Litanies
The Litanies (JA 119) is probably the best-known organ work by the French composer Jehan Alain . The piece, which initially had Supplications as its working title, was finished by Alain on August 15, 1937 and premiered by him on February 17, 1938 on the organ in La Trinité (Paris) .
The theme of the work was designed by Jehan Alain. Parts of the piece can be traced back to a Fantasmagoria composed in 1935 . The piece, only about four minutes long, is based on a theme of eighth and quarter notes that is repeated in ever new variations. In the course of the piece there is a dramatic increase up to intoxicating ecstasy. Alain wrote about this in a letter: “A prayer is not a lament, but a tornado that sweeps away everything that stands in its way ... If you are not completely exhausted at the end, you have neither understood the piece correctly, nor something played as I imagine it to be. «The interpretation from bar 58 with its rapidly descending triads is considered difficult. Alain therefore recommended an interpretation without speed reduction, neglecting the accuracy in the left hand.
At the time of writing, Jehan Alain was in a crisis, his wife had a miscarriage, and he himself was suffering from anxiety dreams. Three weeks after completing the composition, Alain added the following dedication to the piece, which refers to the death of his sister Marie-Odile in a mountain accident at that time:
“Quand l'âme chrétienne ne trouve plus de mots nouveaux dans la détresse pour implorer la miséricorde de Dieu, elle répète sans cesse la même invocation avec une fois véhémente. La raison atteint sa limit. Seule la foi poursuit son ascension. "
Literature and editions
- The oeuvre d'Orgue de JEHAN ALAIN. Alphonse Leduc
- Helga Schauerte-Maubouet : Jehan Alain ( 1911-1940 ), the organ work (Bosse 1983)
- Viktor Lukas : organ music guide (Reclam)
Web links
- Sunday paper: Der Orgel-Literaturkanon (49): »Litanies« by Jehan Alain
- "JEHAN ALAIN, L'OEUVRE D'ORGUE ET LES LITANIES" Par Valérie Bossu Ragis, Professeur Agrégé, Collège P. Eluard Montreuil (French PDF; 283 kB)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Quoted in the Sunday paper of August 7, 2011: The four-minute tornado. The organ literature canon (49): »Litanies« by Jehan Alain.
- ↑ on capriccio-kulturforum.de
- ↑ “When the Christian soul in its despair can no longer find words to implore the mercy of God, it repeats the same supplication incessantly in impetuous faith. Reason reaches its limit. Faith, all alone, continues its ascent. ”For translation see http://www.sonntagsblatt-bayern.de/news/aktuell/2009_44_16_01.htm ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link became automatic marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
