Jeanne Marie-Madeleine Demessieux (14 February 1921 – 11 November 1968) was a French organist, pianist, composer, and teacher. She was the chief organist at
Saint-Esprit for 29 years and at
La Madeleine in Paris starting in 1962. She performed internationally as a concert organist and was the first female organist to sign a
record contract
A recording contract (commonly called a record contract or record deal) is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording act (artist or group), where the act makes an audio recording (or series of recordings) for the label to sell and ...
. She went on to record many organ works, including her own compositions.
Biography
Born in
Montpellier
Montpellier (; ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of France, department of ...
(
Hérault
Hérault (; , ) is a departments of France, department of the Regions of France, region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Southern France. Named after the Hérault (river), Hérault River, its Prefectures in France, prefecture is M ...
) Jeanne Demessieux was the second child of Marie-Madeleine Demessieux (née Mézy) and Étienne Demessieux. After taking private piano lessons with her elder sister, Yolande, Jeanne entered the Montpellier Conservatoire in 1928. Four years later, she obtained first prizes in solfège and piano. In 1933, she began her studies at the
Paris Conservatoire; studying piano with Simon Riera and
Magda Tagliaferro, harmony with
Jean Gallon, counterpoint and fugue with
Noël Gallon, and composition with
Henri Büsser. The same year, she was appointed titular organist at
Saint-Esprit, a post she held for 19 years.
From 1936 to 1939, Demessieux studied organ privately with
Marcel Dupré
Marcel Jean-Jules Dupré (; 3 May 1886 – 30 May 1971) was a French organist, composer, and pedagogue.
Early life and education
Born in Rouen into a wealthy musical family, Marcel Dupré was a child prodigy. His father Aimable Albert Dupré ...
, whose organ class at the Conservatoire she joined in 1939. After receiving a first prize in organ performance and improvisation in 1941, Demessieux studied privately with Dupré for five more years, before she played her début concert at the
Salle Pleyel
The Salle Pleyel (, meaning "Pleyel Hall") is a concert hall in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, France, designed by the acoustician Gustave Lyon together with the architect Jacques Marcel Auburtin, who died in 1926, and the work was completed i ...
in Paris in 1946, as part of a series of 12 solo concerts between 1946 and 1948. This was the beginning of her career as an international concert organist and improviser, but also coinciding with Dupré irrevocably turning his back on Demessieux. In 1947, she became the first female organist to sign a
record contract
A recording contract (commonly called a record contract or record deal) is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording act (artist or group), where the act makes an audio recording (or series of recordings) for the label to sell and ...
, with a performance of
Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV 565
The Toccata and Fugue in D minor, Bach-Werke-Verzeichnis, BWV 565, is a composition for Pipe organ, organ by, according to the oldest sources, German composer Johann Sebastian Bach. It is one of the most widely recognisable works in the organ re ...
for
Decca Records
Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis after his acquisition of a gramophone manufacturer, The Decca Gramophone Company. It set up an American subsidiary under the Decca name, which bec ...
. She gave more than 700 concerts in France, the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Germany, and the United States (1953, 1955, and 1958). Demessieux always performed from memory, having an active repertoire of more than 2,500 compositions, including the complete organ works of
Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach (German: joːhan zeˈbasti̯an baχ ( – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his prolific output across a variety of instruments and forms, including the or ...
,
Franck, the major organ works of
Liszt
Franz Liszt (22 October 1811 – 31 July 1886) was a Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist, conductor and teacher of the Romantic period. With a diverse body of work spanning more than six decades, he is considered to be one of the most pro ...
and
Mendelssohn
Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include symphonie ...
, and all of Dupré's organ works up to Opus 41. A prolific recording artist, she was awarded the
Grand Prix du Disque Award in 1961 for her complete recording of Franck's organ works (1959, a world premiere recording).
In 1962, Demessieux was appointed as titular organist at
La Madeleine in Paris. She combined this with demanding academic duties, serving as professor of organ and improvisation at the Nancy Conservatoire (1950–1952) and the
Conservatoire Royal in
Liège
Liège ( ; ; ; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality of Wallonia, and the capital of the Liège Province, province of Liège, Belgium. The city is situated in the valley of the Meuse, in the east o ...
