Louis Vierne
Encyclopedia
Louis Victor Jules Vierne (8 October 1870 – 2 June 1937) was a French organ
ist and composer
.
, Vienne
, nearly blind
due to congenital cataracts, but at an early age was discovered to have an unusual gift for music
. (At age two he heard the piano for the first time. The pianist played him a Schubert lullaby and he promptly began to pick out the notes of the lullaby on the piano.)
After completing school in the provinces, Louis Vierne entered the Paris Conservatory. From 1892, Vierne served as an assistant to the organist
Charles-Marie Widor
at the church of Saint-Sulpice
in Paris. Vierne subsequently became principal organist at the cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris, a post he held from 1900 until his death in 1937.
Vierne had a life that was physically and emotionally very difficult, with severe spiritual trials that are occasionally reflected in his music. His congenital cataracts did not make him completely blind, but he was what would be called today "legally blind." Early in his career, he composed on outsized manuscript paper, using "a large pencil" as his friend Marcel Dupré
described. Later in life, as his limited sight continued to diminish, he resorted to Braille
to do most of his work.
He was deeply affected by a separation and subsequent divorce from his wife, and he lost both his brother René and his son Jacques to the battlefields of World War I
. Though he held one of the most prestigious organ posts in France, the Notre-Dame organ was in a state of disrepair throughout much of his tenure at the instrument. He eventually undertook a concert tour of North America to raise money for its restoration. The tour, which included major recitals on the famous Wanamaker Organ
in Philadelphia and its smaller sister instrument, the Wanamaker Auditorium Organ in New York City, was very successful, although the trip physically drained him.
A street accident in Paris caused him to badly fracture his leg, and it was briefly thought his leg would need to be amputated. The leg was saved, but his recovery, and the task of completely re-learning his pedal technique, took a full year during one of the busiest times of his life. Despite his difficulties, however, his students uniformly described him as a kind, patient and encouraging teacher. Among his pupils were Augustin Barié
, Edward Shippen Barnes
, Lili Boulanger
, Nadia Boulanger
, Marcel Dupré
, André Fleury, Isadore Freed
, Henri Gagnebin
, Gaston Litaize
, Édouard Mignan
, Alexander Schreiner
, and Georges-Émile Tanguay
.
Vierne suffered either a stroke or a heart attack (eyewitness reports differ) while giving his 1750th organ recital at Notre-Dame de Paris on the evening of 2 June 1937. He had completed the main concert, which members of the audience said showed him at his full powers - "as well as he has ever played." Directly after he had finished playing his "Stele pour un enfant defunt" from his 'Triptyque' Op 58, the closing section was to be two improvisations on submitted themes. He read the first theme in Braille, then selected the stops he would use for the improvisation. He suddenly pitched forward, and fell off the bench as his foot hit the low "E" pedal of the organ. He lost consciousness as the single note echoed throughout the church. He had thus fulfilled his oft-stated lifelong dream - to die at the console of the great organ of Notre-Dame. Maurice Duruflé
, another noted French organist of the time was at his side at the time of his death.
He had an elegant, clean style of writing that respected form above all else. His harmonic language was romantically rich, but not as sentimental or theatrical as that of his early mentor César Franck
. Of all the great fin de siècle
French organists, Vierne's music was perhaps the most idiomatic for his chosen instrument and has inspired most of the great Parisian organist-composers who followed him.
His output for organ includes six symphonies
, 24 Fantasy Pieces (which includes his famous Carillon de Westminster
), and 24 Pieces in Free Style, among other works. There are also several chamber works (sonatas for violin and cello, a piano quintet
and a string quartet
for example), vocal and choral music, and a Symphony in A minor
for orchestra.
Other
Organ (music)
The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
ist and composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
.
Life
Louis Vierne was born in PoitiersPoitiers
Poitiers is a city on the Clain river in west central France. It is a commune and the capital of the Vienne department and of the Poitou-Charentes region. The centre is picturesque and its streets are interesting for predominant remains of historical architecture, especially from the Romanesque...
