Complete Organ Symphonies (Symphonies Nos.5, 6): Nolan

Widor: The Complete Organ Symphonies Volume 1

Organ Symphony No. 5 in F minor, Op. 42 No. 1
Organ Symphony No. 6 in G minor, Op. 42 No. 2

Joseph Nolan (Cavaille-Coll organ of La Madeleine, Paris)

Recorded: 05/2011

Volume 1 in a new collection of Charles-Marie Widor's Organ Symphonies, performed by Joseph Nolan on the magnificent Cavaille-Coll organ of L'eglise de la Madeleine, Paris.

Bridging the generations from Mendelssohn to Messiaen, Empire to Republic, Widor was born to the organ. His Lyonnaise kinsfolk were organ-builders, he showed early talent for the instrument, and for decades was the embodiment of its might and splendour across the Gallic domain - his 'Organ Symphonies' were genre-defining in their influence.

Joseph Nolan is an internationally renowned organist, acclaimed as a brilliant and such an astute musician by Gramophone. He was appointed to Her Majesty's Chapels Royal, St James's Palace in 2004, and has since been invited to perform and record in some of the world's premiere venues - including the refurbished Organ of Buckingham Palace Ballroom (SIGCD114) and the Organ of Saint-Sulpice in Paris (SIGCD167). The Cavaille-Coll Organ of La Madeleine, Paris is a similarly renowned instrument, with former chief-organists including Camille Saint-Saens and Gabriel Faure.