The fourth disc of
this series contains just organ works.
A slightly strange collection of pieces
includes, for me, some of Saint-Saëns'
weakest pieces. The long, dull Deuxième
Fantaisie, and the strange and shapeless
first improvisation stand out in this
regard. On the other hand the C major
Prélude and Fugue, is one of
the least academic. The Premiere
Fantaisie remains popular, and the
Guilmant transcriptions add interest.
The programme is saved, (far better
than, for example, Naxos's first volume
in their series, reviewed elsewhere
on these pages), by the quality of the
playing and the instruments. It is hard
to overstate the consistency of the
performances offered on these discs
by Vincent Genvrin, titulaire of Soissons
Cathedral, and Professor of Organ at
the Conservatoire in Laon. These interpretations
are always musical, supple, marvellously
controlled, and with a great empathy
for the music. Perhaps some of the less
succinct pieces could have been more
imaginatively approached, but this is
a minor quibble. The highlight of this
fourth CD for me, is his wonderfully
dramatic reading of the little-known,
Cyprès, an anguished hommage
to the dead of the first world war.
Again, Hortus record
interesting and appropriate instruments.
This disc, with the exception of the
last two works, was recorded on the
extremely late (1898) Cavaillé-Coll
organ in Azkoita, Spain, completed little
more than a month before Charles Mutin
succeeded Aristide Cavaillé-Coll
in charge of the firm. A three manual
organ of 38 stops, in a small Basque
village, it can be, according to the
interesting essay about the organ, considered
the chef d'oeuvre of voicer Fernand
Pince, who worked for Cavaillé-Coll
only between 1889 (the year of the St
Sernin, Toulouse organ) and the death
of Aristide. It sounds wonderfully fiery
here.
Again, Hortus's manically
inconsistent approach to booklet-content
is evident. This release's effort contains
the aforementioned essay on the organ
together with a photo and specification
(hooray!), and notes on the works. However
this time none of it is translated into
English, so your French has to be reasonable.
Overall, despite the
inconsistent nature of the music, this
series is highly recommendable for the
quality of the performances and instruments.
Chris Bragg
for details
Vincent Genvrin, organ 
