Jean-Baptiste Robin (b. 1976) is a French composer and organist, currently serving as the organist at Poitiers Cathedral and professor of organ and composition at the Versailles Conservatory. As a French composer-organist, Robin’s work falls into a grand tradition whose exemplars include Charles-Marie Widor, Marcel Dupré, Louis Vierne, Jean Langlais, Maurice Duruflé, Olivier Messiaen, Naji Hakim, and Thierry Escaich. (Hakim is Lebanese, though his entire career has been made in France.) Robin has written music in other forms, but it is clearly the organ repertoire which forms the core of his musical personality to date. This CD collects all three of his published organ works in his own definitive and excellent performances. Style-wise, Robin’s music fits comfortably into what has become the “lingua franca” of post-Messiaen French organ music: flamboyantly dramatic textures (often including ostinato), rhapsodic gestures and formal designs, and a tonal language based on idiosyncratic uses of extended modality.

Regard vers l’Aïr (A Look towards the Air) (2001) is a piece that Robin developed in different, evolving versions. He has employed these variations depending on the character of the organ used for performance. Though the remainder of the disc uses the large modern instrument at Église Saint-Étienne-du-Mont in Paris, this piece is presented in two versions, one of which is also recorded on German baroque-style instrument at Église Saint-Lous-en-I’Île in Paris. Besides some different choices of organ registration, Robin uses a more baroque rhythmic freedom for the earlier version. Cercles Réfléchissants (Reflecting Circles) (2007–08) is a half-hour suite in seven movements which employs Robin’s “23 reflecting modes” (somewhat similar conceptually to Messiaen’s modes of limited transposition). The piece is symmetrically constructed and material is shared throughout the movements. It is a major work for the instrument which, though long, does not wear out its welcome. Trois Élements d’un Songe (Three Elements of a Dream) (2003) comprises three brief movements that develop a small amount of musical material in diverse ways.

For some of the composers mentioned in the first paragraph (e.g., Vierne, Dupré, Langlais), their greatest contribution was unquestionably music for the organ. For others (e.g., Messiaen or Escaich), despite the acknowledged brilliance of their organ music, their work in other genres is of equal or greater significance. It remains to be seen into which category Robin will fall, but at present it is wonderful to be able to enjoy these dramatic works for organ.

Because of its difficulty, this music is likely to end up in the repertoire of only the finest recitalists, but this excellent recording allows for the pieces to be experienced as the composer intends.

Many concertgoers and music lovers remain unaware of important organist composers who create music mainly for their own instrument. Saint-Saëns was a great organist, but he was nowhere near a “specialist” organ composer. Messiaen composed for all instrumental and vocal combinations, which helped his organ music to come into more general awareness.

But in France, indeed even in Paris itself, there is a group of specialist organist composers creating music that deserves to be far better known. Jean Guillou’s is gaining wider currency now, he being still active as composer and performer whilst celebrating his 80th birthday; his ground-breaking La Révolte des Orgues has caused a great stir on DVD and is to be repeated in Germany.