, Vienne
Vienne
Vienne is the northernmost département of the Poitou-Charentes region of France, named after the river Vienne.- Viennese history :Vienne is one of the original 83 departments, established on March 4, 1790 during the French Revolution. It was created from parts of the former provinces of Poitou,...
, nearly blind
Blindness
Blindness is the condition of lacking visual perception due to physiological or neurological factors.Various scales have been developed to describe the extent of vision loss and define blindness...
due to congenital cataracts, but at an early age was discovered to have an unusual gift for music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
. (At age two he heard the piano for the first time. The pianist played him a Schubert lullaby and he promptly began to pick out the notes of the lullaby on the piano.)
After completing school in the provinces, Louis Vierne entered the Paris Conservatory. From 1892, Vierne served as an assistant to the organist
Organist
An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ. An organist may play solo organ works, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumental soloists...
Charles-Marie Widor
Charles-Marie Widor
Charles-Marie Jean Albert Widor was a French organist, composer and teacher.-Life:Widor was born in Lyon, to a family of organ builders, and initially studied music there with his father, François-Charles Widor, titular organist of Saint-François-de-Sales from 1838 to 1889...
at the church of Saint-Sulpice
Saint-Sulpice (Paris)
Saint-Sulpice is a Roman Catholic church in Paris, France, on the east side of the Place Saint-Sulpice, in the Luxembourg Quarter of the VIe arrondissement. At 113 metres long, 58 metres in width and 34 metres tall, it is only slightly smaller than Notre-Dame and thus the second largest church in...
in Paris. Vierne subsequently became principal organist at the cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris, a post he held from 1900 until his death in 1937.
Vierne had a life that was physically and emotionally very difficult, with severe spiritual trials that are occasionally reflected in his music. His congenital cataracts did not make him completely blind, but he was what would be called today "legally blind." Early in his career, he composed on outsized manuscript paper, using "a large pencil" as his friend Marcel Dupré
Marcel Dupré
Marcel Dupré , was a French organist, pianist, composer, and pedagogue.-Biography:Marcel Dupré was born in Rouen . Born into a musical family, he was a child prodigy. His father Albert Dupré was organist in Rouen and a friend of Aristide Cavaillé-Coll, who built an organ in the family house when...
described. Later in life, as his limited sight continued to diminish, he resorted to Braille
Braille
The Braille system is a method that is widely used by blind people to read and write, and was the first digital form of writing.Braille was devised in 1825 by Louis Braille, a blind Frenchman. Each Braille character, or cell, is made up of six dot positions, arranged in a rectangle containing two...
to do most of his work.
He was deeply affected by a separation and subsequent divorce from his wife, and he lost both his brother René and his son Jacques to the battlefields of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. Though he held one of the most prestigious organ posts in France, the Notre-Dame organ was in a state of disrepair throughout much of his tenure at the instrument. He eventually undertook a concert tour of North America to raise money for its restoration. The tour, which included major recitals on the famous Wanamaker Organ
Wanamaker Organ
The Wanamaker Grand Court Organ, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the largest operational pipe organ in the world, located within a spacious 7-story court at Macy's Center City . The largest organ by some measures is the Boardwalk Hall Auditorium Organ...
in Philadelphia and its smaller sister instrument, the Wanamaker Auditorium Organ in New York City, was very successful, although the trip physically drained him.
A street accident in Paris caused him to badly fracture his leg, and it was briefly thought his leg would need to be amputated. The leg was saved, but his recovery, and the task of completely re-learning his pedal technique, took a full year during one of the busiest times of his life. Despite his difficulties, however, his students uniformly described him as a kind, patient and encouraging teacher. Among his pupils were Augustin Barié
Augustin Barié
Augustin Barié , was a French composer and organist.Barié was born in Paris, and was blind from birth; however, he had large hands which spanned an eleventh, allowing him to play the difficult organ works of composers such as César Franck with relative ease...
