Category Archives: 20th century

Louis Vierne plays the Notre Dame Organ in Paris in 1929

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Louis Vierne (1870-1937)

Louis Vierne was a French organist and teacher. He was born nearly blind due to congenital cataracts. Vierne’s music was idiomatic for his instrument and the harmonies in his music were rich. He was an inspiration to the many Parisian organist-composers that came after him. Vierne was also a great improviser on the organ. He gave many recitals during his life and toured widely. In 1937 while giving his 1750th recital at Notre Dame in Paris Vierne died at the organ console.

Here are two rare recordings froom 1929 of Louis Vierne playing the organ at Notre Dame in Paris. 1929 was the first year that sound was recorded electronically. The first recording is a soft improvisation that Vierne made up on the spot. The second recording is a Bach Prelude and Fugue. The second recording is a piece by Vierne.

I can’t imagine what it must have been like carrying all that heavy recording equipment up the narrow stairway to Notre Dame’s balcony to record the organ.
An organ with more than 7000 pipes! Enjoy.

Eric Whitacre – The Seal Lullaby

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Eric Whitacre (1970 – )

Eric Whitacre is a Grammy award winning American composer and conductor who is known for his choral, orchestral, and wind music. He is also well known for his “Virtual Choir” projects which bring together people from around the world into a big online choir. in 2016 he became The Los Angeles Master Chorale’s first artist-in-residence at Walt Disney Concert Hall.

Here is a beautiful choral piece Eric Whitacre wrote called the Seal Lullaby. It is performed by Eric Whitacre and the Eric Whitacre Singers. I hope that you enjoy this music.

Sir Anthony Hopkins “And The Waltz Goes On” performed by Andre Rieu and the Johann Strauss Orchestra

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Sir Anthony Hopkins (1937 – )

Sir Anthony Hopkins is a Welsh actor, director, producer and a composer. He started taking piano lessons when he was six years old. Hopkins worked hard at the piano. When he was 12 years old he began improvising on the piano with dissonant chords and began working on developing melodic lines which he would then write down on manuscript paper. In 1964 Hopkins was working as an actor at the Playhouse Theatre in Liverpool. He would often arrive early before everyone else in the morning when the cleaning ladies were there. There was an old piano in the theatre and he would sit down and improvise melodies. One day he came up with a waltz tune. Someone heard him and asked who wrote the tune. Hopkins said that he made it up. For years the piece was never premiered because Anthony Hopkins didn’t think the piece was good enough. In 2008 he scored the piece entitled “And The Waltz Goes On” for full orchestra. Hopkin’s wife Stella contacted violinist André Rieu and sent him the score. On July, 3rd, 2011 it got its premiere (50 years after its composition).

André Rieu and the Johann Strauss Orchestra

André Rieu is a Dutch violinist and conductor from Maastricht who is well known for his famous Johann Strauss Orchestra. He graduated from the Brussels Conservatory with a first prize in violin. While he was studying music at University, he performed Franz Lehár’s Gold and Silver Waltz. The audience reaction was wonderful and he decided to play more waltz music. in 1978 he created the Maastricht Salon Orchestra and played with the Limburg Symphony Orchestra. in 1987 he formed the now famous Johann Strauss Orchestra as well as his own publishing company. The orchestra and Andre Rieu are very popular and regularly give sold out performances. André Rieu sets up the stage and the lighting before each concert and spends a lot of money making sure everything looks perfect. At some of his concerts they even serve real champagne in wine glasses to the audience members.

Here is a performance of André Rieu and his Johann Strauss Orchestra performing Anthony Hopkin’s “And the Waltz Goes On”.

live footage of the Quintet of the Hot Club of France – J’attendrai (1939)

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The Quintet of the Hot Cub of France

The Quintet of the Hot Club of France was an acoustic string band formed by violinist Stéphane Grappelli and gypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt in 1934. The group made hundreds of recordings before World War II. The group split up when the war started and got back together after the war in 1946. They played together until Django Reinhardt’s untimely death in 1953.

Here is a rare video of the quintet performing the tune J’attendrai a popular French song first recorded by Rina Ketty in 1938. It became a big hit during World War II. Listen to Grappell’s smooth lyrical style of playing and watch Reinhardt’s impressive finger work with his two working fingers of his left hand. The remaining three fingers were bent and unusable because of burns he suffered in a caravan fire when he was 18. Django Reinhardt had to re-learn how to play the guitar.

Ginette Neveu plays Gluck Melodie and Chopin Nocturne

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Ginette Neveu (1919-1949)

Ginette Neveu was a French classical violinist. She became famous after she won first prize in the Henryk Wieniawski violin competition at the age of 16 beating Russian violin virtuoso David Oistrakh (who won second place). She won a touring contract which took her to Germany, Poland, the Soviet Union, United States, and Canada. Her performing tours were interrupted during most of world war II but resumed in 1945. She often toured with her brother Jean-Paul who accompanied her on the piano. With her brother she travelled to Prague, Australia, South America, and the United States. They made some recordings together as well. In 1949, Ginette was on am Air France flight and it crashed into a mountain in the Azores. Both she and her brother were killed. She was only 30 years old.

