Calendar

LE CHEMIN DE LA CROIX (The Way of the Cross) - M. Dupré

Monday, March 29, 2010
6:30pm - Saint Thomas Church

Monday, March 29 from 6:30-7:30 pm
No tickets required--Donation suggested

Composer and organist Marcel Dupré (1886-1971) was one of the most celebrated organists of all time, and his virtuosity and improvising skills were legendary. In February 1931, at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Brussels, Dupré was asked to improvise between the reading of 14 poems entitled Le Chemin de la Croix, written in 1911 by Paul Claudel. Responding to encouragement from the audience, Dupré recalled and wrote down the music during the following year. It became one of his favorite compositions. He played it annually every Lent at Saint-Sulpice in Paris, where he served as organist from 1934 until his death in 1971.
Dupré’s Le Chemin de la Croix remains one of the great French programmatic works for the organ, a work that had profound influences on later works by composers such as Messiaen and Duruflé.

Performers:
Frederick Teardo, Associate Organist