(1952–1968). Among her students were
Marie-Madeleine Duruflé,
Pierre Labric, and
Louis Thiry. In 1967, after several years of negotiations, she signed a contract with Decca Records for a recording of the complete organ works by
Olivier Messiaen
Olivier Eugène Prosper Charles Messiaen (, ; ; 10 December 1908 – 27 April 1992) was a French composer, organist, and ornithology, ornithologist. One of the major composers of the 20th-century classical music, 20th century, he was also an ou ...
at
Notre-Dame de Paris
Notre-Dame de Paris ( ; meaning "Cathedral of Our Lady of Paris"), often referred to simply as Notre-Dame, is a Medieval architecture, medieval Catholic cathedral on the Île de la Cité (an island in the River Seine), in the 4th arrondissemen ...
, with which she could not comply to for health reasons. According to her biographer, Christiane Trieu-Colleney, Demessieux underwent medical treatment and did not perform in concert for most of the last year of her life. Jeanne Demessieux died on 11 November 1968 in Paris, at age 47, from throat cancer. She was buried in the Demessieux family tomb in the Cimetière du
Grau-du-Roi, not far from
Aigues-Mortes
Aigues-Mortes (; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Gard Departments of France, department in the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region of southern France. The medieval Ramparts of Aigues-Mortes, city walls surrounding th ...
.
Photos of the Demessieux family grave on the Musical et Memorial website (visited February 11, 2021)
Demessieux wrote more than 30 compositions. A third of these were written for the organ, but she also produced pieces for piano, numerous songs, a handful of choral works (including an oratorio, ''La Chanson de Roland
The ''Song of Roland'' () is an 11th-century based on the deeds of the Frankish kingdom, Frankish military leader Roland at the Battle of Roncevaux Pass in AD 778, during the reign of the Charlemagne, Emperor Charlemagne. It is the oldest surv ...
''), and orchestral works. About half of her output has been published as of 2021. In 2021, Decca Records released an 8-CD box set with her complete recordings for this label between 1947 and 1967, including the above-mentioned 1959 world-premiere recording of Franck's complete organ works.
Compositions
Organ solo
*Nativité, op. 4 (Composed in 1943/44. Sampzon: Delatour France, 2005).
*Six Études, op. 5 (Composed in 1944. Paris: Bornemann/Leduc, 1946).Vexilla Regis
''Vexilla regis prodeunt'' (; often known in English translation as The Royal Banner Forward Goes) is a Latin hymn in long metre by the Christian poetry, Christian poet and saint Venantius Fortunatus, Bishop of Poitiers. It takes its title from ...
''
** ''Hosanna filio David''
** '' O Filii''
** ''Veni Creator Spiritus
''Veni Creator Spiritus'' (Latin: Come, Creator Spirit) is a traditional Christian hymn believed to have been written by Rabanus Maurus, a ninth-century German monk, teacher, archbishop, and saint. When the original Latin text is used, it is norma ...
''
** '' Ubi caritas''
** ''In manus tuas''
** ''Tu es Petrus''
** ''Domine Jesu''
*Andante (Chant donné) (Composed in 1953. In: ''64 Leçons d'Harmonie, offertes en hommage à Jean Gallon'', edited by Claude Delvincourt. Paris: Durand, 1953).
*Te Deum
The ( or , ; from its incipit, ) is a Latin Christian hymn traditionally ascribed to a date before AD 500, but perhaps with antecedents that place it much earlier. It is central to the Ambrosian hymnal, which spread throughout the Latin ...
, op. 11 (Composed in 1957/58. Paris: Durand, 1959).
Organ and orchestra
*Poème, op. 9 (Composed in 1949. Paris: Durand, 1952).
Piano solo
* 7 Pièces inédites (Sampzon: Delatour France, 2011).
**''Le Chant des petits oiseaux''
** ''Berceuse et impromptu''
** ''Romance sans paroles''
** ''Allegro''
** ''Mazurka''
** ''Valse n° 1''
** ''Murmure des bois''
*Berceuse (Composed in 1926. Unpublished).
*Suite (Composed in 1938. Unpublished).
**''Prélude''
** ''Scherzetto''
** ''Menuet''
** ''Toccata''
*Étude in F♯ major (Composed in 1938. Unpublished).
*Trois préludes (Composed in 1939. Unpublished).
**''D# minor''
** ''B minor''
** ''D minor''
Songs (with piano)
*Le Moulin (Composed in 1937. Unpublished).
*Soudainement contre les Vitres (Composed in 1940. Unpublished).
*Sonnet de Michel-Ange (Composed in 1949. Unpublished.)
