Prélude - #1 from Douze Pièces

Édouard Commette (12 April 1883 in Lyon – 21 April 1967[1]) was an organist from Lyon in France of international fame who served the Archdiocese of Lyon and was organist at Basilique Notre Dame de Fourvière for over 50 years. Edouard studied piano at the lycée of Bourg-en-Bresse, after which he returned to Lyon and turned his attention to organ and harmony. A pupil of Charles Marie Widor, in 1900 he made his debut as organist in Lyon at the Church of the Good Shepherd (Église du Bon-Pasteur). Four years later he spent six months at the Church of Saint Polycarpe (Église Saint-Polycarpe), which owns one of the loveliest organs in the city. He took up his post at Lyon Cathedral in 1904 and was a professor at the Conservatoire de Lyon. Among his students were Pierre-Octave Ferroud and fr:Adrien Rougier. Called "the best French organist" by the well-known music critic Émile Vuillermoz, Commette earned similar tributes from his students and listeners from all parts of the world and is responsible for some of the earliest organ recordings.

Commette wrote quite a bit of music - in addition to this Prelude and the 11 pieces that follow it, he also wrote a collection of 6 pieces and a collection of 14 pieces. This piece really "feels" French, and in spots reminds me a lot of Vierne. It's a shame he remains mostly unknown and unplayed, and the music is unfailingly well-written and (in some cases) even brilliantly conceived.