BETWEEN GERMANY AND FRANCE, TOCCATA AND DANCE!

As part of its series of organ concerts and in collaboration with the San Miguel Arcángel Royal Canarian Academy of Fine Arts (RACBA),  the Auditorio de Tenerife is offering a matinee with the organist Mar Vaqué, who will perform the programme Between Germany and France, toccata and dance!

The combination of the motoric and virtuoso toccatas with the dance-like character of the programme captivates the listener in a back-and-forth of melodies and energetic sounds. From the outset, the canons and concert sections of the toccata in F major immerse us in lively polyphonic dialogues, with rhythmic and harmonic tensions maintained from start to finish. Robert Schumann, a great admirer of the organ, originally composed these drafts for the pedal piano. The adaptation of these works for the organ enables a richness of sounds and nuances that a piano performance could not offer. Thanks to these nuances, the ternary rhythm and its contrasting sections, we can appreciate a rhythmic and multifaceted Schumann.

The Clair de Lune by Vierne, the turning point in the programme, is a little nocturnal oasis in which the poetry of the moon overcomes us like sleep and holds us for a few moments away from the vitalist impetus of the other works. Part of his compendium of fantasy pieces, as its name suggests, it transports us to a fantastical world that encourages introspection. Duruflé, dedicating this work to his composition teacher Paul Dukas, manages to bring together very contrasting characters in a single suite. The intimate Sicilienne, which is nevertheless rhythmic, brings out the delicate nuances of the organ, caressing the listener with its melancholic melodies. This nostalgic dance gives way to the percussion work by Gaston Litaize, the direct heir of Dupré and Vierne. The dancing fugue, a cascade of energy that leads to a tutti on the organ, with its almost jazz-like character manages to achieve great freshness on the organ. Its richness of accents enables us to not only listen to the organist but also clearly imagine a percussionist accompanying the work. The final toccata by Duruflé represents the peak of the virtuosity of this composer. Within the style and motoric patterns that are typical of French toccatas, we appreciate the characteristic freedom to improvise of the French organ school. A programme packed with contrasts to make listeners pulsate and dance, based on French and German composers.