RECORDING OF THE MONTH
Louis MARCHAND (1669-1732)
Organ Works
Premier Livre (1740) [31:50]
(Pièces d'orgue manuscrites)
Suite in F (Livre II) [8:21]
Livre III (Grand Dialogue) (1696) [10:02]
Suite in A (Livre II) [9:43]
Suite in C (Livres II, IV, V] [10:13]
Récit en taille (Livre V) [2:39]
Frédéric Desenclos (organ)
rec. 2011, Cathedral Saint-Sacerdos, Sarlat, France. DDD
TEMPÉRAMENTS TEM316040 [72:52]
The French label Tempéraments is a great source for lovers
of French keyboard music, and especially music for the organ. It is not only
the repertoire which makes the releases of this label interesting. One also
gets the chance to hear fine historical organs from across France. "By
recording some very characteristic instruments made during the seventeenth,
eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, 'Tempéraments' sets organ
music in its broadest context, whether intended for the liturgy or to be heard
during a concert", according to the booklet. This time it is the organ
of Sarlat Cathedral which can be heard. It was built in 1752 by Jean-François
Lépine - pupil of the famous Dom Bédos - and restored to its original glory
by Bertrand Cattiaux between 2001 and 2005.
The music chosen by Frédéric Desenclos is taken from the oeuvre of Louis Marchand.
He was born in Lyon, and was in Paris at least from 1689. Here he held several
positions as organist. In 1706 he was appointed organist of the Chapelle Royale,
as successor to Guillaume Gabriel Nivers. He was highly respected as a musician
and teacher, but far less as a person. He soon acquired the reputation of
being a difficult character who didn't hesitate to manipulate people
to boost his career. In a booklet to a recording with his harpsichord suites
I found this description of the man: "Restless, cumbersome, self-conceived,
slightly paranoic, ambitious to the point of awkwardness, ready to trample
underfoot all the musicians in the Kingdom to achieve his aims, and using
means such that even the most tolerant became indignant, a bad husband, a
bad father and a bad man ...". His place in history is also due to that
famous story - whether true or not - that he slipped away from a contest with
Bach in Dresden.
This could give the impression that he was Bach's inferior but that
seems unlikely. His organ music is often technically demanding and virtuosic.
The plein jeu which opens the Premier Livre, for instance,
is in six parts, two of which are to be played on the pedalboard. That is
quite exceptional in French organ music. Another brilliant piece - and his
best-known organ work - is the Grand Dialogue of 1696 and the only
piece in the third book.
The latter is one of four books of unequal proportion which have been preserved
in manuscript in Versailles. Only the first book was published posthumously
in 1740. The total number of his organ works is estimated at around fifty.
Stylistically Marchand is rather conservative. One looks in vain for the influence
of chamber music or of opera. These pieces entered the realm of organ music
at the time and were the first signs of a 'secularization' of
organ music during the 18th century. The fact that Marchand was active as
an organist in church implies that many pieces were written for liturgical
purposes, especially for the alternatim practice. It was often left
to the interpreter to choose which piece to play at which moment during the
mass. The Suite in A from the second book includes a number of pieces
connected to the Te Deum but there are no indications as to which
verses they should substitute.
As was common practice in French organ music several pieces refer to specific
stops, such as basse de trompette, basse de cromorne and tierce
en taille. That makes it difficult to perform this repertoire on other
types of organ. This is probably the reason why French classical organ music
is not that well known outside France. This makes it all the more important
that discs like this are widely released and include liner-notes in English,
as is fortunately the case here.
Desenclos is a specialist in French music, not only as an organist but also
as director of the Ensemble Pierre Robert. He delivers splendid performances
with the help of the magnificent organ in Sarlat Cathedral. Music, performance
and instrument are of superb quality.
Johan van Veen
www.musica-dei-donum.org
twitter.com/johanvanveen
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