Wichita State University presents “Jehan Alain 1911–1940: The American Festival,” September 28–30

Thomas F. Froehlich graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Music degree from Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin, where he was a student of Miriam Clapp Duncan. He earned a master’s degree from Northwestern University, studying with Wolfgang Rübsam. Other teachers have included Anton Heiller and Jean Langlais (improvisation). During his second tenure in Paris he served as organist/choirmaster at St. Michael’s Anglican Church, where he oversaw the installation of their Kern organ and subsequently administered a recital series. He has served as organist at the First Presbyterian Church of Dallas since 1977.

The Rie Bloomfield Organ Series 2011–2012 presented Jehan Alain, 1911–1940: The American Festival at Wichita State University, September 28–30, 2011. The following is a personal reflection.

In January 2009, the church where I have been the organist for 34 years had a 20th birthday party for the organ in our chapel. It was built by Dan Jaeckel and inspired by the choir organs of Cavaillé-Coll, and we discovered quite accidentally that the stoplist is nearly identical to that of the choir organ at the Alain family church in St. Germain-en-Laye. That being the case, we decided to make the 20th-anniversary concert an “Alain Family Evening,” with music composed by, and in honor of, the Alain family. Organists participating were Lynne Davis, George Baker, Jesse
Eschbach, and I, all former students of Marie-Claire Alain.

The next morning, basking in the afterglow of what had turned into a magical evening, Lynne Davis commented, “You know, 2011 is the centennial of Jehan Alain’s birth—somebody ought to do something.” I replied, “Why don’t you?” Instantly Jehan Alain—The American Festival was born. After an hour of brainstorming, the entire symposium was planned! 

Flash forward to 2011, and the festival took place nearly exactly as we had envisioned. Our host was the Rie Bloomfield Organ Series in its 2011–2012 season on the campus of Wichita State University, home to a magnificent four-manual Marcussen organ. The room, Wiedemann Hall, around which the organ was built, was an inspiring venue for the concerts and recitals. Both were built exactly 25 years ago in 1986—another anniversary to celebrate. Across the street, the lectures and dialogue among festival participants took place in the Grace Memorial Chapel. The small room provided an intimate setting for these events without the need for any amplification.  

Wednesday, 28 September 2011

The first event of the celebration was the brilliant opening recital—and a festival highlight—on the 1986 Marcussen by Lynne Davis, Associate Professor of Organ at WSU, who holds the Ann & Dennis Ross Endowed Faculty of Distinction in Organ Chair. The substantial program, entitled “Jehan Alain and the Evolution of the French Tradition,” was physically and musically demanding, but one that Ms. Davis handled with great ease. It opened with the Vierne Toccata, followed by Franck’s Pastorale. The first half ended with Jehan Alain’s Trois Danses. After intermission was the Alain Suite pour Orgue and, in closing, the Dupré Variations on a Noël.

Thursday, 29 September 2011

Keynote speaker for the conference was Aurélie Decourt, niece of Jehan Alain and daughter of Marie-Claire Alain, and a noted musicologist in her own right. Her opening presentation, “Jehan Alain: Musician and Poet,” part 1, dealt with biographical details as well as personal reflections on the Alain family and of their home life in St. Germain-en-Laye. After a break, part two of her talk centered on Jehan Alain’s multi-faceted personality and how this influenced his creative output in music, drawings, and writings.  

After lunch, Lynne Davis gave a presentation on the Alain family’s organ, now housed in Romainmôtier, Switzerland. She started by showing the DVD on the organ produced by Guy Bovet and the Alain Association, and then opened the floor to a general discussion, questions and answers, and general comments. 

The next event was a musical one, the first of two recitals featuring the complete works of Jehan Alain, played by former students of Marie-Claire Alain on the Marcussen organ. Organists participating were James Frazier, Jesse Eschbach, Ronald Wyatt, and Thomas Froehlich. Following the recital was a gala cocktail reception at the WSU “Ulrich Museum,” which houses the famous mural by Joan Miró. The campus of WSU is home to one of the most important outdoor sculpture collections in the world.  

