Grand jeu de la Suite Baroque

The idea of this upload was given by the listening of two recent uploads : Langlais' hommage à Frescobaldi by David (Mckindl) and and Reveyron's Versets pour un orgue ancien by Jonathan (Giwro). Both are an hommage to baroque composers and, like this one, mix "ancien atmosphere" with modern harmonic language. And thanks to Giwro and Mckindl which sent me back to playing some Langlais.

Langlais's Suite baroque, composed in 1973, didn't intend to be an hommage, but rather a musical pamphlet against the purism of some baroquists of the period. Langlais was an advocate of eclectic organs ; baroquists were fighting such organs. The French-French war was then quite fierce in the little French organ world (peace has now come back, happily :-))

So, this Grand jeu has something of a musical mockery, at least when it was composed. Its has an evident relationship with two other Langlais' compositions : the Pasticcio and the Dialogue sur les mixtures. But the language is more acerbic here. One can also hear a short reminiscence of Fête at 1:30.

The piece has the form of a rondo alternating 3 refrains and 2 verses.