Presents
Louis Vierne
Piano Quintet in c minor, Op.42
Louis Vierne's Piano Quintet in c minor, Op.42 was completed in 1918. The year before, Vierne had lost his 17 year old son in the First World War. He had allowed the boy, who was under age, to volunteer and was devastated by his death. He wrote that he intended the Quintet to serve as a votive offering of vast proportions to convey the sadness and grief he felt. He wrote, “...as my grief is terrible, I shall make something that is powerful, imposing and strong, which will stir in the depths of every father’s breast the deepest feelings of love for a dead son.” The massive first movement, Poco-lento-Moderato, begins quietly with a short, slow introduction which is full of despair. It quickly gives way to the Moderato which consists of two quite intense themes, one highly poignant, especially when given to the strings. The music builds to a rather dramatic climax before dying away calmly. There is the unmistakable influence of César Franck and to a lesser extent Fauré. The tonalities are more wayward or modern though in no way showing any influence of atonalism. In the middle movement, Larghetto sostenuto, the viola gives forth, in its darkest register, a drooping and wounded melody. For the most part the movement appears calm but the unusual use of tremolo creates a sense of apprehension lurking beneath the surface. The music briefly explodes but dies away without any real resolution. The final movement, Allegro molto risoluto, begins with the piano playing a series of harsh chords before the main theme of the Larghetto appears, a la Franck, but it is quickly transmogrified into a truly powerful and dramatic subject. The music is full of restless energy created by several martial cross rhythms. Perhaps this is a tonal picture conveying the excitement and danger of life in battle. Suddenly, the power vanishes, replaced by a disemboweled and spooky atmosphere. The coda, however, ends on a more positive, though not triumphant note. This is a fine work, well-written, original sounding and deserving of concert performance. French-sounding, it contrasts nicely with the many quintets by Vierne’s Central European contemporaries.
Louis Vierne (1870-1937) was born in the French town of Poitiers. He studied piano and organ as a boy before entering the Paris Conservatory where he studied with Cesar Franck and Charles Marie Widor. From 1892, Vierne served as an assistant to the organist Charles-Marie Widor at the church of Saint-Sulpice in Paris and subsequently became principal organist at the cathedral of Notre-Dame in Paris, a post he held from 1900 until his death in 1937. Much of his music reflects the difficulties he encountered in life, including his near blindness, the loss of his son and brother in WWI and his divorce. He also pursued a career as a teacher. Vierne had an elegant, clean style of writing that respected form above all else. His harmonic language was romantically rich, but not as sentimental or theatrical. Most of his output was for the organ, however he did not ignore chamber music and wrote a string quartet, a piano quintet and several instrumental works.
This is a fine work, well-written, original sounding and deserving of concert performance. French-sounding, it contrasts nicely with the many quintets by Vierne’s Central European contemporaries. It deserves concert performance and can be played by experienced amateurs as well.
Parts: $39.95
