Féte by Jean Langlais. Performed by Christopher Young on the Maidee Seward Organ in Auer Hall on April 30, 2010. Watch more videos at music.indiana.e...
Just when i think the organ loses too much to clutter, noise, and reverb I hear a tonally balanced instrument like this and my faith in and lovevof this instrument is once again revived. Even with tutti registration and massive chord clusters there is still clarity with this fine instrument. Reminds me of that magnificent beast over in Dallas (Meyers)...
This is the ne plus ultra of Langlais. Like much of Langlais, every emotion is indulged. It starts out as a romp, goes into the mysterium, at 2:00 goes into great angst, then dives back into a menacing mysterium, then a "wounded" quiet mysterium, then quickly ramps up to a full-bodied ending which manages to be boisterous yet empyrean at the same time. The last chord satisfies our longing for a long-awaited happy ending. Terrific rendition. Maybe the best. I can't see how this drama can be unfolded any better. A fantastic job of capturing all of Mr. Langlais' moods with crystalline phrasing Mr. Young.
Thank you very much to play Jean Langlais and your marvellous interpretajtion In France Jean Langlais is little play It s glad I don 't know this piece She is plaisant and poetic
Langlais' "Fete", like many of his other organ works, was unfortunately never published in France. It was published in 1949 by H.W. Gray here in the U.S. They published a reprint of that edition recently, but it too is now permanently out of print. I was fortunate to obtain one of the last copies of that reprint. This piece has only been published two times in 70 years, so it is not nearly as well-known as it deserves to be.
@@organosolo4984 You're most welcome. Since "Fete en Mi majeur" is currently unavailable from any source, I created a PDF of my score, and uploaded it to Google Drive. Anyone can download it and use it as they wish. Here is the link: drive.google.com/file/d/1AoMtac6Z64660OuPpoqM8Bf94lcR-LzI/view?usp=sharing Please note the printing error on page 10, I noted the correction, which was supplied by Mme. Langlais.
Yes, it should have definitely been repaired before the dedication recital. This is C B. Fisk. op. 135. It's inconceivable that any organbuilder would not do a thorough check of their instrument before an event like this, especially Fisk.
As a former Langlais student, I can honestly say…. Langlais would've smacked you up side the head for playing 'Fete' that fast. Listen to Hans-Andre Stamm's rendition here on You Tube. It's intelligible, articulate, and exactly what Mssr. Langlais had in mind.
+Goggle P I listened to Stamm's version after I wrote the review below. I told Mr. Stamm that his version is superior and it is. Stamm's articulation is far superior and never has a mushy legato sound. I'm sure Langlais would have heartily approved of Stamm's rendition.
This performance is three clicks slower on the metronome than the printed score. If Langlais wanted it slower than that, he should have specified. Any slower than this, It's boring and loses its joie de vivre.
And the organ smackheads appear once again... 😑 OK, A) this is a LIVE performance, so the interpreter gets to, you know, interpret. There is no right or wrong, despite the composer's score markings, which are a GUIDE. B) this venue has a DRY ACOUSTIC, meaning that everything has to be played quite a bit faster because there is little to no REVERBERATION to work with. C) Musical style and interpretation are subjective. Just because you prefer someone else's interpretation, you do not have the right to criticise another player's interpretation. Spewing hatred like you do achieves nothing except the pathetic reputation you deserve 🤡
PPS. His final chord, especially given the generous acoutisic of the venue and his funereal tempo, is ridiculously short. The chord has a fermata above it in the score 🙄 lol