Charles-Marie Widor:
Symphony No.3 Op. 69 for Organ & Orchestra,
Symphony No.7 for Organ solo Op. 42 No. 3
Christian Schmitt (Jann-Organ in the Bamberg Concert Hall)
Bamberg SO – Bayerische Staatsphilharmonie
Stefan Solyom (conductor)
Klassik-heute, klassik. com, and ClassicsToday welcomed Vol. 1 with Charles-Marie Widor’s Organ Symphonies opp. 42 & 81 (SACD 63 255 10) with the highest acclaim. Here we read of »organ and orchestral sound magnificence on the highest level,« a »poetic power package of Cavaillé-Coll sound,« and tremendous praise for his »fully matured orchestral technique.« And Vol. 2 is in every way a match for these high standards. Widor epitomizes the French organ music of the nineteenth century. He quickly made a name for himself as a composer, and his ten symphonies for solo organ are regarded even today as the non plus ultra of the virtuosic French school. Vol. 2 brings together the Organ Symphony op. 69 with orchestra and the Symphony for Solo Organ No. 7 op. 42, 3 – once again interpreted by Christian Schmitt, who is certainly the most distinguished German organist of the younger generation. Widor presented his first original work for organ and orchestra in 1894 with his Symphony No. 3 op. 69. In its overall form it consists of two large sections of multipart design. Widor himself quite often termed his op. 69 a »grand concerto for organ.«