Duruflé: Prélude, Adagio & Choral Varié sur 'Veni Creator', Op. 4

“The organ works were...a revelation, thanks to the beautiful instrument of Aarhus Cathedral and the outstandingly sensitive playing of Kristian Krogsøe. ...The choral works are beautifully sung, but are rather strait-laced and cool. It’s a common and viable approach which many will prefer to the more overtly expressive and emotional approach adopted elsewhere.” MusicWeb International, December 2012

“Here is excellent fingerwork from Friedhelm Flamme, and an exceptional level of acoustic clarity. This hybrid SACD is recommended if surround sound is your main concern.” BBC Music Magazine, September 2006

“Flamme also knows, by his choice of registrations and his patience, how to evoke both the mystery and gentle mysticism of this music…if you've been waiting for a great organ recording to test on your system, this is it.” Classics Today

“Listeners to his Requiem will recognise Duruflé's conservative and intensely personal musical language as heard in his organ music. The influence of Debussy, Dukas, Ravel, Tournemire and Vierne is evident, and like these composers Duruflé provides detailed performance indications.
Hans Fagius, a former student of Duruflé's, scrupulously observes all the scores' markings, and this is one reason why he's now the top recommendation for this repertoire.
His performances have a flexible, seamless flow, and the playing has a slight understated quality which gives more clarity and impact than Eric Lebrun's flamboyant accounts. Fagius's interpretations are close in spirit to the recordings by the composer and his wife Marie-Madeleine Duruflé- Chevalier, and it's a shame that their authoritative performances are marred by poor sound quality. By contrast, BIS's recording of the 89- stop four-manual organ in Århus Cathedral is superbly realistic. The choice of this instrument was inspired; it has all the appropriate colours and it's set in a warm, generous acoustic.
Another bonus is the inclusion of the sensuous and recently discovered Meditation. Although the recordings by Lebrun and the Duruflés are very good, they must now stand aside and let this BIS disc take the place of honour, for this is a truly distinguished release of one of the finest corpus of organ music you'll ever hear.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

“Scott's recording includes St Paul's Cathedral's choirmen singing the Gregorian chant in the Choral varié on Veni Creator. His playing is magisterial in its sheer elegance, discriminating taste, and devotion to the music.” BBC Music Magazine, September 2006

“This pair of Naxos CDs is noteworthy, essential listening, I would venture to suggest, for anyone who, like me, professes a deep love for Durufle's music.” Gramophone Magazine

“A ravishing organ disc.” New York Times

“Not to be missed.” Ovation

“Performance: stunning. Recording: superb.” Stereo Review