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Ex abrupto

This piece was written for Denis Comtet who gave its first-ever performance at Paris Notre-Dame Cathedral on January 3rd, 2015.

The contiguous piece is nonetheless articulated in 5 clearly defined parts. The 1st one starts with the exposition of a declamatory theme, quickly taking control of all the sound space; then the music is organically developing as some sort of a tight improvisation until the first punctuation.

The 2nd part strongly contrasts by the dynamics and the nature, as well as the writing. This one, linear and contrapuntal, is composed of a long and peaceful melody, developing over shifting and mysterious harmonic background. In the middle of this section, before an ornamented repeat of this very melody, an anticipation of the next part’s theme is quietly heard. The central part is a fugato whose successive entries, with an increasing harmonic complexity, lead to a large choral continuing into the 5th and last part, which is nothing but a varied repeat of the first part. A short coda ends the piece by a rise in the high register of the instrument, like without gravity, until the silence.

Franck Villard
(translation Philippe Do)

Nomenclature

orgue

All available forms

(couverture de Ex abrupto)

Ex abrupto

(couverture de Ex abrupto)

Ex abrupto

    (couverture de Ex abrupto)

    Ex abrupto

      (couverture de Ex abrupto)

      Ex abrupto