The gala recital that evening, “Autour de Jehan Alain,” featured students and faculty from the WSU School of Music, and included vocal, choral, and instrumental music of Jehan Alain. Of greatest interest to the organists were the original version of the Intermezzo for two pianos and bassoon (followed by Jehan Alain’s own arrangement for organ) and an arrangement of Litanies by Olivier Alain for two pianos (followed by a performance of the original organ version). Organists for the concert were Lynne Davis, James David Christie, Jesse Eschbach, and Thomas Froehlich.

Friday, 30 September 2011 

The morning began with another lecture by Aurélie Decourt, “Jehan Alain: His Creative Musical Inspiration,” which expanded on the two presentations made the previous day. Time was spent discussing sources, looking at manuscripts, etc. This led beautifully into a spirited dialogue between Norma Stevlingson and Jesse Eschbach entitled “New Editions, Critical Notes, and Anecdotes,” and also opened up the floor to seminar participants.  

After lunch was another former-student recital, this time featuring James Higdon, Robert Bates, Wim Viljoen, and Charles Sundquist. The afternoon ended with a panel discussion centered on understanding Jehan Alain through the teaching of Marie-Claire Alain. Panel members were several of her close friends and former students. Lynne Davis was the moderator for the panel, which included Thomas Froehlich, James Higdon, Norma Stevlingson, John Grew, and James David Christie. Aurélie Decourt also participated. 

The evening concert took place at Century II, the Wichita convention center, which houses the famous Wurlitzer organ built for the Paramount Theatre in New York. Resident organist James Riggs presented a program of music celebrating the 100th anniversary of the birth of Tin Pan Alley and the Big Band Era.  

Sincere thanks go to James David Christie for his invaluable help and insight in organizing the Thursday night concert as well as to Rodney Miller, Dean of the College of Fine Arts at WSU, for his invaluable support. Hearty congratulations and thanks are due to Lynne Davis, who had both the vision and stamina to organize a symposium that was incredible in every detail. The lectures were both fascinating and informative, and the music was memorable, inspirational, and at times even spiritual. Not only were we nourished musically, but there was also plenty of good food and time for socializing! Certainly all who were present left having had an intimate encounter with Jehan Alain, with his music, and with the legacy of the entire Alain family.

James David Christie has performed around the world with symphony orchestras and period instrument ensembles as well as in solo recitals. The 1979 first prize winner of the Bruges (Belgium) International Organ Competition, he was the first American ever to win first prize in this competition, and also the first person in the competition’s eighteen-year history to win both the first prize and the prize of the audience. He has served as organist of the Boston Symphony Orchestra since 1978 and has performed and recorded with numerous major orchestras, including those of Vienna, London, Stuttgart, Paris, Philadelphia, San Francisco, San Diego, Seattle, New York, Boston, and others. He has made over fifty tours of Europe and performs regularly in Canada, Asia, Australia, and Iceland. James David Christie has served on many international organ competition juries, including those in Paris, Chartres, Biarritz, St. Albans, Amsterdam, Lübeck, Bordeaux, Dublin, Worcester, Calgary, Montreal, Dallas, Leipzig, Weimar-Merseburg, Tokyo, Moscow, Kaliningrad, Lausanne, Boston, Bruges, and others. Christie has recorded for Decca, Philips, Nonesuch, JAV, Northeastern, Arabesque, Denon, RCA, Dorian, Naxos, Bridge, and GM and has received several awards for his solo recordings, including the Preis der Deutschen Schallplatten Kritik and the Magazine d’Orgue: Coup de Coeur. James David Christie holds positions as the Distinguished Artist in Residence at the College of the Holy Cross, Worcester, Massachusetts, Chair and Professor of Organ at the Oberlin College Conservatory of Music, Oberlin, Ohio, and serves as College Organist at Wellesley College, Wellesley, Massachusetts. He has previously held positions at Boston Conservatory, Harvard University, M.I.T., and Boston University. In the fall of 2010, he was on sabbatical in Paris, France, where he served as visiting Professor of Organ at the Paris Conservatory.

