Nadia Boulanger

Trois Improvisations for Organ

Trois Improvisations (3 Improvisations; Trois Pièces) for Organ was written by Nadia Boulanger (1887-1979) in 1911 for inclusion in an anthology of organ music by various composers.

"The first piece, 'Prélude,' consists of a simple rounded binary form with a starkly simple texture — a single melody in the right hand and mostly parallel-third motion in the left. The conventional 4-bar-phrase structure allows a few poignant surprises when deviated from, most notably with the abrupt key change from the opening F minor to C-sharp minor in the middle section. The 'Petit canon' offers richer rhythmic movement, although the canon itself appears conceived more as an echo effect than a contrapuntal device. The final 'Improvisation' ends this cycle of miniatures, drifting between different key areas but held together with ostinatos." from program notes by Gregg Wager for the LA Philharmonic.