written between 1708 and 1717 when Bach served as organist to the ducal court in Weimar; the remainder and a short two-bar fragment came no earlier than 1726, after the composer’s appointment as cantor at the Thomasschule in Leipzig.

The work of Louis Vierne, organist at Notre-Dame de Paris and master of the symphonic instrument, is reflected here in all its rich variety: from the poetic Pièces en style libre – in previously unissued recordings appearing here for the very first time – to his final masterpiece, the monumental Sixth Symphony, via the virtuosic and world-famous Pièces de fantaisie. All are performed here on the little-recorded instrument of the Parisian church of Saint-François-Xavier by its organist Gaston Litaize, who studied with Vierne and went on to become a prolific composer himself. The recordings have been remastered in 24-bit/192kHz sound from the original tapes.