Christopher Houlihan rightly views the French Romantic symphonic organ tradition as being bookended by Franck’s Grande pièce symphonique and Vierne’s Symphony No 6, ‘essentially the first and the last French Romantic organ “symphonies”’. And, as it happens, they make for an inspired and intriguingly contrasted pairing.

Although the Franck is not technically a symphony, its symphonic scale and thematic unity presage the composer’s D minor Symphony, while the transition into the final section features brief recaps as each earlier theme in succession takes its cue from the fourth-movement introduction to Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony. Houlihan’s straightforward interpretation represents a point of centre between Michael Murray’s monumental heft (Conifer/Telarc, 7/90) and Marie-Claire Alain’s impassioned swiftness (Erato, 4/81). He’s less inclined to take expressive advantage of Franck’s quasi ad libitum directives than Marcel Dupré did in his classic Mercury recording (2/61), but the fluid transparency of his Andante is underlined by the Manton Memorial Organ’s piquant woodwind registrations. The engineering’s clear ambience also benefits the supple pianissimo Allegro that follows, where the off-beat B natural eighth notes lilt rather than bog down.

Houlihan may dive into the Vierne Symphony’s first-movement introduction with less of a genuine agitato, yet his pacing gives extra breathing room to the clotted chromatic phrases. This holds true for the movement’s remainder. His lovely and flowing way with the Aria liberates this movement from decades of lugubrious build-up, revealing the music’s kinship with Fauré.

Similarly, the scampering Scherzo foreshadows Bernard Herrmann’s title-theme for the Alfred Hitchcock film North by Northwest; Houlihan’s incisive articulation captures the music’s diablerie. The Adagio arguably contains Vierne’s most intense and tragic music, and Houlihan’s dignified concentration will satisfy those who find Pierre Cochereau’s epic, full-throated approach (Decca, 2/83) a tad draining. On the other hand, the blazing brightness of Cochereau’s moderately paced yet pulverising finale differs from Houlihan’s faster yet relatively lightweight interpretation. In short, Houlihan’s organ mastery and thoughtful musicianship deserve serious consideration, even if he won’t dislodge Dupré’s Franck and Martin Jean’s Vierne (Loft Recordings) from my reference perch.