Grand Chœur in A

A native of Paris and graduate of the Paris Conservatoire, Theodore Salomé spent most of his musical career as the choir organist at Eglise de la-Sainte-Trinité in his home city. Both Gounod and Bizet were members of the congregation a La Trinité. Saint-Saëns had recommended Salomé for the post of 'organiste titulaire' but the position had already been offered to Guilmant. Salomé and Guilmant went on to become great friends with Salomé often deputising for his boss. Although prolific as a composer, his organ work always came first. Of his surviving works, his Grand Chœurs in G and, here, in A are perhaps his best known pieces. Both settings are rather conservative in style, but solid and approachable pieces.

The great French organ builder, Aristide Cavaillé-Coll built two organs for La Trinité, the grand organ inaugurated in 1869 by Saint-Saëns, Widor and Franck. It seems entirely fitting that for this piece, I have chosen to use the organ of Oloron-Sainte-Marie sampled by Pitor Grabowski for Hauptwerk. Built just one year after the organ in La Trinité, it was somewhat smaller but is not lacking in power.