A national French celebration took place March 24–27, 2011 in Saint-Germain-en-Laye, a Parisian suburb west of Paris and hometown of the composer Jehan Alain, to honor the centenary of his birth. The splendid event was organized by Dr. Aurélie Decourt, Jehan Alain’s niece and daughter of the celebrated French organist, Marie-Claire Alain, in conjunction with the city of Saint-Germain-en-Laye, the Chevalier family (for the performance of Maurice Duruflé’s music), the association Arts, cultures et foi, the General Council of the Department of the Yvelines, the National Museum of Archeology, SACEM—Société des auteurs, compositeurs et éditeurs de musique (the French association entrusted with the rights of composers, authors, and publishers), the Société Générale-Direction régionale de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, and Les Amis du Vieux Saint-Germain (an organization dedicated to preserving and celebrating the history and arts of Saint-Germain-en-Laye). The event was listed among the national 2011 celebrations of the French Ministry of Culture and was sponsored under the international patronage of Marie-Claire Alain, Gilles Cantagrel, James David Christie, John Grew, Georges Guillard, and Philippe Lefebvre.

Thursday, March 24

The event opened on Thursday evening, March 24, with a joyous ceremony: the placing of a plaque on the home of the Alain family at 46, rue du Pologne, by the mayor of Saint-Germain-en-Laye. Over one hundred people attended the event, including Jehan Alain’s three children, Denis, Agnès, and Lise, and his sister, Marie-Claire, the last living sibling of Jehan Alain. The new owner of the home invited those in attendance into her home to wander throughout the house; she generously provided and served champagne to everyone. It was the first time Marie-Claire Alain had been in the house since it was sold in the 1970s, and it was a very emotional experience for her to return to the home of her childhood.

Aurélie Decourt designed and personally arranged a marvelous exhibition at the Espace Véra, which included musical manuscripts, letters, and drawings by Alain; information about the Alain house organ and organs in general was provided by Guy Bovet and the Association Jehan Alain de Suisse. The exhibit was open from March 19 through April 8. On Saturday afternoon, participants were invited by Les Amis du Vieux Saint-Germain to attend a very moving ceremony at the grave of Jehan Alain, located in the military section of the cemetery in Le Pecq, a small town next to Saint-Germain where Jehan had lived with his wife Madeleine and his children. After the war, Jehan’s body was exhumed from his grave in Saumur and moved to Le Pecq.  Madeleine is buried near her husband in the plot of her parents. On their way to the cemetery, the participants passed the house where the young married couple had lived.

International Colloquium “Music and Arts in the 20s and 30s”

Two days were devoted to lectures as part of the international colloquium entitled “Music and Arts in the 20s and 30s.” Aurélie Decourt opened the event on Friday, March 25 at the Salle du Musée d’Archéologie Nationale in the Saint-Germain Chateau with a marvelous lecture on Jehan Alain’s sources of inspiration. Guy Bovet spoke about the harmonium of Albert Alain (which had been housed in the very room where the lecture was given) and the last modifications on the Alain house organ, now located at Romainmôitier, Switzerland. Ton van Eck spoke of the organ that
Jehan Alain knew during his lifetime. Fabienne Stahl, who is organizing the catalog of the complete works of Maurice Denis, spoke of Denis’s use of the organ in his painting and showed that Denis used Marie-Odile Alain, Jehan’s sister who was killed in a mountain accident at a very young age, as his model for an organist in one of his paintings. Christophe Corbier lectured on Alain and his teacher, Maurice Emmanuel, and the use of modes in some of Alain’s piano works; a round-table discussion, led by Gilles Cantagrel, followed, concerning organists during Alain’s lifetime. The panel included Marie-Claire Alain, Jacqueline Englert (daughter of André Marchal), Marie-Louise Langlais (widow of Jean Langlais), Eric Lebrun (student of Gaston Litaize), and Christian Lesur (son of the organist-composer Daniel-Lesur). One laments that the music of Daniel-Lesur is not better known today; he was an extraordinary composer and his music deserves to be played and heard. Jacqueline Englert prepared an excellent talk on the close relationship of her father and Jehan Alain that was concise and beautifully delivered. 

