Michel Corrette - 6 Organ Concertos, Op. 26 (1756)

Michel Corrette (10 April 1707 – 21 January 1795) was a French composer, organist and author of musical method books.

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6 Organ Concertos, Op. 26 (1756 publ.)

1. Organ Concerto in G major
I. Allegro (0:00)
II. Gavotte (2:50)
III. Allegro (6:46)

2. Concerto in A major
I. Allegro (9:49)
II. Grave (12:15)
III. Gigue (15:25)

3. Concerto in D major
I. Allegro (17:47)
II. Andante (Aria) (20:50)
III. Allegro (24:01)

4. Concerto in C major
I. Allegro (27:30)
II. Andante (Zampagna) (31:01)
III. Allegro (33:44)

5. Organ Concerto in F major
I. Allegro (36:58)
II. Aria e Variazioni (39:46)
III. Allegro (43:28)

6. Concerto in D minor
I. Allegro (46:16)
II. Andante (49:19)
II. Presto (51:09)

René Saorgin, organ and the Ensemble Baroque De Nice conducted by Gilbert Bezzina

Corrette was a prolific composer. He composed ballets and divertissements for the stage, including Arlequin, Armide, Le Jugement de Midas, Les Âges, Nina, and Persée. He composed many concertos, notably 25 concertos comiques. Aside from these works and organ concertos, he also composed sonatas, songs, instrumental chamber works, harpsichord pieces, cantatas, and other sacred vocal works. Most of his sacred works have not survived, some exceptions being the Laudate Dominum and Four Masses for Two Voices from 1788.

Despite living well into the Classical era (he outlived Mozart by four years, dying in 1795 just a few months short of 88), Corrette's musical idiom was very conservative, and he continued to compose in the Baroque style at least up to the 1770s.

Aside from playing the organ and composing music, Corrette organized concerts and taught music. He wrote nearly twenty music method books for various instruments—the violin, cello, bass, flute, recorder, bassoon, harpsichord, harp, mandolin, voice and more—with titles such as l'Art de se perfectionner sur le violon (The Art of Playing the Violin Perfectly), le Parfait Maître à chanter (The Perfect Mastersinger) and L′école d′Orphée (The School of Orpheus), a violin treatise describing the French and Italian styles. These pedagogical works by Corrette are valuable because they "give lucid insight into contemporary playing techniques."