, Edward Shippen Barnes
Edward Shippen Barnes
Edward Shippen Barnes was an American organist.He was a graduate of Yale University where he studied with Horatio Parker and Harry Jepson...
, Lili Boulanger
Lili Boulanger
Lili Boulanger was a French composer, the younger sister of the noted composer and composition teacher Nadia Boulanger.-Early years:A Parisian-born child prodigy, who was good at piano...
, Nadia Boulanger
Nadia Boulanger
Nadia Boulanger was a French composer, conductor and teacher who taught many composers and performers of the 20th century.From a musical family, she achieved early honours as a student at the Paris Conservatoire, but believing that her talent as a composer was inferior to that of her younger...
, Marcel Dupré
Marcel Dupré
Marcel Dupré , was a French organist, pianist, composer, and pedagogue.-Biography:Marcel Dupré was born in Rouen . Born into a musical family, he was a child prodigy. His father Albert Dupré was organist in Rouen and a friend of Aristide Cavaillé-Coll, who built an organ in the family house when...
, André Fleury, Isadore Freed
Isadore Freed
Isadore Freed was a Jewish composer of Belarusian birth.-Biography:Born in Brest-Litovsk, now Brest, Belarus, Freed's family emigrated to the United States when Freed was three years old and settled in Philadelphia, where his father owned a music store...
, Henri Gagnebin
Henri Gagnebin
Henri Gagnebin was a Belgian-born Swiss composer.His first studies were in Bienne and Lausanne. He studied the piano with Auguste Laufer and harmony with Justin Bischoff. In 1905, he spent eight months in Berlin, where he studied composition with Richard Rössler...
, Gaston Litaize
Gaston Litaize
Gaston Gilbert Litaize was a French organist and composer. Considered one of the 20th century masters of the French organ, he toured, recorded, worked at churches, and taught students in and around Paris...
, Édouard Mignan
Édouard Mignan
Édouard Mignan was a French organist and composer.He was born in Orléans and 14 years old he became the organist of église Saint Paterne. He studied organ in Paris with Alexandre Guilmant and Louis Vierne and won the Grand Prix de Rome in 1912. He was organist at Saint-Thomas-d'Aquin from 1917...
, Alexander Schreiner
Alexander Schreiner
Alexander Schreiner was one of the most noted organists of the Salt Lake Tabernacle. He also wrote the music to several LDS hymns, several of which are in the current edition of the hymn book of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints .-Early life:Alexander Ferdinand Schreiner was born on...
, and Georges-Émile Tanguay
Georges-Émile Tanguay
Georges-Émile Tanguay was a Canadian composer, organist, pianist, and music educator. An associate of the Canadian Music Centre, his compositional output is relatively small; consisting of 4 orchestral works, 4 chamber music pieces, 9 works for solo piano, 2 works for solo organ, and 4 choral works...
.
Vierne suffered either a stroke or a heart attack (eyewitness reports differ) while giving his 1750th organ recital at Notre-Dame de Paris on the evening of 2 June 1937. He had completed the main concert, which members of the audience said showed him at his full powers - "as well as he has ever played." Directly after he had finished playing his "Stele pour un enfant defunt" from his 'Triptyque' Op 58, the closing section was to be two improvisations on submitted themes. He read the first theme in Braille, then selected the stops he would use for the improvisation. He suddenly pitched forward, and fell off the bench as his foot hit the low "E" pedal of the organ. He lost consciousness as the single note echoed throughout the church. He had thus fulfilled his oft-stated lifelong dream - to die at the console of the great organ of Notre-Dame. Maurice Duruflé
Maurice Duruflé
Maurice Duruflé was a French composer, organist, and pedagogue.Duruflé was born in Louviers, Eure. In 1912, he became chorister at the Rouen Cathedral Choir School, where he studied piano and organ with Jules Haelling...
, another noted French organist of the time was at his side at the time of his death.
