At Ease

I first heard Saint Saens's Organ Symphony, more accurately his Symphony No 3 in C minor, in the early 1980s, when I started regularly attending 'classical' concerts in Sheffield City Hall, featuring the Halle Orchestra. I'm guessing this was in 1984, when this particular experience of live music was something fresh for me. I say this as I recall the piece making quite an impact on me simply because of the sonorities involved with the inclusion of the mighty organ. And also because I couldn't come to terms with the idea of said organ being used so sparingly in the symphony, despite its title.

I'm due to listen to it live again this Friday evening at the Esplanade Concert Hall, and have been endeavouring to be rather better prepared this time round than I was in my callow youth. In those days you couldn't just magic up great music from Apple Music or YouTube as you can in this century, so I had my excuses back then for my massive lack of familiarity with the standard repertoire. But I've taken advantage of said magic this week to have a couple of listens, up close through ear-phones, one of these just being completed. And my verdict is that this is very engaging stuff.

In fact, I'm beginning to wonder if my heart, or ears rather, really align with the French composers of the late 19th century as opposed to their German, or Russian, counterparts. I wouldn't call Saint Saens light or fluffy exactly, but he's a whole lot more restrained than the chaps from further east and there's a lot to be said for music that manages to have real weight yet somehow stays easy on the ear.