Climat, JA 79

Climat JA79/AVW 64, 1932
(atmosphere/climate)

The following texts appeared in an early manuscript of the work:

1.Toujours le même tesme â la fin de nos réflexions.
Nous conduissons longtemps nos idées pour tomber en arrét devant l’incertitude.
Quelle foi la plus sincère n’est pas ainsi altérée... lieu où s’arrête notre coeur,
où notre esprit est l’impuissant.

Always the same theme at the end of our reflections.
We guide our ideas for a long time, only to be brought up short in the face of uncertainty.
What faith, even the most sincere, is not thus corrupted to the point where our heart stops,
where our spirit is powerless.
(tesme is Old French for ‘theme’.)

2. Histoire d’un nain qui compte sur ses doigts et qui arrive toujours au bout.
Alors il s’arrête.
Il entend le vent que descend de la colline en face.

Story of a dwarf who counts on his fingers and who always gets to the end.
So he stops.
He hears the wind coming down the hill opposite.

The premiere performance of Climat was given by Noëlie Pierront at the Church of Saint-Germain-des-Prés, Paris on the 23rd March 1941. This event involved a small gathering of musicians who met on this Sunday afternoon to honour the memory of their friend and colleague Jehan Alain, by playing a selection of his music.
As part of this memorial event, Pierront also performed Alain's Aria, Deux Danses à Agni Yavishta and Trois Danses. His vocal works O quam suavis est and Ave Maria were sung by Henriette Baudin and Hélène Bouvier and his Andante con variazioni was played by a string quintet:
Vlns. Edmée Ortmans-Bach, Colette du Masjambost,
Vlas. Madeleine Carrière, Suzanne Meynieu,
'Cello, Yvonne Thibou.

(The sketches in the video are of dwarf-like figures by Alain and are copied from a letter to Marguerite Evain, 22 June 1937.)