Music
Vierne was considered one of the greatest musical improvisers of his generation. His few improvisations that were preserved on early phonograph recordings sound like finished, polished compositions.He had an elegant, clean style of writing that respected form above all else. His harmonic language was romantically rich, but not as sentimental or theatrical as that of his early mentor César Franck
César Franck
César-Auguste-Jean-Guillaume-Hubert Franck was a composer, pianist, organist, and music teacher who worked in Paris during his adult life....
. Of all the great fin de siècle
Fin de siècle
Fin de siècle is French for "end of the century". The term sometimes encompasses both the closing and onset of an era, as it was felt to be a period of degeneration, but at the same time a period of hope for a new beginning...
French organists, Vierne's music was perhaps the most idiomatic for his chosen instrument and has inspired most of the great Parisian organist-composers who followed him.
His output for organ includes six symphonies
Symphony
A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, scored almost always for orchestra. A symphony usually contains at least one movement or episode composed according to the sonata principle...
, 24 Fantasy Pieces (which includes his famous Carillon de Westminster
Carillon de Westminster
Carillon de Westminster, Opus 54, is a piece written for organ by French composer and organist Louis Vierne. It constitutes the sixth piece in the third suite of Vierne’s four-suite set 24 pieces de fantaisie, first published in 1927...
), and 24 Pieces in Free Style, among other works. There are also several chamber works (sonatas for violin and cello, a piano quintet
Piano quintet
In European classical music, a piano quintet is a work of chamber music written for piano and four other instruments, most commonly piano, two violins, viola, and cello . Among the most frequently performed piano quintets are those by Robert Schumann, Johannes Brahms, César Franck, Antonín Dvořák...
and a string quartet
String quartet
A string quartet is a musical ensemble of four string players – usually two violin players, a violist and a cellist – or a piece written to be performed by such a group...
for example), vocal and choral music, and a Symphony in A minor
A minor
A minor is a minor scale based on A, consisting of the pitches A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. The harmonic minor scale raises the G to G...
for orchestra.
Works
Media
Discography
Organ- Louis Vierne: Complete Organ Works: Pierre CochereauPierre CochereauPierre Eugène Charles Cochereau , was a French organist, improviser, composer, and pedagogue.- Biography :Pierre Cochereau was born on July 9, 1924 in Saint-Mandé, near Paris. In 1929, after a few months of violin instruction, he began to take piano lessons with Marius-François Gaillard...
& George C. BakerGeorge C. BakerGeorge C. Baker is an American organist, composer, pedagogue, and dermatologist.- Biography :George C. Baker received his first musical instruction at age four. In 1961, he began to take organ lessons with Phil Baker, organist at Highland Park Methodist Church in Dallas. He completed his organ...
, organ; Solstice; 7 CDs - Louis Vierne: Complete Organ Works: Christine KampChristine Kamp- Biography :She studied organ and piano at the Sweelinck Conservatory in Amsterdam, as well as organ, church music, chamber music and lied accompaniment at the Utrecht conservatory. Her organ teachers included Ewald Kooiman, Jacques van Oortmerssen and Jan Raas, Ronald Brautigam and Thom Bollen...
, organ; Festivo; 8 CDs completed of 10 - Louis Vierne: Complete Organ Works: Ben van OostenBen van OostenBen van Oosten is an organist, professor and author.Ben van Oosten gave his first organ recital in 1970 at the age of 15. He was accepted at the prestigious Sweelinck Conservatory in Amsterdam and studied the organ with Albert de Klerk and piano with Berthe Davelaar...
, organ; MDG; 9 CDs - Louis Vierne: Complete Organ Works: Wolfgang RübsamWolfgang RübsamWolfgang Friedrich Rübsam is a German-American organist, pianist, composer and pedagogue.-Biography:...
, organ; IFO Records, 2008); 8 CDs (in preparation) - Louis Vierne: Complete Choral Works: Truro Cathedral Choir; Robert Sharpe & Christopher Gray; Regent Records (2008)
- Organ Symphonies Nos. 1-6: Martin Jean, organ; Loft Recordings
- Organ Symphonies Nos. 1-6: David Sanger, organ; Meridian Recordings
- Organ Symphonies Nos. 1-6: Günther Kaunzinger, organ; Koch-Schwann
- Organ Symphonies Nos. 1-6: Jeremy Filsell, organ; Signum Classics
- Second Symphony for Organ: Christopher HoulihanChristopher HoulihanChristopher Houlihan is an American concert organist. He made his orchestral debut with the Hartford Symphony Orchestra in 2008, performing Samuel Barber's Toccata Festiva....
