Franck avant César Franck offertoires & pièce posthumes Elke Völker

• César Franck (1822-1890):
• 1 Offertoire en fa mineur 08:22
• 2 Offertoire en sol mineur 08:12
• 3 Andantino 07:07
• 4 Offertoire de Noël 05:50
• 5 Offertoire en fa dièse mineur 04:25
• 6 Pièce en mi bémol 12:24
• 7 Grand Chœur 07:20
• 8 Offertoire 05:36
• 9 Offertoire sur un Noël breton 05:33
• 10 Pièce pour grand orgue 13:23
• Total Runtime 01:18:12

Info for Franck avant César Franck offertoires & pièce posthumes

We continue our successful collaboration with the german organist Elke Völker. Her new recording, however, is not dedicated to the composer Karg-Elert, but to César Franck!

"Franck avant César Franck" is the programmatic title of her new album devoted to Franck's early works for organ. "Franck before César Franck", which suggests that this is a largely neglected repertoire, composed in time before the "important" organ works of the composer, belonging today to the standard works of the late nineteenth-century organ music. The stylistic development of Franck in the 1850s, to which the famous "Six Pièces" from 1859 almost seamlessly add, is fascinating to discover.

The 1857 Aristide Cavaillé-Coll organ in the basilica of Bonsecours selected for this recording was built precisely at the time when these early works were composed and is therefore ideally suited for the repertoire. So far it has been extremely rarely recorded on CD. For lovers of French-romantic organ sounds, especially the organs of Cavaillé-Coll, this new album is surely of a special charm!

Superb essay on César Franck's early organ music written by Kurt Lueders for the booklet! Kurt Lueders is an undisputed expert on the organ music of the second half of the 19th and the first half of the 20th century. In addition, he is the performer of our recording AE-10351 "... et après César Franck" with works in the post-Franckist tradition.

Elke Völker, Organ

Elke Völker
studied school music at the Mannheim State College of Music, as well as romance languages at the University of Mannheim.

From 1992 on she studied organ at the Mannheim College of Music with Leo Krämer. Subsequently Concert Diploma (with distinction), Church Music studies (A- diploma) in Mainz (Hans-Jürgen Kaiser, Mathias Breitschaft) and degrees in Musicology (Dorothea Redepenning) and German Studies at the University of Heidelberg.

A scholarship allowed her to study with Wolfgang Rübsam (University of Chicago), with Nicholas Kynaston (London) and with Michelle Leclerc (Schola Cantorum, Paris), where she obtained the Concert Diploma («Premier Prix» with distinction „très bien a l’unanimité”). Master classes and private studies with Jean Guillou and Daniel Roth (Paris), Jon Laukvik and Ludger Lohmann (Stuttgart), and Piet Kee (Haarlem) ensued.

Ms. Völker has been a prizewinner in several international competitions including the Grand Prize and Audience Prize at the “Internationaler Orgelwettbewerb Dom zu Speyer”, in 1995 and the 2nd Prize of the “International Organ Competition Frey- ming/Lorraine”. In 1999 she was finalist of the “Concours International d’Orgue de la Ville de Paris”. “Medaille de la Ville de Paris”. 2001 she got scholar of Rotary International. 2002 3rd Prize of the “International Organ Competition of Erfurt”. Her Karg-Elert recordings have been awarded by the international music press.

She has worked as a church musician for over 15 years at Speyer cathedral.

Her international success has - last but not least - established her excellent reputation as one of the most demanded organists, which led to an extensive international concert and teaching career.

Numerous broadcastings, television- and CD recordings as well as musicological publications testify to her extensive activities.

Booklet for Franck avant César Franck offertoires & pièce posthumes