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Composer Jehan Alain Discography (35)
Jehan Alain BiographyJehan Alain has been called the Grigny of the twentieth century. Fate granted very little time to an artist who died prematurely at the very beginning of the Second World War at the age of twenty-nine, but what richness there is, what maturity in a body of work that includes some 120 compositions written between 1929 and 1939. Jehan Alain was not only an organ composer, as his vocal works, chamber music and piano compositions show, but it remains true that he dedicated to this instrument the most essential elements of his genius. This is not surprising when we remember the origins of the composer and the context in which he came to music. Like Debussy, Alain was born at saint-Germain-en-Laye, on 3rd February 1911, into the family of the organist and composer Albert Alain.
Equally enthusiastic as an organ-builder, Albert Alain had built in the family living-room an instrument that must have influenced the musical taste of his eldest son, as did the long hours he spent by the side of his father at the organ of the Church of saint-Germain or at the piano of his maternal grandmother, Alice Alberty, an excellent amateur musician who had once studied with a pupil of Chopin. Having quickly understood his son's inclination to music, Albert Alain provided him with the first foundation of the art, before making him take piano lessons with Auguste Pierson, organist of saint-Louis at Versailles.
Time confirmed Jehan Alain' s talents and soon took him to the Paris Conservatoire, where he studied harmony with Andre Bloch, fugue with Georges Caussade, composition with Roger-Ducasse and Paul Dukas and organ and improvisation with Marcel Dupre. The length of his course of study ,crowned in 1939 by the award of a first prize for organ and improvisation, can be explained by the various events that complicated his existence at this time, trouble with his health often associated with pneumonia contracted in 1933, military service in 1933 and 1934, the shock of the death of his sister Odile in 1937 and his marriage with Madeleine Payan in 1935. This last happy event made it necessary for him to give a great deal of time to his duties as organist at the Church of Saint-Nicolas de Maisons-Lafitte and at the Rue Notre-Dame-de-Nazareth synagogue in order to meet his household expenses.
His studies barely completed, Alain found himself at war as a soldier in the Eighth Motorised Armoured Division: " A troubled time, suspended over the unplumbed depths of democracy and of war. Luckily the smile of good old Bach, the tears of obstinate Beethoven, the sighs and cries of some others form a solid base onto which we hang on the dark ladder of circumstances" , he noted in his diary. The dullness of the phoney war was soon dispelled by the German offensive of May 1940. Jehan Alain took part in the struggle, displaying exceptional bravery and confidence, but neither faith nor music could help him. He was killed by enemy fire on 20th May 1940. "I see death below, from the height of this fair age" was the verse of Jean Cocteau that Alain had written several years before in his diary. It now took on a strangely premonitory character.
"Life leaped in him", said Bernard Gavory of Jehan Alain in the book he wrote about his dead friend, but he went on at once to add: "He is happy and sad, ascetic and sensual", thus underlining all that was contradictory about him. Jehan Alain's admiration for Jean Cocteau was in no way fortuitous. Persuaded that "irony, humour, these alone make life bearable", he concealed under a lively and light- hearted exterior a being with a very rich inner life, moved by great generosity of spirit.
In his busy life, Jehan Alain found it necessary to seek refuge, from time to time, in the family chalet at Argentieres in Haute-Savoie, to find again "the mountain that imbues us, commands us, purifies us", or at the Abbey of Valloire in the Somme, moments of recollection that doubtless helped to give full meaning to the words that he wrote on the last page of his diary: "I believe in Christ and in God".
"In our time we are tired of lofty discourse. The public is not so stupid. Do not insist on musical evidence. Avoid commonplaces. Be brier'. The desire for conciseness, for concentration of musical discourse always guided Alain in his creative work, where he wanted to introduce mobility , expression of the outpouring of life. "Doubtless one must distinguish between rhythmic and melodic pieces: here dances, there dreams" remarked Bernard Gavoty, "but meditation demands no less of life than activity: in this way an Adagio can be as rich as a Scherzo".
Include non-classical products (33)
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Best Organ Classics 50 50 Best Organ Classics CDs (2013) (Import)
Jehan Alain classical music CD
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Bach / Buxtehude / Walther Magnificat CD (2012) (Import)
Jehan Alain Composer Personnel: Loclan Mackenzie-Spencer (tenor); Thomas Drent (bass voice).
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Yoann:org Tardivel Jehan Alain: Jardin Suspendu CD (2012) (Import)
Jehan Alain classical music CD Recording information: Église Saint-Jacques de Dieppe.
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Franck / Gigout / Langlais / Mcphee / Vierne Grand Choeur: French Organ Music from Paisley Abbey CD (2012)
Jehan Alain Composer Recording information: Paisley Abbey, Glasgow, Scotland (02/08/2011-02/09/2011).
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Johannes:org Unger Die Orgeln der Marienkirche zu Lübeck CD (2012) (Import)
Jehan Alain classical music CD Recording information: Marienkirche, Lübeck, Germany (09/05/2011-09/07/2011).
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Franck / Gowers / Ives / Scriven Piping Hot CD (2012)
Jehan Alain Composer Recording information: Lichfield Cathedral, Lichfield, Staffordshire, England (05/25/2004-05/26/2004).
