Uploaded April 2023 | Updated September 2026, 4 days ago
Part I:
00:02 Bien modéré
08:11 Avec du mouvement
Part II:
14:07 Les cloches de Moscou
22:13 Assez modéré
Performed by the Liège Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Pierre Bartholomée
Charles Tournemire (1870-1939) was a French composer and organist, considered one of the greatest organists of his time. For more on Tournemire, see the description of my score video of his sixth symphony (youtube.com/watch?v=K_2T7QW5EjQ) and my blog (unknowncomposers.org/2018/11/04/the-journey-begins/).
Tournemire's third symphony of 1913 depicts the sights and sounds of Moscow, which he had recently visited before writing it. Like many of his works, it is written in cyclic form, with the themes of all four movements being related to each other; each movement is skillfully paced and colorfully orchestrated. However, it stands out for its rather unusual influences - Tournemire, although a staunch Catholic, was particularly fascinated by Orthodox church bells and melodies, imitations of which appear very prominently in the third and fourth movements.
The score is available on IMSLP here under "Symphony No.3, Op.43": imslp.org/wiki/Category:Tournemire,_Charles
Part I:
00:02 Bien modéré
08:11 Avec du mouvement
Part II:
14:07 Les cloches de Moscou
22:13 Assez modéré
Performed by the Liège Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Pierre Bartholomée
Charles Tournemire (1870-1939) was a French composer and organist, considered one of the greatest organists of his time. For more on Tournemire, see the description of my score video of his sixth symphony (youtube.com/watch?v=K_2T7QW5EjQ) and my blog (unknowncomposers.org/2018/11/04/the-journey-begins/).
Tournemire's third symphony of 1913 depicts the sights and sounds of Moscow, which he had recently visited before writing it. Like many of his works, it is written in cyclic form, with the themes of all four movements being related to each other; each movement is skillfully paced and colorfully orchestrated. However, it stands out for its rather unusual influences - Tournemire, although a staunch Catholic, was particularly fascinated by Orthodox church bells and melodies, imitations of which appear very prominently in the third and fourth movements.
The score is available on IMSLP here under "Symphony No.3, Op.43": imslp.org/wiki/Category:Tournemire,_Charles