, organ; Towerhill Recordings - 24 Pièces de fantaisie: Günther Kaunzinger, organ; Novalis; 2 CDs
- 24 Pièces en style libre op. 31: Günther Kaunzinger, organ; Koch-Schwann; 2 CDs
Other
- Louis Vierne: Symphonie en la mineur, Poème pour piano et orchestre – François Kerdoncuff, piano; Orchestre Philharmonique de LiègeOrchestre Philharmonique de LiègeThe Orchestre Philharmonique Royal de Liège is a Belgian symphony orchestra, based in Liège. The OPRL was founded in 1960. With 100 members, the Liège Royal Philharmonic performs nearly 80 concerts each season, with approximately fifty of these concerts at the Salle Philharmonique de Liège, its...
; Pierre Bartholomée, conductor; Timpani (2007) - Louis Vierne: La Musique de chambre intégrale (The Complete Chamber Music) – François Kerdoncuff, piano; Olivier Gardon, piano; Alexis Galpérine, violin; Odile Carracilly, viola; Yvan Chiffoleau, cello; Christian Moreaux, oboe; Pascale Zanlonghi, harp; Quartour Phillips; 2 CDs; Timpani (2005)
- Louis Vierne: Piano Quintet op. 42: Stephen CoombsStephen CoombsStephen Coombs is one of Britain's best known pianists and currently works with some of the world's foremost orchestras and conductors, as well as performing as a solo artist.-Earlier life:...
, piano; Chilingirian QuartetLevon ChilingirianLevon Chilingirian OBE is a UK-based violinist. The founder of the Chilingirian Quartet, he is also a professor at the Royal College of Music in London and is musical director of Camerata Nordica, a Swedish chamber orchestra...
; Hyperion - Louis Vierne: L'œuvre pour piano (Works for Piano) – Olivier Gardon, piano; 2 CDs; Timpani (1995)
- Louis Vierne: Mélodies, [Volume I] – Mireille DelunschMireille DelunschMireille Delunsch is an opera soprano. She was born in Mulhouse, France, and studied musicology and voice at the Conservatoire de Strasbourg. Her debut was at the Opéra du Rhin in Mulhouse, in Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov....
, soprano; François Kerdoncuff, piano; Christine Icart, harp; Timpani (1997) - Louis Vierne: Mélodies, Volume II – Mireille DelunschMireille DelunschMireille Delunsch is an opera soprano. She was born in Mulhouse, France, and studied musicology and voice at the Conservatoire de Strasbourg. Her debut was at the Opéra du Rhin in Mulhouse, in Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov....
, soprano; François Kerdoncuff, piano; Timpani (2005) - Louis Vierne: Songs: Rachel Santesso, soprano; Roger VignolesRoger VignolesRoger Vignoles is a British pianist and accompanist. He regularly performs with the world’s leading singers – including Kiri Te Kanawa, Thomas Allen, Anne Sofie von Otter, Thomas Hampson, Gitta-Maria Sjøberg, Sarah Walker, Susan Graham, Felicity Lott, Stephan Genz, Monica Groop, Wolfgang Holzmair,...
, piano; Andrew Reid, organ; Hugh Webb, harp; Deux-Elles
External links
- Louis Vierne 1870-1937 French composer, organist, teacher
- Louis Vierne, the Man and his Music
- Short film of Louis Vierne performing at Notre Dame de Paris
- Performances of organ works by Louis Vierne in MP3 and MIDI formats at Logos Virtual Library
- Vierne organ music videos from Tihany
- Audio of "24 Pièces en style libre pour orgue ou harmonium", book 1 book 2, played on a virtual organ