*Action de grâce (No date. Unpublished).
*Cavalier (No date. Unpublished).
*Le Vase brisé (No date. Unpublished).
Chamber music
*Sonata for violin and piano (Composed in 1940. Sampson: Delatour France, 2013).
**''Allegro moderato''
** ''Adagio cantabile''
** ''Thème et variations''
*Ballade, op. 12, for horn and piano (Composed in 1962. Paris: Durand, 1962).
Vocal music
*Cantate pour le jeudi Saint for chorus, soloists, and organ; text by Félix Raugel (Composed in 1938. Unpublished).
*Barques célestes for three women's voices a capella (Composed in 1938. Unpublished).
*Consolamini for five mixed voices a capella (Composed in 1950. Unpublished).
*La Chanson de Roland, op. 10, oratorio for chorus, mezzo-soprano, and orchestra (Composed in 1951–56. Paris: Leduc).
Miscellaneous
*Two symphonic movements for orchestra (Composed in 1941. Unpublished).
*George Frideric Handel
George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel ( ; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque composer well-known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and organ concerti.
Born in Halle, Germany, H ...
: Cadenzas for Organ Concertos Nos. 1 and 2 (Unpublished).
*Franz Liszt: Funérailles, arranged for organ solo (Sampzon: Delatour France, 2010).
Discography
* Jeanne Demessieux: L'oeuvre pour orgue.
** Te Deum op. 11, Répons pour le temps de Pâques, 12 Choral-Préludes op. 8, Triptyque op. 7, Prélude et Fugue en Ut op. 13, Sept Méditations sur le Saint-Esprit op. 6, Six Etudes op. 5. Pierre Labric: Hommage à Jeanne Demessieux.
*** Pierre Labric, Organist. Recorded in July 1971 (Te Deum), December 1971 (Choral-Preludes, Répons), October 1972 (Méditations, Études), November 1972 (Triptyque, Prélude et Fugue) and April 1974 (Hommage) at St. Ouen, Rouen, and St. Pierre, Angoulème (Six Études, Sept Méditations). Sigean: Solstice, 2017. 2 CD's.
* Jeanne Demessieux: The Decca Legacy.
References
Bibliography
* Aprahamian, Felix. Jeanne Demessieux. In Felix Aprahamian (ed.): ''Diaries and selected writings on music.'' Woodbridge, Suffolk: The Boydell Press, 2015, 375–376.
* Association des Amis de l'Orgue (ed.). ''Jeanne Demessieux: Journal (1934–1946).'' L'Orgue 287–288 (2009).
* Association Maurice et Marie-Madeleine Duruflé (ed.). ''Hommage à Jeanne Demessieux.'' Bulletin no. 9 (2009).
* Ballesteros, Domitila. ''Jeanne Demessieux's 'Six Etudes' and the piano technique''. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (2004).
*
* Cavanagh, Lynn. ''The rise and fall of a famous collaboration: Marcel Dupré and Jeanne Demessieux.'' The Diapason (July 2005): 18–21.
* Chevalier, Éliane. Marie-Madeleine Chevalier-Duruflé et Marcel Dupré. In Association Maurice et Marie-Madeleine Duruflé (ed.): ''Marie-Madeleine Chevalier-Duruflé''. Bulletin no. 17 (2019–2020), 39–41.
* Colleney, Christiane. ''In memoriam Jeanne Demessieux (1921–1968). Vingtième anniversaire.'' Jeunesse et Orgue 70 (1988): 9–10.
* Demessieux, Jeanne. ''Journal (1934–1946).'' L'Orgue: Bulletin des Amis de l'Orgue 287–288 (2009): 64–247.
* Denis, Pierre. ''Les organistes français d'aujourd'hui: Jeanne Demessieux, organiste du Saint-Esprit, professeur du Conservatoire Royal de Liège.'' L'Orgue 75 (April/June 1955): 37–44.
* Ellis, Laura. ''The American recital tours of Jeanne Demessieux.'' The Diapason 86 (October 1995): 14–18.
* Haiawi, Maryam. ''Das Orgelwerk von Jeanne Demessieux (1921–1968).'' Musica sacra 135, no. 6 (2015): 328–330.
* Haiawi, Maryam. ''Die Sept Méditations sur le Saint-Esprit von Jeanne Demessieux (1921–1968): Kompositionsstil und theologischer Gehalt.'' Ars Organi 65, no. 2, (June 2017): 90–96.