The afternoon session was devoted to Jehan Alain as composer. Vincent Warnier, the organiste-titulaire of Saint-Etienne-du-Mont, presided over this session. Roberto Antonello spoke of his thoughts on Alain’s music through Alain’s correspondence and Georges Guillard spoke of the “hidden” orchestra of Jehan Alain. Luc Antonini spoke on his new orchestration of Alain’s Trois Danses, which we were to hear later that evening. Vincent Warnier gave a very interesting talk on Maurice Duruflé’s large orchestral work, Trois Danses, which we were also to hear that same evening. Jean-Baptiste Robin’s talk, entitled “La griffe Jehan Alain,” was followed by another round-table discussion with Michel Bouvard (France), James David Christie (USA), Lynne Davis (USA), John Grew (Canada), James Higdon (USA), Jon Laukvik (Germany), and Wim Viljoen (Republic of South Africa)—all were students of Marie-Claire Alain, except for Mr. Bouvard. Each spoke about Alain’s music in their countries and its reception from the early 20th century through the present. 

Friday evening, March 25

Friday evening, March 25, was the long-awaited premiere of the new orchestration by organist Luc Antonini of Alain’s Trois Danses, performed by the Orchestre National d’Ile-de-France under the direction of the American conductor, Jonathan Schiffmann, at the Théâtre Alexandre Dumas in the heart of Saint-Germain-en-Laye. Jehan Alain’s own orchestration of Trois Danses was lost during the last year of his life, and Raymond Gallois-Montbrun orchestrated the work in 1945. Critics viewed this orchestration as too heavy and too academic for Alain’s music and there was always a desire that someone would undertake a new orchestration, more in the exotic spirit of the young Jehan Alain.  

Friday evening’s program included Debussy’s Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune, certainly to pay homage to the most famous composer to hail from Saint-Germain-en-Laye. Sadly, the famous opening flute solo was lackluster and performed without poetry and with a very dull, uninteresting tone. The Chevalier family made possible the performance of Maurice Duruflé’s stunning Trois Danses, which date from 1936 (the year before Alain began his Trois Danses, also for orchestra). Certainly the high point of the concert, Duruflé’s Trois Danses elicited the orchestra’s finest performance of the entire evening. This work is a masterpiece and shows Duruflé as an orchestrator on the level of Claude Debussy, Maurice Ravel, and André Caplet.  

Unfortunately, Antonini’s orchestration of Alain’s Trois Danses did not fare as well. One was expecting extensive use of orchestral color and this did not happen. The audience was ready for an explosive, colorful, on-the-edge orchestration that would bring the work to life like a rock band. The percussion was under-used and the orchestration in general was “textbook” and dull. One had the feeling that Antonini did not even know the organ version. We were told that Antonini was not happy with the results, and that he planned to rework the orchestration for a performance at the festival Toulouse les Orgues this fall. Schiffmann’s heavy, shapeless conducting did much to harm the performance and showed that minimal study had been done on the work. The orchestra sounded very under-rehearsed as well. The program concluded with a more polished performance of Ravel’s Ma Mère l’Oye, which was obviously in the repertoire of the orchestra. The audience responded enthusiastically and a movement was repeated as an encore.

