Cochereau plays Widor Toccata (1959 Version)

[mrstevebournias]

Cochereau knew what he was doing in 1959 with this divine tempo where all of the inner beauty of Widor is to be found; also the organ was likely unaltered from the days of Vierne's modifications so it sounds wonderful; no screaming upperwork anywhere to be found....

[iloveejh]

Genius

[rpugh20009]

I totally agree with you, this is the tempo it should be played. Diane Bish tears through this as if she had to go to the bathroom. So many people speculate that Widor played his Toccata too slow because he was an old man, 89, with arthritis, poor hearing and eyesight, etc. Might it have been that he wrote it in this tempo? In Widor's time, it is said the Toccata was played last at recitals. It was the ubiquitious piece with which they brought the house down.

[beano1eye]

@rpugh20009 : Methinks that Widor played his own composition the way he wished to play it ; that is the correct tempo. Look at the notes - the 'arabesques' - in the right hand (they are also played by the left). The last two notes are tied. If one speeds through the composition, how can one correctly phrase these notes ?

[vdanker]

There's a reason the composer used this tempo; you can better hear the nuances this way.

[Gaeta001]

questa è una delle migliori interpretazioni mai ascoltate di questa Toccata. In questa esecuzione -rispetto alle successive più veloci e più "da corsa"- Cochereau dimostra una profonda attenzione per ogni singola nota e una simbiosi notevole col pezzo!

[kyotokid4]

...too many play this piece way too fast today and ignore the grandeur this work has.

I once played it at this tempo for a wedding processional in a church which had a beautiful delay. So grand and stately.

[ClickThisToSubscribe]

a bit too slow...

[cross147]

@ClickThisToSubscribe this is just Widor's original tempo...you have to look at it: /watch?v=J8vz1D_L_OE

[MrQuebec]

@ClickThisToSubscribe

Widor himself played it slower.

[hjozsi54]

Nagyon jó.

[IamAlessandro1]

nice 2listen at the right organ nd tempo too. There are nice different interpretations too, but prev. this one.

[Bicot65]

Legato is the word! Cochereau, by using the right organ, stops and speed, was able to make it flow like water and sound like strings many times during his magistral interpretation... Just bought the recodings on the web. While not the best sounding, it's still worth it.

[antoine20008]

Beyond the Master of tempo beautifully adapted to Notre Dame's reverberation, which is unique, and as Cochereau approached with such intelligence, one thing a little funny, I find the console made of milk chocolate.. God be kind with me even I find such terrestrial resemblances with the wood of this Organ..

[IamAlessandro1]

Its an old recording, B U T how nicely good playd! (((wow))) Nice and acuratly for a big building like the NotreDame Paris. There is no need for speed in this Toccata from Widor. Absolutly one of the best. Thanks monsieur Cochereau (nd Widor of crs lol)

[binky4647]

@IamAlessandro1 agreed the bigger the granduer and echo effect slower is better.

The place to be is at the back , its amazing.

[94Butman]

Pierre Cochereau mon Maitre!!! Le cavaillé-Coll avant l'ajout des chamades en 1963/1964 sur la console jouer par Vierne et Léonce de Saint Martin.

Le tempo adopté une pure merveille...

[sprint333]

... glorious dexterity and respectful fidelity to the composer's notations ....

in this, we witness a precious presentation of the Widor's genuis .. by the hands and feet of the grand master organists ... at the claviers of the of the emperor of cathedral organs.

[Vic2Guem4]

Au début je craignais de m'ennuyer, je trouvais cela lent et lourd mais en fait j'ai été pris par l'interprétation : c'est malgré tout impressionnant et cela doit bien correspondre à un compositeur comme Widor.

[999gilou]

cette version a été enregistrée pour "La Guilde International du Disque". Magnifique ! Prendre un tempo plus allant à Notre-Dame serait une ereur sur le plan acoustique.

[josajpnide]

Eh oui...

Je préférerai légèrement plus allant, mais effectivement, à ce tempo, toutes les subtilités de l'écriture apparaissent !

Et surtout, le rythme est plus facile à conserver!

En effet, le plus gros problème de la plupart des organistes est qu'il ne parviennent pas à garder la pulsation qu'ils se sont donné au départ...!!! De ce fait on perd une grande partie du plaisir de l'écoute surtout sur un morceau comme celui-ci.

