Deep Six

The passionate and powerful Sixth Organ Symphony by Charles-Marie Widor in two versions, for organ solo and with orchestra.

Widor’s “arrangement” of the outer movements of his popular Sixth (solo) Organ Symphony was his first major essay for organ and orchestra (he went on to create two additional, totally original organ/orchestra compositions later in life). It was prepared for a London concert in 1882, later played by Charles Courboin in Antwerp in 1900, and presented again by Courboin (with the Philadelphia Orchestra and Stokowski) at the Wanamaker Store in 1919. The Bowden/McKinley performance in Indiana was only the second American outing for this score since that Philadelphia premiere.

Program Broadcast dates:

• September 6, 1999

Music played in the program

WIDOR: Allegro (1st movement), from Organ Symphony No. 6 in g, No. 42, no. 2 –Ben van Oosten (1890 Cavaillé-Coll/Church of Saint Ouen, Rouen, France) MD&G CD 316 0403

WIDOR: Allegro, from Symphony in g for Organ and Orchestra, Op. 42 –Zürich Sym Orch/Daniel Schweizer, conductor; Ulrich Meldau (1988 Kleuker-Steinmeyer/Tonehalle, Zürich, Switzerland) Motette CD-40241

WIDOR/GUILLOU: Cadenza to (1st movement) Allegro, from Symphony No. 6 –Jean Guillou (1984 Ruffatti/Davies Symphony Hall, San Francisco, CA) Philips CD 412 619

WIDOR: Adagio (2nd movement), from Organ Symphony No. 6 –Herman van Vliet (1890 Cavaillé-Coll/Church of Saint Ouen, Rouen, France) Festivo CD-145/6

WIDOR (arr. Frank Stewart Adams): Allegro vivace (1st movement), from Organ Symphony No. 5, (Op. 42, no. 1) –Zurich Sym Orch/Daniel Schweizer, conductor; Ulrich Meldau (1988 Kleuker-Steinmeyer/Tonehalle, Zürich, Switzerland) Motette CD-40241

WIDOR: Intermezzo, from Organ Symphony No. 6 –Hans Fagius (1976 Åkerman & Lund/Katarina Church, Stockholm, Sweden) Bis CD-471

WIDOR: Cantabile, from Organ Symphony No. 6 –Kare Nordstoga (1885 Cavaillé-Coll/Saint Etienne Abbey Church, Caen, France) Simax CD-1073

WIDOR: Andante (from Organ Symphony No. 2, Op. 13) and Finale (from Organ Symphony No. 6), from Symphony in g for Organ and Orchestra –Columbus Indiana Philharmonic/David Bowden, conductor; Daniel McKinley (1942 Aeolian-Skinner/First Christian Church, Columbus, IN) (American Public Media recording 11/21/98; this is the first the first national broadcast in the United States of a score only recently published).