Saturday, March 26

The colloquium continued on Saturday morning, March 26, under Georges Guillard’s leadership in the exquisite chapel of the Musée Maurice Denis, with topics concerning the works of Jehan Alain. Claire Denis, granddaughter of the famed artist Maurice Denis, gave a lovely introduction to his work and the efforts currently being undertaken to prepare a catalog of his works. Michel Fischer spoke on the great differences in the compositions of two close friends, Alain and Messiaen. Wilhelm Hafner lectured on the counterpoint in the instrumental work of Alain. This was followed by perhaps the most interesting of all the lectures: Jean-Marc Leblanc spoke on the influence of Charles Tournemire on Alain. 

Norma Stevlingson spoke about the critical notes on the organ works, which she assisted Marie-Claire Alain to prepare for publication by Alphonse Leduc. Klaus Rothaupt recalled the teaching of Alain’s organ works by his sister, Marie-Claire.  Yannick Merlin’s topic was Jehan Alain’s brother, Olivier Alain, and his compositions. Since Olivier’s death in 1994, Marie-Claire Alain has prepared editions of many of his works.  

The morning session concluded with a round-table discussion on the global scope of Alain’s work, with Marie-Claire Alain, James David Christie, Gilles Cantagrel, and John Grew. The participants were treated to a sumptuous lunch prepared and served by members of Les Amis du Vieux Saint-Germain in the Saint-Germain-en-Laye chateau.

Afternoon concert

In the afternoon, there was a concert given by professional musicians from Saint-Germain, which included a wonderful performance of Jehan Alain’s Andante con variazioni et Scherzo for string quintet (this is the same music as the first two movements of Alain’s Suite pour orgue), the Trois mouvements for flute and piano, and Olivier Alain’s Souvenances for flute and piano (with well-known veteran flutist Luc Urbain). A beautiful performance of Olivier Alain’s Suite for violin and piano followed.   

Perhaps one of the most touching moments of the entire festival was the singing of Jehan Alain’s beautiful song, Laisse les nuages blancs (poem of Francis Jammes) by Ariane Gommier, the great-niece of Jehan Alain, granddaughter of Marie-Claire Alain, and daughter of Anne Gommier and Marie-Claire Alain’s late son, Benoît. Members of the choir of the Claude Debussy Conservatory of Saint-Germain sang several secular and religious choral works of Jehan Alain to conclude the program.

Evening concert

The finest program of the festival took place at the Church of Saint-Germain-en-Laye on Saturday evening, March 26. Albert Alain held the position of organiste-titulaire at this church from 1924 until his death in 1971 and was succeeded by his daughter, Marie-Claire, who holds the position to this day. Jehan Alain often substituted for his father here as well. This program was unique and captivating. It featured the brilliant concert organist Michel Bouvard and the celebrated French actress Brigitte Fossey, reading excerpts from letters written by Jehan Alain from the front. The readings, carefully chosen by Aurélie Decourt, were interspersed among the organ works and were very moving. Brigitte Fossey is a marvelous actress and gave an outstanding presentation. Michel Bouvard was the perfect organist for this program; his playing was elegant, refined, colorful, full of spontaneity, poetic, and exciting—in short, he played just as one would have imagined Jehan Alain played his own works. He gave extraordinary performances of Alain’s two Fantasies and Trois Danses. This concert was a preview of the official performance scheduled for October 2011 at the international festival, Toulouse les Orgues.

Sunday morning

On Sunday morning, young students of the Conservatory Claude Debussy of Saint-Germain performed piano works of Jehan Alain. The second half of the program was devoted to Alain’s more mature works, such as Suite monodique and Tarass Boulba; Désiré N’Kaoua, a former student of Lazare Levy and Marguerite Long, performed this portion of the program. A specialist in the music of Ravel and French music in general, N’Kaoua recorded the complete piano works of Jehan Alain for the FY label in France.

