Charles-Marie Widor
Romantic · 1844–1937
For over sixty years, Charles-Marie Widor sat at the same organ bench. Born in Lyon in 1844 into a family of organ builders and organists, he was appointed to the church of Saint-Sulpice in Paris in 1870 and stayed until 1933, presiding over one of the largest and finest organs in France. He also taught at the Paris Conservatoire, where his students included Marcel Dupré and Darius Milhaud, and he helped Albert Schweitzer with his famous study of Bach.
Widor's signature idea was to treat the organ like an orchestra. He wrote ten "organ symphonies," large multi-movement works for a single player that exploit the instrument's full range of colors, from whisper-quiet flutes to floor-shaking full organ.
Start with the Organ Symphony no. 5 in F minor. Its final movement, the Toccata, is the piece that plays couples out of church at weddings around the world.
50 works in the catalog, across 5 genres. Log what you listen to with Opus, the classical music journal for iPhone.
Chamber
- Cavatine for violin and piano, op. 57
- Introduction and Rondo, for clarinet and piano, op. 72
- Quartet in A minor for Piano and Strings, op. 66
- Quintet for piano and strings in D minor Op.7
- Romance for violin and piano in E major, op. 46
- Salvum fac populum tuum, for 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, percussion and organ, op. 84
- Sonata for cello and piano in A major, op. 80
- Sonata for violin and piano no. 1, op. 50
- Sonata for violin and piano no. 2, op. 79
- Suite, for flute and piano, op. 34
- Suite Florentine for violin and piano
- Suite for cello and piano in E minor, op. 21
- Suite for Flute and Piano, op. 34
- Trio in B flat major for piano, violin and cello Op.19
Keyboard
- Organ Symphony no. 1 in C minor, op. 13, no. 1
- Organ Symphony no. 5 in F minor, op. 42, no. 1
- Organ Symphony no. 6 in G minor, op. 42, no. 2
- 3 Nouvelles Pièces, for organ, op. 87
- 6 Duos, for piano and harmonium
- Bach's Memento, for organ
- Fugue for organ in E minor
- Fugue sur le nom d'Haydn, for piano
- Introduction and Rondo
- Nouvelles Pièces for organ, op. 87
- Organ Symphony no. 2 in D major, op. 13, no. 2
- Organ Symphony no. 3 in E minor, op. 13, no. 3
- Organ Symphony no. 4 in F minor, op. 13, no. 4
- Organ Symphony no. 7 in A minor, op. 42 no. 3
- Organ Symphony no. 8 in B flat major, op. 42, no. 4
- Organ Symphony no. 9 in C minor, op. 70, "Gothique"
- Organ Symphony no. 10 in D, op. 73, "Romane"
- Scherzo for organ in E major, "La Chasse"
- Sinfonia Sacra for organ and orchestra, op. 81
- Symphony for organ no. 7 in A minor, op. 42, no. 3
- Symphony for organ no. 9 in C minor, op. 70
- Symphony no. 2 in D for organ, op. 13, no. 2
- Symphony no. 4 in F minor for organ, op. 13, no. 4
- Symphony no. 5 in F minor, for organ, op. 42, no. 1
- Symphony no. 6 in G minor for organ, op. 42, no. 2
Orchestral
- Symphony for organ and orchestra, op. 42bis
- Symphony no. 3, for organ and orchestra, op. 69
Stage
- La Korrigane, ballet, op. 42
Vocal
- Chansons de mer, song cycle for voice and piano, op. 75
- Dormez, Mèlité, for voice and piano
- La nuit, for voice and piano
- Mass, for double choir and 2 organs, op. 36
- Nuit mystérieuse, for voice and piano
- Oublieras-tu que d'heures douces, for voice and piano
- Tristesse infinie, for voice and piano
- Tu es Petrus, for double choir and 2 organs, op. 23, no. 2
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