Organ Sonata No. 8, op. 132 Josef Rheinberger (1839-1901)
Ia. Introduction
IV. Passacaglia
Priére, op. 20 Cesar Franck (1822-1890)
Chant de Joie Jean Langlais (1907-1991)
Priére Naji Hakim (born 1955)
Prelude and Fugue in G minor, BWV 535 Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Symphonie No. 6 Charles-Marie Widor (1844-1937)
V. Finale
Program Notes
Introduction and Passacaglia from Organ Sonata No. 8, Op. 132
The form of passacaglia was born in Spain centuries before this work and has remained a staple of the organ repertoire through the present. The late Renaissance composer Girolamo Frescobaldi defined the form as we know it today: a long series of variations above a persistent, repeating bass line.
Josef Rheinberger never explicitly composed an Introduction and Passacaglia but integrated these forms into the first and final movements of his eighth organ sonata. The Introduction features dramatically diminished chords over dark pedal tones, resolving to a subdued half cadence—a seamless transition into the Passacaglia’s opening B. These movements are often performed together, highlighting their natural connection. Furthermore, these two movements are unified by the return of the Introduction’s theme after the Passacaglia.
Though Rheinberger’s approach is thoroughly Romantic and somewhat harmonically conservative, it later inspired Max Reger’s denser, harmonically complex Introduction and Passacaglia in D Minor and similar works at the turn of the 20th century.
Prière, Op. 20
César Franck’s Prière (“Prayer”) is a deeply introspective work, unfolding with rich harmonies and expressive melodies. Over its 13-minute span, the organ’s registration changes subtly, yet Franck evokes a profound emotional journey through harmony and musical rhetoric. The piece presents three themes: a pleading supplication, a moment of doubt introduced by the pedals, and a soaring theme of love. These ideas return, building in intensity toward a climax, but the conclusion retreats into quiet solitude. The final notes linger, perhaps like a prayer unanswered, ending in submission rather than success.
Chant de Joie
The blind French organist Jean Langlais is known for his distinctive musical language, which blends the French Symphonic tradition with Gregorian chant and modal harmonies. Chant de Joie ("Song of Joy") bursts with energy, featuring fluttering trills, soaring scales, and resounding pedal lines. Moments of turmoil intertwine with triumphant fanfares, creating a sense of exuberance and emotional contrast. The main melodic material emerges in the pedal, accompanied by ethereal, shimmering figurations played by the hands.
Prière
Composed in 2020, Hakim’s Prière explores many of the same emotional themes in Franck’s work of the same title, but concludes on a note of hope. With a slow, inexorable movement, this piece exudes the harmonic depth of the symphonic organ accompanied by the influence of jazz harmonies.
The composer offers the following comment: “Prière [...] was inspired by the Åkerman & Lund 1995 organ of Kallio Church in Helsinki. It develops a dark, intense, and collected choral texture with expressive and dense harmonies, paraphrasing the prayer of the bruised hearts in a strange period in the history of mankind.”
Prelude and Fugue in G minor, BWV 535
One of Bach’s earliest surviving organ works, this Prelude and Fugue is emblematic of the older style of his forebears such as Dieterich Buxtehude. The Prelude recalls the improvisatory stylus phantasticus of the early Baroque, with short, contrasting episodes. A striking feature is its unusually long sequence of arpeggiated diminished chords, which lends itself to repetition on different manuals of the organ, creating an echo effect. The Fugue’s subject is subtly foreshadowed in the Prelude’s first pedal line—or rather, this theme was likely borrowed when Bach composed the Fugue, possibly years later.
Final from Organ Symphony No. 6, Op. 42 No. 2
An ecstatic marche de triomphe, this movement concludes perhaps the most celebrated of Widor’s Organ Symphonies. Marked by rhythmic drive and brilliant arpeggios, the piece surges forward with unrelenting energy. Moments of turmoil interrupt the celebratory nature of the piece, emphasizing the exultant victory that inevitably returns. The main theme in G Major is presented several times, sometimes in a more distant fashion, and finally bursts forth at an even more rapid tempo towards the concluding pedal cadenza.
Biography of David Kraft
David Kraft is pursuing a Bachelor of Music in Organ Performance at the Eastman School of Music, studying under David Higgs. He began piano at five and organ at 13, studying with John Morabito. A native of the Rochester, NY area, he has served at many local churches, including Holy Trinity (Webster) and St. Thomas the Apostle (Irondequoit), and is Assistant Organist at Sacred Heart Cathedral, where he helped establish the Cathedral Youth Schola.
David won First Prize in the 2021 Albert Schweitzer Organ Competition and was a finalist in the Lynnwood Farnam Competition, performing in Montreal. He has played in masterclasses with Chelsea Chen, Jean-Baptiste Robin, and Janette Fishell and was featured on Pipedreams Live! in 2024.
An organ technician with Parsons Pipe Organ Builders, he maintains instruments at Eastman and across Western New York and assisted in the 2024 installation of Parsons Opus 52 in Indiana. He regularly services reed organs and is currently restoring a Trayser harmonium. He is also building a table organ inspired by the 18th-century instruments of Jean-Baptiste Micot.
David is Organist at the United Church of Canandaigua (Presbyterian-Baptist), where he works with a vibrant and thriving music program. He was recently named to The Diapason’s 20 Under 30 Class of 2025 and was accepted into the Organ Historical Society’s Biggs Scholars program.