Saint-Saëns’ Organ Symphony, conducted by Aurel Dawidiuk

The young star conductor Aurel Dawidiuk is associate conductor of the Concertgebouw Orchestra and music director of the Bochum Symphony Orchestra. This morning, he combines Saint-Saëns’s sweeping“Organ Symphony”with Gabriel Fauré’s mysterious, fairy-tale-like music.

Saint-Saëns’ Organ Symphony
With his overwhelmingThird Symphony—nicknamed the “Organ Symphony” due to its imposing organ part—French composer Camille Saint-Saëns composed one of the most important French symphonies, a genre long considered “un-French.” “German music is like cathedrals, ours like gardens,” the French writer Victor Hugo is said to have remarked. While German-speaking composers excelled at serious music that seeks to express the sublime and universal, the French hold “clarté” (light clarity) and refinement in high regard. Germans want to understand, the French to seduce—so goes the cliché. In hisOrgan Symphony, Saint-Saënsdoesboth; this music is both cathedral and garden at once.

Aurel Dawidiuk
Aurel Dawidiuk is making a name for himself as a pianist, organist, and conductor. He was the first associate conductor in the history of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra; according to Klaus Mäkelä, Dawidiuk makes the orchestra sing and brings a unique color to its sound. Starting in the 2026–2027 season, the 25-year-old German will be chief conductor of the Bochum Symphony Orchestra. Dawidiuk’s understanding of the organ and his keen sense of the big picture and structure make him the ideal conductor for Saint-Saëns’Organ Symphony.