Concluding concert

The Alain Centenary Celebration concluded with a concert in memory of Albert, Jehan, and Olivier Alain, with a large cast of performers: organists Eric Lebrun and Marie-Ange Leurent; the Camerata Saint-Louis, Georges Guillard, conductor; the Ensemble vocal de l’UFR de Musique et Musicologie en Sorbonne, Denis Rouger, director; soprano soloists Maud Gnidzaz, Lorraine Prigent, Clémence Olivier, and Ariane Gommier; mezzo-sopranos Anne-Marie Hellot, Violette Viannay, Camille Rondeau, and Mariette Desert; violinists Marie-Hélène Clausse and Stefano Catalano; violist Thierry Gileni; cellist Matthieu Fontana, and flutist Luc Urbain. 

The program opened with Duruflé’s memorial to Jehan Alain, his Prelude and Fugue on the name of ALAIN. The audience was treated to a rare performance of the Kyrie and Gloria from Albert Alain’s Messe Solennelle en l’honneur de Saint-Louis. Many of Jehan Alain’s smaller organ works and vocal motets were performed, including his beautiful Messe modale for soprano, alto, flute, and string quartet. The program concluded with Olivier Alain’s moving memorial to his sister Marie-Odile, Plange quasi virgo (from Trois déplorations) for soprano and organ, and Jehan Alain’s most famous work, Litanies. 

This concert was a wonderful way to conclude the festival and to celebrate the contributions of the entire Alain family to the city of Saint-Germain-en-Laye and the world. Marie-Claire Alain, who is now retired and who celebrated her 85th birthday on August 10, was in attendance for all the concerts. It was very moving to see the devotion and love of her many former students, colleagues, family, friends, and the public in general when she was welcomed at the concerts and receptions. The contributions of the Alain family from the early part of the 20th century through the present are amazing. Aurélie Decourt is a brilliant musicologist and works tirelessly for the Alain legacy. To mark the 100th birthday of Jehan Alain, she published an excellent book devoted to the history of the Alain family: “Une famille de musiciens au 20ème siècle, la famille Alain.” It is written in French and is published by Editions Hermann (http://www.editions-hermann.fr/).  

Our deepest thanks to Dr. Decourt for putting together this entire festival and to Les Amis de Vieux Saint-Germain for their warm welcome and their tireless work—it was a magnificent celebration and tribute to Jehan Alain and the entire Alain family! n

The world’s most distinguished concert organist, Marie-Claire Alain, died at the age of 86 on February 26, 2013, in Le Pecq, France

James David Christie holds positions as the Distinguished Artist in Residence at the College of the Holy Cross, Worcester, Massachusetts, Chair and Professor of Organ at the Oberlin College Conservatory of Music, Oberlin, Ohio, and serves as College Organist at Wellesley College, Wellesley, Massachusetts. He has previously held positions at Boston Conservatory, Harvard University, M.I.T., and Boston University. He has served as organist of the Boston Symphony Orchestra since 1978. 

James David Christie has made over fifty tours of Europe and performs regularly in Canada, Asia, Australia, and Iceland. He has recorded for Decca, Philips, Nonesuch, JAV, Northeastern, Arabesque, Denon, RCA, Dorian, Naxos, Bridge, and GM and has received several awards for his solo recordings, including the Preis der Deutschen Schallplatten Kritik and the Magazine d’Orgue: Coup de Coeur. In the fall of 2010, he was on sabbatical in Paris, France, where he served as visiting Professor of Organ at the Paris Conservatory.

The world’s most distinguished concert organist, Marie-Claire Alain, died at the age of 86 on Tuesday, February 26, 2013, in Le Pecq, a small French commune located next to her home city of Saint-Germain-en-Laye. She had been in failing health for several months and the cause of her death was reported as a cardiac arrest. Madame Alain performed around the entire world, but always held her many American friends and audiences in her heart as her favorite public. She performed over 2,500 concerts and made over 280 recordings during her lifetime.

