Psalm 150
Arrangement for small ensemble (arr. by A. Landgraf) FWV 69, 1884
The present setting of Psalm 150 from 1884 is one of César Franck's late works. It shows the highly individual elements of the composer's style in concentrated form: a consciously symphonic idiom, bold and unmistakable harmonies, largely characterized by their chromaticism and unusual concepts of form. The popularity of this work has largely been hindered by the need for large instrumental resources for so short a piece. The present arrangement of the Psalm for choir, strings and organ (ad libitum: harp and percussion) is intended as a compromise that retains much of the original sonority, but keeping the work within the scope and possibilities of churches desirous of performing works with instrumental accompaniment within the context of liturgy.
With this arrangement for chamber orchestra (strings, organo plus timpani, cymbal and harp ad lib), smaller choirs, as well as choirs with more limited resources of space or finance, can now perform this work too. However, the symphonic character and wide dynamic range of the work remain.
| Original version | Arrangement for chamber orchestra |
| Coro SATB, 2 Fl, 2 Ob, 2 Clt, 2 Fg, 4 Cor, 2 Tr, 3 Trb, Timp, Cymbal, 2 Vl, Va, Vc, Cb, Org, Arpa | Coro SATB, 2 Vl, Va, Vc, Cb, Org, [Timp, Cymbal, Arpa] |
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Composer
César Franck
| 1822-1890César Franck (1822–1890), a native of Liège, Belgium, studied in Paris and was active there at the Cavaillé-Coll organ of the Church of Sainte-Clotilde from 1859 until his death. In 1871 he was a co-founder of the “Société nationale de Musique”, later becoming its president. In 1872 he was appointed professor of organ at the Paris Conservatoire. His students included well-known personalities from French music history such as Ernest Chausson, Vincent d’Indy, Gabriel Pierné, Charles Tournemire, Louis Vierne and also, for a short while, Claude Debussy. In early July 1890 Franck had an accident with a horse-drawn omnibus, from the consequences of which he never recovered. He died on 8 November. Franck’s successors at Sainte-Clotilde were G. Pierné and (from 1898) Ch. Tournemire, one of Olivier Messiaen’s teachers. Personal details
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Arranger
Armin Landgraf
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Frequent questions about this work
Can I also use the “normal” vocal score /03 and the choral score /05 from the full-scale version to sing the version presented here?
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