Here are a couple of recordings of Ginette Neveu with pianist Bruno Seidler-Winkler playing violin/piano arrangements of Christoph Wilibald Gluck’s Melodie and Frederic Chopin’s Nocturne No. 20 in C sharp minor. I hope that you enjoy this music.

KATICA & ANIKÓ ILLÉNYI – El Choclo

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El Choclo (tango)

El Choclo is one of the most popular Argentinian tangos. It was written by Ángel Villoldo, an Argentinian musician. It is named after the owner of a nightclub. El Choclo had its premier in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1903. It has since been recorded by many dance orchestras in Argentina and famous musicians such as Louis Armstrong, Nat King Cole, and Julio Iglesias.

Katica Illényi is a Hungarian violinist, singer, and theremin player. She is a classically trained violinist that plays several different genres of music including tangos, folk music, klezmer music, and Manouche jazz (or gypsy jazz). She has won many awards including the Artist of Merit of Hungary Award and the Franz Liszt Award from the Franz Liszt Academy. She organizes her own concerts and her YouTube channel gets millions of hits on a regular basis.

Here is a live performance of Katica Illényi (violin) and her sister Anikó Illényi (cello) performing the tango El Choclo with a group of other musicians. I hope that you enjoy this music.

Ivry Gitlis plays Sarasate and Tchaikovsky

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Ivry Gitlis (1922- )

Ivry Gitlis is an Isreali violin virtuoso. He has played with many of the world’s top orchestras including the Vienna Philharmonic, London Philharmonic, New York Philharmonic, and the Israeli Philharmonic. His style of playing is unconventional. He sometimes plays with a very intense vibrato and at other times with no vibrato at all. His use of the bow is different from many players today. Sometimes he lays into the string producing a powerful tone. At other times the bow slides across the string lightly producing a glassy sound. His playing is also very free compared to many modern players who seem to just plow through the notes in a mechanical fashion.

Here is Ivry Gitlis playing Sarasate’s Zigeunerweisen with pianist Ann Maria Vera, and Tchaikovsky’s Valse Sentimentale with pianist S. Neriki. I hope that you enjoy this music.

Pierre Pincemaille (organ) improvises on the Cavaillé-Coll organ of St. Denis

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Aristide Cavaillé-Coll (1811-1899)

Aristide Cavaillé-Coll was a 19th Century French organ builder.  He completed his first organ in 1840.  The period from the French Revolution beginning in 1789 and during the time of Cavaillé-Coll’s first organ was devoid of french organ music.  Many pipe organs in France were auctioned off or destroyed, and many organists lost their jobs during the revolution.  Some kept their jobs because they played popular music glorifying the revolution.  When Cavaillé-Coll built his first organ there was basically one French organ composer named Boëlly who was writing for the organ.  Cavaillé-Coll revolutionized organ building in France and he encouraged organists to compose for his romantic organs.  He worked together with composers to promote their music and they wrote music that fit well together with the sounds of his organs. It was because of Cavaillé-Coll that French organ music became an important part of 19th century France. The organ in the Basilica of St. Denis was the first organ that Cavaillé-Coll built.

 

Pierre Pincemaille (1956-2018)

Pierre Pincemaille was a French organist who was well known for his improvisations during live performances and on cd recordings.  He recorded Charles-Marie Widor’s organ symphonies on several Cavaillé-Coll organs, as well as works by Franck, Duruflé, Cochereau, and Vierne.  Pierre graduated from the Paris Conservatory with first prizes in harmony, counterpoint, fugue, organ, and improvisation.  He became the organist of St. Denis in 1987 and played there until his death on January 12, 2018.   In the video clips you are about to see, Pierre Pincemaille improvises on the organ of St. Denis.  He is making up the music on the spot.  Enjoy!

La Cumparsita – Hassan Sharara (violin), Emad Hamdy (guitar)

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The tango La Cumparsita was composed by Gerardo Matos Rodriguez (1897-1948) in 1916.  Lyrics were written by Pascual Contursi and Enrique Pedro Maroni.  It is one of the most famous tangos.  the piece began its life as a march.  After it was written, Rodriguez had his friend Manuel Barca show it to orchestral leader Roberto Firpo.  Firpo decided to turn the piece into a tango.  It was named the cultural and popular anthem of Uruguay in 1997.

Here is La Cumparsita (in tango form) played by two Arabic musicians at the Cairo Opera House in Egypt.  The musicians are Hassan Sharara and Emad Hamdy.  They arranged the piece for violin and guitar.  Sharara plays the violin and Hamdy plays the guitar. I hope that you enjoy this music!

 

Fini Henriques – Lullaby

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Fini Henriques (1867-1940)

Fini Henriques was a Danish composer and violinist. He was a colleague of Victor Borge’s father and both he and Victor Borge’s father played in the Royal Danish Orchestra. Fini Henriques was an excellent composer. He wrote music for piano, violin, and chamber ensembles. Fini Henriques also wrote operas.

Here is a rare clip of the Danish comedian and pianist Victor Borge playing a Lullaby by Fini Henriques. This piece was sentimental for Victor Borge because his mother used to play it for him when he was a little boy. I hope that you enjoy this music.