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"Just like a pilot in the cockpit of his aircraft, Christian Schmitt sits before the semicircular array of keys, buttons, and levers." This is how our principal organist was once described in a portrait. In this concert, he sits at his instrument and sets himself in motion, taking the audience on a fascinating journey from a successful takeoff to a safe landing – and his musical co-pilot is our solo hornist, Christoph Eß. The program begins with a beautiful Andante by Camille Saint-Saëns, which was composed in 1853. "Dieu est simple" by Olivier Messiaen is part of his cycle "Méditations sur le mystère de la Sainte Trinité" from 1969, and here you can also hear the typical bird songs that he uses, which symbolize a statement from a Psalm that says: "If only I had wings like a dove, I would fly away and find peace." Marcel Dupré's varied variations date from 1922: they are based on a popular Provençal melody and culminate in a rapid fugue. The beautifully arranged music, based on the comforting hymn "Gib dich zufrieden und sei stille," was written by Jan Koetsier in 1981. Knut Nystedt created a stunning organ work, "Le verbe éternel," in 1993, with numerous mood changes, and Messiaen's "Appel interstellaire" from 1971 is a mystical composition that aims to reach out into the vastness of the universe. The concert concludes with Max Reger's Fantasie over the chorale "Wie schön leucht' uns der Morgenstern," which was written in 1899 – and in which all the registers are brought to bear.
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