Marie-Claire Alain was born in Saint-Germain-en-Laye on August 10, 1926. Her father was the organist-composer Albert Alain (1880–1971) and her mother was Magdeleine Alberty (1890–1971). She had three siblings, all excellent musicians, who preceded her in death: her older sister, Marie-Odile Alain (1914–1937), and two brothers—the renowned organist-composer Jehan Alain (1911–1940) and Olivier Alain (1918–1994). Her father, Albert, was the organiste titulaire of the Church of Saint-Germain-en-Laye from 1924 until his death in 1971. Marie-Claire began assisting her father at the church in 1937 at the age of 11. She was appointed her father’s successor upon his death in 1971 and faithfully served as organiste titulaire for the following 40 years. She resigned in 2011 because of her declining health. 

She studied at the Conservatoire national supérieur de Paris, where she was an organ student of Marcel Dupré; there she also studied harmony with Maurice Duruflé and fugue with Simone Plé-Caussade. At the Paris Conservatory, she won first prizes in organ, improvisation, fugue, harmony, and counterpoint. She studied organ privately with Gaston Litaize and André Marchal; both of these famous teachers were important mentors in her career and played a great role in her artistic development.

Marie-Claire Alain was an extraordinary teacher and her students have won a staggering number of international competitions. Today her students hold some of the most important and prestigious teaching and church positions around the world. Marie-Claire Alain was professor of organ at the Conservatoires nationaux de région in Rueil-Malmaison (1978–1994) and Paris (1994–2000). Prior to and even after 1978, she always had a very large private studio and taught many of the most famous organists of today on her Haerpfer-Erman house organ at her homes in L’Étang-la-Ville and Maule, as well as at the Church of Saint-Germain-en-Laye. Madame Alain taught every summer in the Netherlands at the Haarlem Summer Organ Academy with her close friends and colleagues Anton Heiller and Luigi Ferdinando Tagliavini from 1956–1972; after 1972, she returned to teach at Haarlem on three occasions in 1974, 1982 and 1994. She also founded and taught at the Académie Jean-Sébastien Bach de Saint-Donat from 1971–1991. From 1991 to 2009, she was a permanent member of the organ faculty for the Académie d’orgue de Romainmôtier, Switzerland. In 1985, Marie-Claire Alain donated the family house organ, built by her father between 1910 and 1971, to the Jehan Alain Association in Romainmôtier. Madame Alain’s last teaching in North America took place at the McGill Summer Organ Academy, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, in July 2007, and her very last trip to North America was as a juror for the First Canadian International Organ Competition in Montreal in the fall of 2008.  She served on that jury with five of her former students: John Grew (Artistic Director of the CIOC), Dame Gillian Weir, James David Christie, Ludger Lohmann, and James Higdon.

The list of awards and honors given to Marie-Claire Alain is immense. She received honorary doctorates from Colorado State University, Southern Methodist University, the Sibelius Academy (Helsinki), the Boston Conservatory, McGill University, and Johns Hopkins University. She was awarded the Prize of Les Amis de l’Orgue, the Edison Prize (Holland), the Golden Disque Award (Japan), the Prize of the President of the Republic (Académie Charles-Cros), and the Buxtehude Prize (Lübeck). In addition, she was awarded the Grand Prix du Disque (Académie Charles-Cros) sixteen times, the Léonie Sonnig Foundation Prize (Copenhagen), the Franz Liszt Prize (Budapest), the Golden Laser Prize of the Académie du Disque Français, and 1984 International Performer of the Year (New York City chapter of the American Guild of Organists). She has received numerous “Diapasons d’or” for her outstanding recordings. Marie-Claire Alain was a member of the Royal Academy of Music, Stockholm and the Royal Academy of Music, London. She was made a Chevalier in the Royal Order of Danneborg (Denmark). She held the rank of Commandeur in the Légion d’honneur, the Ordre national du Mérite and the Ordre des Arts et Lettres. French President François Hollande promoted Madame Alain to the rank of Grand Officier in the Ordre national du Légion d’honneur on July 14, 2012.