* Labric, Pierre. ''Jeanne Demessieux (1921–1968): Pariser Orgellegende von La Madeleine.'' Organ – Journal für die Orgel 2, no. 2 (1999): 36–38.
* Labric, Pierre. Jeanne Demessieux: Présentation des œuvres pour orgue. In Association Maurice et Marie-Madeleine Duruflé (ed.): ''Hommage à Jeanne Demessieux''. Bulletin no. 9 (2009), 70–75.
* Labric, Pierre. Jeanne Demessieux: Analyse de l'œuvre pour orgue. In Association Maurice et Marie-Madeleine Duruflé (ed.): ''Hommage à Jeanne Demessieux''. Bulletin no. 9 (2009), 76–96.
* Machart, Renaud. Jeanne Demessieux (1921–1968). In Renaud Machart and Vincent Warnier (ed.): ''Les grands organistes du XXe siècle.'' Paris: Buchet-Chastel, 2018, 157–164.
* Marchais, Christine. Jeanne Demessieux. In Association Femmes et Musique (ed.): ''Compositrices Françaises au XXème siècle,'' vol. 2. Sampzon: Delatour France, 2014, 65–66.
* Page, Barnaby. ''Jeanne Demessieux.'' Organists' Review (September 2018): 9–13.
* Steed, Graham. ''Dupre and Demessieux: The master and the pupil.'' The American Organist 13 (March 1979): 36–37.
* Tréfouel, Dominique. ''Jeanne Demessieux.'' Lyon, France: J2C/ALDRUI Éditions, 2005. .
* Trieu-Colleney, Christiane. ''Jeanne Demessieux: Une vie de luttes et de gloire.'' Avignon, France: Les Presses Universelles, 1977.
* D'Arcy Trinkwon. ''The legend of Jeanne Demessieux: a study.'' The Diapason (November 2008): 30–33.
* Welzel, Martin. ''Jeanne Demessieux (1921–1968): A critical examination of her life.'' DMA Dissertation, University of Washington, Seattle, 2005
ResearchGate
External links
Jeanne Demessieux – Festivo Label, Amersfoort, Netherlands
Jeanne Demessieux – Éditions Delatour France
Lynn Cavanagh. ''Introducing the French post-romantic style of organ music to students: Demessieux's Twelve Choral Preludes on Gregorian chant themes.'' Published online October 1, 2002 (visited February 11, 2021).
Lynn Cavanagh. ''The rise and fall of a famous collaboration: Marcel Dupré and Jeanne Demessieux,'' Part 1. The Diapason (June 2005) (visited February 11, 2021).
Lynn Cavanagh. ''The rise and fall of a famous collaboration: Marcel Dupré and Jeanne Demessieux,'' Part 2. The Diapason (June 2005) (visited February 11, 2021).
* Demessieux Jeanne – Bach (Decca LW 5095) 1956
* Demessieux Jeanne – Bach Franck (Decca LXT 2578) 1950
* CANTABILE by JEANNE DEMESSIEUX; César Franck, Decca (K.2360)
* "Ad Nos" Fantasia And Fugue – Variations From "Symphonie Gothique" by Jeanne Demessieux; Franz Liszt; Charles-Marie Widor, London Records (LL 697)
* Organ Works Volume I, by César Franck; Jeanne Demessieux, London Records (STS 15103 / STS.15103)
* Organ Works – Volume Two by César Franck; Jeanne Demessieux, London Records (STS 15104 / STS.15104)
* Organ Works – Volume Three by César Franck; Jeanne Demessieux, London Records (STS 15105)
* Prélude, Fugue Et Variation – Prière – Pastoral – Pièce Héroique by César Franck; Jeanne Demessieux, London Records (CS 6221)
* The Organ Of Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral by Jeanne Demessieux; Flor Peeters; Noel Rawsthorne, London Records (STS 15100 / STS.15100)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Demessieux, Jeanne
1921 births
1968 deaths
20th-century French classical composers
20th-century French women classical pianists
20th-century French classical pianists
Conservatoire de Paris alumni
Academic staff of the Royal Conservatory of Liège
French classical composers
French women classical composers
French composers of sacred music
Composers for pipe organ
Organ improvisers
French classical organists
Musicians from Montpellier
Deaths from cancer in France
Grand Prix du Disque winners
French women organists
20th-century French organists
20th-century French composers
20th-century French women composers