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Jean:pno Dube Jehan Alain: Oeuvres pour Piano CDs (2012) (Import)
Jehan Alain classical music CD Recording information: Studio Acoustique, Passavant (06/2011).
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Alain / Leon Algazi / Robin Jehan Alain: Complete Organ Works CDs (2011) (Import) Box Set
Jehan Alain Composer
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Alain / Bach / Couperin / Hewstone / Jenkinson Art of the Chorister CD (2011)
Jehan Alain classical music CD Recording information: New College Chapel (03/19/2006-03/20/2006); New College Chapel (07/10/2006).
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Alain / Bach / Marianiello-Reas Duo / Weaver Cantilena CD (2011)
Jehan Alain Composer Recording information: St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Chattanooga, Tennessee (10/15/2009-10/17/2009).
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Alain / Birkeland Jehan Alain: Complete Works for Organ CDs (2011) (Import)
Jehan Alain classical music CD Recording information: Fagerborg church, Oslo, Norway (2010-02-18_2010-02-20&2010-).
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Alain / Dupre / Rost Trilogies CD (2011) (Import) SACD Hybrid
Jehan Alain Composer Recording information: Neubaukirche der Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzbur (04/06/2010-04/09/2010).
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Great Cathedral Organs Of England 2 Great Cathedral Organs of England, Vol. 2 CD (2010)
Jehan Alain classical music CD Track Listing of songs: Toccata and Fugue, for organ in D minor; Pastorale, for organ in E major, Op. 19, M. 31; Litanies, for organ, JA 119; Suite Gothique, for organ, Op. 25: Toccata; Toccatina for the flutes; Toccata for organ in D minor, Op. 59/5; Berenice, Regina d'Egitto, opera, HWV 38: Minuet; Londonderry Air; Stars and Stripes Forever, march for band; Die Walküre; Chorals; Cantata No. 147, 'Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben,' BWV 147; Toccata from Organ Symphony No. 5;
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Champion / Widor French Organ Music CD (2009)
Jehan Alain Composer
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Alain / Bach / Brahms Kentucky Organ Tour CD (2008)
Jehan Alain classical music CD Track Listing of songs: Fanfare for Organ; Komm heiliger Geist, Herre Gott; Voluntaries 10 for Keyboard: no 1 in D major 'Trumpet Voluntary'; Voluntaries 10 for Keyboard: no 1 in D major 'Trumpet Voluntary'; Concerto for Organ solo in B minor, LV 133 'del Signor Vivaldi'; Nun danket alle Gott, BWV 657; Prelude and Fugue in G major, BWV 541: Prelude; Prelude and Fugue in G major, BWV 541: Fugue; Fugues (6) for Organ on B-A-C-H, Op. 60: no 1, Langsam; Fugues (6) for Organ on B-A-C-H, Op. 60: no 5, Lebhaft; Chorale Preludes (11) for Organ, Op. 122: no 8, Es ist ein Ros entsprungen; Drop, drop slow tears, Op. 104: no 1, Chorale; Drop, drop slow tears, Op. 104: no 2, Chorale Prelude; Amazing Grace for Organ; Litanies for Organ, AWV 100/Op. 79; Rubrics; Sweet Sixteenths; Sonata for Organ no 2 in D major, Op. 50: 3rd movement, Allegro vivace;
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Bach / Bourland / Chabreck / Theone Wind Song CD (2007)
Jehan Alain Composer Track Listing of songs: Sonata for violin & keyboard in G minor, H. 542.5; Sonata for violin & keyboard in G minor, H. 542.5; Sonata for violin & keyboard in G minor, H. 542.5; Cantinela, for organ & flute, clarinet or saxophone; Miracles for flute and organ: The miracle at Cana; Miracles for flute and organ: The miracle on the lake; Miracles for flute and organ: The miracle at Bethesda; Miracles for flute and organ: The miracle in the counrty of the Gerasenes; Miracles for flute and organ: The miracle at the roadside; Vier Stücke, for flute & organ: Victimae Paschali Laudes; Vier Stücke, for flute & organ: Veni Creator; Trois mouvements, for flute & organ, JA 74c: Andante; Trois mouvements, for flute & organ, JA 74c: Allegro; Trois mouvements, for flute & organ, JA 74c: Allegro vivace; Powwow Suite, for organ & flute: Flag Song; Powwow Suite, for organ & flute: Round Dance; Powwow Suite, for organ & flute: War Dance;
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van Oortmerssen: pno French Symphonic Organ at Artisten CD (2006)
Jehan Alain classical music CD
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Organ Of Gloucester Catherdral / David M Patrick French Organ Masterworks CD (2006)
Jehan Alain Composer Track Listing of songs: Toccata in F major for organ; Scherzo, for organ, Op. 2; Organ Sonata No. 5 in C minor, Op. 80: Scherzo; Méditation, for organ; Pieces; Scherzo for organ; Scherzetto, for organ, Op. 108/1; Choral phrygien, for organ, JA 68; Pieces; Organ Sonata No. 8 in A major, Op. 91: Scherzo; Choral dorien, for organ, JA 67; Symphony No. 5 in F minor for organ, Op. 42/1: Toccata; Symphony No. 4 in F minor for organ, Op. 13/4: Scherzo; Prélude in B minor, Op.66; Pièces de fantaisie, for organ, Suite 3, Op. 54: No. 2; Symphony No. 8 in B flat major for organ, Op. 42/4: Excerpt;
