Louis Vierne - Toccata (Vexo, Bouvard, Devernay, Ospital, Roth, Bartfeld, Dubois, Brooks, Latry) 

To be honest, I am kinda surprised that Jean-Baptiste Monnot's version is not here. He has one of the cleanest pedal work I've heard.

Pour bien des raisons techniques et musicales, grande fidélité à ce qui est demandé malgré une interprétation vraiment vraiment claire et marquée, grand merci à messieurs Roth & Vexo.

Roth, for me it has something more ... expressiveness, tempo and clear phrasing. In any case we are talking about great performers on fantastic instruments, there is no bad version.

Thank you for uploading that! I like Vexo's performance the most

Thank you so much for this great comparison. Thomas Ospital and Johann Vexo are here my favourite recordings.

WOW! Thank you for this compilation. I love this toccata. Hopefully one day I can achieve to be virtuosic enough to attempt this. LOL.

I love it when you upload Vierne pieces, hopefully there is a video of Symphony 1 in the future.

Absolutely phenomenal

Interesting recordings. I have a favorite. One of the performances stands out thanks to its artistic qualities. Perfectly paced and perfectly clear in its intentions. Also perfect registrations. Two others are very close behind, but all of the recordings has a lot of great qualities.

❤🪢🎶🌼⛑📃🍒📚🇻🇦✝️🌿🌸🥰💮💒🍋🌺🎶GRANDISSIME MAÎTRE ORGANISTE CATHOLIQUE PIERRE COCHEREAU (1924-1984)❤🇵🇸👍🔍🇦🇲🦁🇦🇲🌸🌿🕯🍒⛑📃📚🇻🇦✝️🇨🇵💒⛑🙋‍♂️

I'm astonished that Roth (of all people!) played it at Devernay's speed.

Thank you Julian for this fascinating synoptic compilation of this stunning piece of music! For my part, only Ben van Oosten´s version at Ouen is missing, otherwise I dare say that in my humble opinion, the level of playing tends to be in increasing order with Olivier´s version representing the Mount Everest 🙂

vierne 😳👉👈

For me Devernay and Roth are the only ones who "get" this piece. Vierne wrote it more or less on the brink of insanity while going through hard times, and they are playing it accordingly like the ravings of a madman. Andre Isoir who's not included in here also does a great job.

For me, the best is Ben Ven Oosten at Saint Ouen

I like very much the version of latry, clear phrasing especially in the slower piano part the other organists were less clearer in my opinion and the crescendo after is amazing. But i find also that the quality of his registration is better than the of dubois

Is it me, or does the organ in Notre Dame lack the roundness of sound (acoustics, maybe) that many of the other recordings have? I would have expected that in a space like that, it would have a much less angular quality.

If this Toccata is an expression of madness and despair, as Taneli Prittinen wrote, than Devernay and Roth are getting it right indeed. Besides, their performance is according to the tempo that has been written above it: crotchet=96. Methinks, however, you can do this Toccata justice as well when you play it considerably slower: crotchet=72-76. In this manner it can become an expression of pain and sorrow. An example hereof is the following performance, played on the beautiful Hill-organ from 1915 in All Hallows, Gospel Oak, London: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-8qxLh6T48Vc.html. The subtle stressing of several semiquavers, the portatos-in-stead-of-staccatos in the pedal, and the tenutos on the organpoint F, 24 bars before the end, are certainly not diminishing the drama and the attractiveness of this magnificent piece.

I wonder what came over Latry's mind in this performance ?? Changing of tempo at some places, making some heavy rittendi... Latry has accustomed us to more strictness and to more faithfulness towards the score... Some temporay mental blanck...

un tantino piu' adagio... cosi' si perde l'equilibrio e il pensiero originale si infrange nel virtuosismo ...esso è sempre fuori luogo, sempre. In medio stat virtus.

Monstrous noise. I hate it.