[citzie]

This is the most beautiful version I've ever heard. It sounds like it's being played on a tracker - mechanical action - console. Unbelievable voicing and clarity, especially given the acoustics of that building. And what charming pitches with their slight off key sound

[KV4671]

Dit is Frankrijk

[azert5962]

Le son est splendide malgré l'âge de l'enregistrement est cela est quand même autre chose que la "version la plus rapide du monde"... à éviter sur Youtube.

[manu80700]

cochereau était un génie.

[Monalisa3434]

My favourite version, from one of the best organist of all time... The rythm and deep vibrations of pedal slides are great...

[raymondfrice]

a beautiful rendition/ why all the inhumane comments??

[ErickTorresLDUQ]

que belleza

[crustylion321]

organ music is for white middle aged men who have no wives

[fcouperin]

@crustylion321 so wait for your turn ; )

[md95065]

@crustylion321 tell that to Wayne Marshall or Gillian Weir ...

[MarkDeAlba]

@crustylion321 The same can be said for YouTube trolling.

[issueagent]

This tempo somehow makes more sense compared to the usual ones we hear

[wljmrbill]

I enjoy this tempo as I did Widors. I am an oganist myself and I feel many times pieces are played way to fast ( more to show off then perform). We American organist maybe more guilty of this fast tempo problem than others. I like to hear the notes myself and many things must be considered and tempo is just one of them. Thanks for posting

[peteacher52]

@wljmrbill Widor himself played it at this tempo - OK, he was an old man in his 90s - but a recording exists of him doing so at St Sulpice in 1937, which may well have been Cochereau's inspiration for his interpretation.

[SergioBonf]

Cochereau is simply one of the greatest organists ever.

[DAOFB]

@GrandeBombarde16

But its quiet the tempo Widor wanted to have this piece played in. Just listen to his own recording :)

Search for this video: "Ch. M. Widor plays his Toccata from V Symphony Op. 42 No. 1 "

[DAOFB]

@GrandeBombarde16

youre right, Cochereau's perfomance lacks the majesty and grandeur Widor himself puts into this piece. But still I dont think his tempo is the main point for critique :)

But thats personal taste, at least I understand your point.

Philipp

[cnmmnc8852]

@GrandeBombarde16What an ASSHOLE you are! What a stupid sophomoric 19 year old worm you are. Cochereau could play it and did in fact play it with more than one interpretation. You loathsome swamp scum would look down your rotting slime slicked nose because Dupre gave a different view of the last page of the F major toccata and Widor changed the same more than once, without asking your permission. You are an uninspired, putrid vomit who hides behind a miserable 3 manual Allen and empty rhetoric.

[cnmmnc8852]

@GrandeBombarde16 Request denied.

19 year old pieces of debris do not merit respect,'grande' or 'petit'.How do you become enthralled with the mediocrity of your performance without any improvisatory skill?? There are many others who think as Hitler did, what's the point?

[kellogs211]

Good Speed for this piece. Widor didn't intend for it to be fast!

[cnmmnc8852]

@Krisztian989 That is one of the stupidest comments I've seen on here. It's one thing to not like the recording. It's self-righteous and ignorant to denigrate an artist for the ages like Pierre Cochereau who could improvise a symphony, in public, with themes submitted by the audience. The man had more technique in his thumb then any 21 year old university student has in their whole self-centered body. Who cares what "a lot of young people" like or dislike? Does everything have to be fast & loud?

[10rapperboy]

slightly detuned

[Elhombresombra]

@10rapperboy when the reeds are slightly detuned, the organ sounds actually more "alive"... and plays louder too! We discussed this topic many times and, well, maybe in this recording some stop was a bit too much out of tune, but in heavy chords you don't notice that so much as with single notes.

[bbbbmer]

calliope

clumsy

oafish

[bbbbmer]

calliope



[19shea85]

WOW! Pierre Cochereau actually CAN play something without the chamades on! Not only that but for once his playing is slow enough that it doesn't just sound like muddy noise.

[smithjord]

@19shea85 I've noticed that too. It seems like a lot of recordings there are with the chamades blasting away...

