Gillian Weir - A Celebration [22CD]

Gillian Weir - A Celebration [22CD set]

“Weir is to the organ what Heifetz was to the violin, and Casals to the cello – a phenomenon.” – JOHN AMIS

A 22-CD celebration of the doyenne of organists on her 80th birthday (17 January 2021) spanning her illustrious career of nearly five decades.

Presenting Dame Gillian Weir’s complete Argo recordings, selected recordings on other labels that have reverted to her, and most enticingly, no fewer than ten discs of previously unpublished BBC radio broadcasts – selected by Dame Gillian

Sixteen organs from six countries

The 20,000-word booklet includes informative introductions to the recordings, with Gillian Weir’s reminiscences and amusing anecdotes from the recording sessions and from her encounters with composers such as Olivier Messiaen and William Mathias

Further online resources, including Gillian Weir’s fully comprehensive notes on the complete Messiaen oeuvre, as well as the specifications of the organs used throughout, will be available at https://www.eloquenceclassics.com/

HIGHLIGHTS

A showpiece recital of dazzling toccatas and fantasias from the French organ tradition opening and closing with spectacular pieces by Marcel Dupré, the epitome of the French organist-composer tradition

A recording of Charles Camilleri’s breathtaking Missa Mundi, one of many pieces written for and premièred by Gillian Weir

A stunning disc of pieces by Messiaen recorded at the Royal Festival Hall, London in 1966, shortly after she won 1st prize at the St Albans International Organ Competition

A recital on the beautiful organ of Hexham Abbey, built by Dame Gillian’s late husband, Lawrence Phelps

No fewer than ten discs of previously unpublished BBC radio broadcasts – selected by Gillian Weir, including:

The complete organ works of César Franck, recorded on the magnificent Cavaillé-Coll organ of Saint-Sernin, Toulouse

A thrilling “Proms” recital from The Royal Albert Hall, London of music inspired by dance

The then-complete works of Messiaen recorded in 1979 at the The National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, Washington, DC, on the organ chosen by Messiaen himself for the première of one of his monumental works

Dame Gillian's recital from St Alban’s Abbey recorded the day after winning the St Alban’s Competition, and marking the beginning of her recording career

A recital of French music drawn from three individual programmes

‘The contribution made to the world of the organ by Dame Gillian Weir is almost incalculable. Our instrument has hardly had such a skilled ambassador in modern times’ – CHRIS BRAGG (MUSICWEB)

‘Dame Gillian is one of the greatest of living artists; her playing shows a perfect mixture of hand and heart, a true musician with the technique to tackle anything.’ – JOHN AMIS, WRITER AND CRITIC

‘Weir’s virtuosity and control are staggering. An achievement of outstanding musical integrity’ – GRAMOPHONE

‘The organ world will never be the same again.’ – JOHN ALLISON IN THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH reviewing Dame Gillian’s final recital