Although it has taken almost 12 years for this second volume in John Scott’s survey of Dupre’s organ music to appear, this disc has been worth waiting for. And if Gordon Reynolds in his review (1/87) thought the first volume in the series “masterly – superb playing and superb engineering”, it is perhaps a shame his grave claimed him before he had a chance to hear the second. For this is an impressive release on every account.
Yes, as we have come to expect from Scott, the playing is superb – that perfect combination of technical virtuosity and intense musicianship which is so rare among organists – and numerous Hyperion recordings from the cavernous St Paul’s over the intervening decade-and-a-bit have fine-tuned their engineering to such an extent that we no longer admire the sound, as did GR, “despite the acoustic”, but find that the acoustic positively enhances it. That awesome echo, as the final chord of Scott’s vehement account of the Symphonie-Passion is cast adrift to fend for itself in the cathedral’s vastness, adds a tangible sense of presence. Yet the clarity is there; the precision of Scott’s fingerwork is captured in microscopic detail in his stunning performance of the Second Symphony’s “Preludio” and “Toccata” movements. The ‘missing’ Op. 7 Prelude and Fugue from the earlier disc turns up here in a richly atmospheric performance which makes me wonder why it is that this deeply moving piece, with its strong melodic ties with the popular Requiem, has been so overshadowed by its companions.
On the subject of Requiems I sincerely hope I am not in my own grave by the time Vol. 3 turns up (and I hope with even more fervour that there will be a Vol. 3) – musically, technically and emotionally these are truly distinguished recordings.'