Félix Alexandre Guilmant (1837-1911) was one of the great line of French organists and composers and spent thirty years as organist of La Trinité in Paris. This symphony is actually an orchestral version of Guilmant's first organ sonata in d minor.

As an organ composer, Guilmant used the organ not as in imitation orchestra, but as an instrument with its own novel sonorities. When he wrote this version of his sonata, he used the orchestra as a resource to add additional colors to the work rather than seeking a louder over-all sound. The harmonic language of the piece is middle-Romantic; the infusion of Wagnerian harmonies into French music had barely begun by the time Guilmant wrote the original sonata. It is a twenty-two minute work whose form is that of a standard three-movement symphony with a slow introduction to the first movement.

© Joseph Stevenson, Rovi