Widor: Symphonie I

Charles-Marie Widor established the organ symphony as a genre with his first four Symphonies pour orgue, opus 13 (1872). The preface to this edition of Widor's Symphonie I includes essays on the place of organ music in Widor's oeuvre, his musical heritage, his development of the organ symphony, the first performances and publications, the sources, performance guidelines, and a technical description of the organ of Saint-Sulpice. The general outline of Symphonie I in C Minor was conceived early in Widor's career, but in later years he expanded it from five to seven movements, totally reworked the finale, and made sweeping revisions in the second movement at the very end of his life. Also included in this edition are five appendices containing selected principal variants, with two complete additional versions of the second movement and one complete additional version of the finale.

I. Prélude: Moderato

II. Allegretto

III. Intermezzo: Allegro

IV. Adagio

V. Marche pontificale

VI. Méditation: Lento

VII. Finale: Allegro

 

Appendix 1: [II] Allegretto. Version A/A′

Appendix 2: II. Version C/C′

Appendix 3: II. Edition D, Mm. 42–102

Appendix 4: III. Intermezzo. Versions A/A′ and B/B′/C/C′, Mm. 89–111

Appendix 5: VII. Finale. Version B/B′

Arthur Lawrence, Notes, September 1993; Robert Parkins, The Organ Yearbook, 1995; Andrew Thomson, Choir & Organ, May 1993