[GoPatriots100]

@smithjord what are the chamades?

[smithjord]

@GoPatriots100 Chamades are the pipes that are sticking out of the case horizontally. They are loud trumpet style pipes.

[GoPatriots100]

@smithjord thanks man, why is it bad to have them "blasting away" ?

[ds1868]

@19shea85 That's because the chamades were not installed in 1959. Robert Boisseau fitted those to PCs specification in the '60s. The Philips version of 1973 could not be any different. I have the CD of that and will try and upload that. This version is fairly 'sedate' - the 1973 version is devastating, almost nuclear, and much faster.

[cnmmnc8852]

You can set your watch by his tempo. He was not playing to astonish or show-off here, he was letting Widor speak on the Notre Dame instrument. That heroic theme entering in the pedals comes down the nave like a giant's tread. The most solid performance of this 'warhorse' on YouTube.

[polsterj]

Interesting recording.

Completely different sound compared to the later cochereau-organ and also different from Viernes 1929 recordings!

[Egestus18]

@polsterj is there a vierne recording of widors toccata? is it available on youtube?! would very much like to hear it :)

[polsterj]

@Egestus18 There are four recordings of vierne-works and improvisation (search: vierne plays vierne) and the Prelude and Fugue in e minor by bach (search: bach @ notre-dame) There was once a recordung of vierne playing the fantasy an fugue in g minor by bach, but I couldn't find it again. But I haven't heard of a recording of widors toccata, apart from the one made by widor hiself!

[chachmaster3000]

The tempo is good. However, the bass should be blasting windows.

Crosses fingers for a good HD version to appear on here one day.

[rotunda57]

Pardon my French but that is one kick-ass organ.

[vcochereau]

C'est un tempo qui correspond si l'adagio est joué juste avant dans le contexte de la symphonie mais il est souvent joué plus allant dans le sens d'une oeuvre isolée, un concert ou à une sortie dominicale par exemple.

[silverstartrucker]

Much too slow and jerky, it does not flow.

[advisorC101]

The tempo is good, this is what Widor wanted. He often complained about how so many organists plays it too fast.

[silverstartrucker]

OK...Afraid I am spoilt by Frederick Hohman's brilliant version on youtube.

[advisorC101]

Have you heard Daniel Roth play this?

[silverstartrucker]

Have just heard it and Mr. Hohman has the edge - imho - I have a very powerful sound system with huge bass speakers.

Hohman's sound is superlative. The most ridiculously fast version I ever heard was by Carlo Curley...Good Lord...

[codeman2008]

I don't even want to know how Curley would play it! Good Lord indeed!

Van Oosten's interpretation is my favorite by far. Hohman and Roth both play wonderfully as well!

[silverstartrucker]

Sorry mate, I have just played Van Oosten's version and the sound does not match Hohman's version. I know depth of sound is not everything but watch Hohman and listen to the sound then tell me other versions are better. Of course it depends what kind of sound system people have, this sound is dreadful.

A tinny sound will not do justice to any large pipe organ. Just my humble opinion darlings :-)

[GJmusique]

beautiful tempo.. this is what it should sound like. very good :)

[JFSnail]

Wow, this must be pre-restoration by Hermann, original Cavaillé-Coll/Mutin! Where is this recording from? Must have more :-)

[jmeister321684]

Dear JF, this is from a reissue CD done in the 90's by FNAC musique called ''Pierre Cochereau aux Grandes Orgues de Notre-Dame de Paris''; certainly still is available; very nice portrait with Bach, Lebègue and Liszt as well on it, with also a Frescobaldi Toccata on les Gambes (fantastic !) as on the Philips 1973 more known ''Grandes Toccatas à ND'' . I believe all this CD content was recorded in 1959, so all before the new electric Hermann console and Boisseau stops, etc !

[JFSnail]

thanks for the info, always wondered what that FNAC CD was on their website!

[Elhombresombra]

@jmeister321684 @JFSnail I have just assembled a broadcast-grade audio equipment, installed in an environment with NO neighbours... ;o) This CD *MUST* be mine! Could any of you gentlement kindly forward me (or post here) the full catalogue code of the CD? Some detail? Thank you in advance!

[jeanseborg]

Ça c'était un Cavaillé-Coll!