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William Whitehead Dances of Life and Death CD (2005)
Jehan Alain classical music CD
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Hatsumi Miura Toccata! CD (2004)
Jehan Alain Composer Track Listing of songs: Bread Upon the Water; I Catch 'Em God Cleans 'Em; Jesus Loves Me; I'll Tell It Wherever I Go; My Journey To the Sky; Through; Glorious Impossible; Worthy Is the Lamb; Eagle Song; Love Can Turn the World; Child Forgiven; Why Me; I Will Go On; Place Called Hope; Give It Away;
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Piette: pno / Reding: pno Reding & Piette Legacy CDs (2004)
Jehan Alain classical music CD 3cds-French National Orch. Rafael Kubelik,Conductor
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Susan Ferre Preludes & Postludes for the year beginning 9-11-2001 CD (2003)
Jehan Alain Composer Susan Ferre,Organ
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Alain / Backhouse / Dupre / Langlais / Messaien Marcel Dupre: La France au Calvaire; Motets by Langlais, Alain, Messiaen CD (2002)
Jehan Alain classical music CD Live Recording
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Hans Davidsson French Symphonic Masterpieces CD (2002)
Jehan Alain Composer
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BBC Philharmonic / Dutilleux / Tortelier Dutilleux: Complete Orchestral Works CDs (2000)
Jehan Alain classical music CD
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Franck / Higgs / Mendelssohn / Shearing / Sowerby David Higgs at Riverside CD (2000)
Jehan Alain Composer David Higgs,Organ Track Listing of songs: Sustainable Table Documentary;
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Louis Vierne Vierne: Complete Organ Symphonies, Vol. 3 CD (2000)
Jehan Alain classical music CD Track Listing of songs: Symphony No. 5 for organ in A minor, Op. 47: Grave; Symphony No. 5 for organ in A minor, Op. 47: Allegro molto marcato; Symphony No. 5 for organ in A minor, Op. 47: Scherzo; Symphony No. 5 for organ in A minor, Op. 47: Larghetto; Symphony No. 5 for organ in A minor, Op. 47: Final; Choral dorien, for organ, JA 67; Choral phrygien, for organ, JA 68; Prélude profane No. 1, for organ or piano 'Wieder an', JA 64 AWV 57; Prélude profane No. 1, for organ or piano 'Wieder an', JA 64 AWV 57; Prélude Profane for organ No. 2, AWV58;
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Kevin: organ Bowyer Jehan Alain: The Complete Works for Organ CDs (1998)
Jehan Alain Composer 2 Cds
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Alain / Lebrun Alain: Organ Works, Vol. 2 CD (1997)
Jehan Alain classical music CD
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Alain / Lebrun Alain: Organ Works, Vol. 1 CD (1997)
Jehan Alain Composer
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BBC Philharmonic / Charlier / Dutilleux / Hill Dutilleux: L'arbre des songs; Timbres, espace, mouvement; etc. CD (1996)
Jehan Alain classical music CD
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Jehan Alain Alain: Organ Works, Vol. 2 CD (1996)
Jehan Alain Composer Track Listing of songs: Litanies, for organ, JA 119; De Jules Lemaître, for organ or piano, JA 62; Monodie, for organ or piano, JA 135; Petite Pièce, for organ, JA 33; Variations sur un thème de Clément Janequin, for organ, JA 118; Prélude profane No. 1, for organ or piano 'Wieder an', JA 64 AWV 57; Prélude Profane for organ No. 2, AWV58; Aria, for organ, JA 138; Prelude, for organ, JA 75; Fugue en mode de fa, for organ or piano, JA 28; Berceuse sur deux notes qui cornent, for organ, JA 7bis; Ballade en mode phrygien, for organ, JA 9; Grave, for organ or piano; Choral dorien, for organ, JA 67; Choral phrygien, for organ, JA 68; Trois Danses: Joies, Deuils, Luttes, for organ, JA 120a; Trois Danses: Joies, Deuils, Luttes, for organ, JA 120a; Trois Danses: Joies, Deuils, Luttes, for organ, JA 120a;
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Alain / Ingebretsen / Poulenc / Royal Orch Poulenc: Concerto pour Orgue; Alain: Suite pour Orgue; Langlais: Deuxieme Concerto CD (1993) (Import)
Jehan Alain classical music CD
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Dupre / Durufle / Franck / Vierne / Widor French Fireworks: The Symphonic Organ CD (1988)
Jehan Alain Composer
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Hans Fagius Hans Fagius Plays Organ Favorites CD (1988)
Jehan Alain classical music CD Track Listing of songs: Toccata Und Fugue In D Minor, Bwv 565: Toccata Und Fugue In D Minor, Bwv565; Jesu Bleibet Meine Freude, Bwv 147; ...
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