Thierry Escaich: Improvisation recital

Event Introduction

Organist of Notre-Dame in Paris, Thierry Escaich (*1965) is one of the world’s most sought-after French organist-composer-improvisers. At Musica nova, he can be heard improvising on the Helsinki Music Centre’s new Rieger organ, the unique properties of which afford the organist exciting potential for the expression of contemporary music.

Thierry Escaich is one of the ambassadors of the great French school of improvisation in the wake of Maurice Duruflé, whom he succeeded as organist of Saint-Étienne-du-Mont in Paris in 1997. He tours the world as the soloist with top orchestras and in recitals combining both traditional repertoire and improvisation. He is also Professor of Composition and Improvisation at the Paris Conservatoire.

Escaich was still a child when he began playing the organ, but he also visited the world of the accordion into his teens. His interest in numerous genres of music and other arts is manifest in his eclectic artistic freedom. His compositions cover a wide generic range, from organ pieces, operas and concertos to tangos, other dances and ballet, and works by him are in the regular active repertoire of many of the top European orchestras and chamber ensembles. His passion for cinema has led him to perform improvised accompaniments for silent films on both the organ and the piano.

While new music takes classical forwards, its message must, says Escaich, be easily accessible. His contribution to music has won him five French Victoires de la Musique and numerous record awards.

Programme:

Improvised overture

Paraphrase improvised on Ramus virens olivarum

Symphonic poem improvised on two themes by Kaija Saariaho

Prelude and fugue improvised on Lampaanpolska (The Mutton Bolska)

Four improvised city portraits:
New York
Vienna
St Petersburg
Paris

Some of the thematic material in the improvisations is related to Finland, Finnish music or the Rieger organ in the Music Hall.
Ramus virens olivarum is published in the song collection Piae Cantiones (1582), which was used in the Swedish-Finnish era, for example in the Turku Cathedral School. The text of the song, which dates back to the Middle Ages, describes the arrival of Christianity in Finland by Bishop Henrik.

Thematic fragments by Kaija Saariaho (1952-2023):
Theme from Clémence’s prayer “Si tu t’appelles Amour…” from the final scene of the opera L’amour de loin (2000)
Saariaho: Intermission music at Helsinki Music Hall

The Lampaanpolska (The Mutton Bolska), based on the European passacaglia La Folía, was published in a music book (1809) by Samuel Rinta-Nikkola (1763–1818), which collected violin polkas from Ilmajoki and South Ostrobothnia. A later version for piano (1915) was composed by Toivo Kuula (1883–1918).

Kaija Saariaho’s thematic fragments are used as improvisation material with the permission of the copyright holders.
L’amour de loin is published by Chester Music Limited.
The rights to the Musiikkitalo’s intermission music are owned by Helsingin Musiikkitalo Oy.

Performer:

Thierry Escaich

In co-operation with:

Musiikkitalo Organ Association

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