A substantial survey of a modern landmark in French organ literature, full of colour, mystery and joy.

If any organ music anticipates the explosion of lush harmony, unified musico-theological ideas and radical innovation with which Olivier Messiaen renewed the long tradition of French organ music, it is L’Orgue mystique by Messiaen’s one-time teacher at the Paris Conservatoire, Charles Tournemire. In a Bachian spirit of comprehensiveness, Tournemire wrote 51 suites for nearly every Sunday and select feast days of the church year. Gregorian chant permeates Tournemire’s music, with motives drawn from the appointed proper chants for the day.

On this 5-CD collection, the Dutch organist presents 23 of the suites, in whole or in part, and arranges them according to the church year, with individual discs dedicated to the Sundays around Christmas and Epiphany, Easter, Pentecost and the Assumption. Each suite consists of five movements: a ‘Prélude à l’Introït’, ‘Offertoire’, ‘Élévation’, ‘Communion’ and ‘Pièce terminale’. This final piece is no spectacular display piece: as one commentator has written, ‘Tournemire seemed to have envisioned a period of meditation for the devout at the conclusion of the Mass rather than the usual noisy and hurried movements of the congregation toward the door.’

Tournemire had himself been a pupil of César Franck, and wrote, as Franck had done, for the full disposition of Cavaillé-Coll organs which became synonymous worldwide with the musical equivalent of the Gothic revival. Tjeerd van der Ploeg made this recording in 1995 on the Mutin organ of the Eglise Saint-Pierre in Douai, France. This reissue makes an attractive sequel to his extensive 4-CD collection of Tournemire’s organ works outside L’Orgue mystique (95983). The technical specifications of the organ is included in the booklet, which also features an essay on Tournemire by van der Ploeg.