LDV113-4

31 MICHEL BOUVARD Do you think that there is a tradition or, more exactly, an evolution in the interpretation of Franck’s work, from his pupils through to the recorded legacy we possess? I don’t see any ‘evolution’ in the true sense of the word, and one must be wary of traditions. There were personalities who left their mark on this music in different styles during the twentieth century. When you listen to the pianist Blanche Selva playing Prélude, Choral et Fugue in 1928, you’re struck by the incredible freedom of her musical philosophy. While it’s very far removed from such an approach, the neo-classical aesthetic of Jeanne Demessieux, who recorded Franck’s organ works in the late 1950s, is also very powerful, as is André Marchal’s version recorded at Saint-Eustache. During this period Cavaillé-Coll’s instruments were less popular – people thought they were gloomily Romantic and outdated. That situation changed in the 1980s and 1990s, and there were new and admirable interpreters like Jean Boyer and Louis Robilliard, who taught us a lot.