Marie-Claire Alain’s impressive list of recordings includes three versions each of the complete organ works of J.S. Bach, François Couperin, Nicolas de Grigny, and Jehan Alain, two versions each of the organ concerti (with orchestra) of G.F. Handel and the organ works of César Franck, and complete recordings of the organ works of Buxtehude, D’Aquin, Bruhns, Böhm, and Mendelssohn. She recorded organ concerti by Poulenc, Charles Chaynes, Haydn, C.P.E. Bach, Vivaldi, Mozart (Church Sonatas), and two recordings of Symphonie III of Saint-Saëns. Madame Alain appeared as a continuo artist on dozens of recordings, many with the Jean-François Paillard Chamber Orchestra. She also has recorded many works by Liszt, Pachelbel, Vierne, Widor, Messiaen, and others. Madame Alain performed and recorded with the legendary flutist Jean-Pierre Rampal and the acclaimed trumpet virtuoso Maurice André. For a complete discography, please consult Alain Cartayrade’s thorough listing in the French publication L’Orgue, Cahiers et Mémoires No. 56, 1996; the listing may also be read online: www.france-orgue.fr/ (to access the listing, type in “Marie-Claire” in the box marked “Recherche rapide organist” on the right side in the middle of the page).

Marie-Claire Alain married Jacques Gommier, a musician and choral conductor, in 1950; he died in 1992. Monsieur Gommier was a wonderful husband and often handled her correspondence and did musicological research for Madame Alain. He never complained or corrected anyone when he was addressed as ‘Monsieur Alain’ when he accompanied his wife on her many North American tours! They had two children: a son, Benoît, who died in 2009 at the age of 57, and a daughter living in Paris, Aurélie Decourt, musicologist and author of several books on the Alain family. Dr. Decourt organized a national French celebration and festival held in Saint-Germain-en-Laye for the 2011 centenary of the birth of Jehan Alain; she also appeared at Alain centenary events in the United States. [See articles in The Diapason: “Marie-Claire Alain—80th birthday tribute” (July 2006), “National French Centenary Celebration of the Birth of Jehan Alain” (November 2011), “Jehan Alain—The American Festival: Wichita State University” (January 2012), and “Jehan Alain: His Life and Works” (July 2012).] She took extraordinary care of her mother in her last years, and this was greatly appreciated by Madame Alain’s family and friends. In addition to her daughter, Marie-Claire Alain’s survivors include six grandchildren, one nephew, and two nieces (the three children of Jehan Alain: Lise, Agnès, and Denis).  

Madame Alain’s funeral took place at the Church of Saint-Germain-en-Laye on Friday, March 1 at 10:00 am. Her coffin was placed under the Grand Orgue in the church before and after the service. The church was full and the congregation was filled with her many friends from Saint-Germain-en-Laye and Paris, as well as musicians and many organists from Paris, France, and western Europe. Several organists played works of J. S. Bach and Jehan Alain for the service, including former Marie-Claire Alain students Vincent Warnier, Daniel Roth, Bruno Morin, Jean-Baptiste Robin, and Jean Ferrard. A small Gregorian choir sang parts of the Requiem Mass. Her daughter, Aurélie, gave a touching eulogy and spoke lovingly of her mother’s last difficult weeks and how optimistic she was about life. When she would ask her mother how she was feeling, she would respond that she was getting ‘better and better each day.’ As Madame Alain held the rank of Grand Officier in the Légion d’honneur, an honor guard carried the French flag into the church and gave a military homage when her coffin was taken outside the church at the end of the service. Marie-Claire Alain was buried next to her husband in the Gommier family plot in the “New Cemetery” of Saint-Germain-en-Laye.  

The world has lost a great artist—we have lost a great inspiration, an exceptional human being, and a great friend. Thank you, Madame Alain, for making our lives so rich and so full of beauty—we will never forget you. May your soul rest in peace, now and forever—Amen.