The seventy-sixth classical recording: #715 Marcel Dupre - Symphonie-Passion
A purely organ-based piece is always going to sound a bit more ominous, and the way this piece leads off, with almost discordant, dark notes played almost at random, adds to this unsettling feeling. Part of this remains, but at the same time it provides a contrast to the second movement, the nativity, which has a lighter melody through it as well. Knowing the basic subject, the four movements become easier to pick out and place, with a natural progression that stays ominous while conveying their meaning - it's there to impress for the most part, although the resurrection itself starts telling even more of a story, with its slow, gentler start, staying sombre but not necessarily as imposing. It's a piece that goes from unsettling to affecting in half an hour, one that needs to grow on you but was effective for me once it does.