The French Organ Toccata from 1874 to 1934

This thesis deals with ten selected pieces of organ music in the toccata idiom from the French Romantic era. Chapter one gives an insight into the historical background leading into this period of music while chapter two traces the development of the toccata as a musical form. Chapter three contains the main body of the thesis; here is a detailed discussion of ten organ toccatas by Boellmann, Dubois, Dupre, Duruflé, Gigout, Guilmant, Peeters, Vieme and Widor. The toccatas appear chronologically, beginning with Guilmant\u27s Final from Sonata no. 1 (1874) and concluding with Durufle\u27s Toccata from the Suite op. 5 (1934). The analytical examination of each toccata is preceded by a biography of the composer and some background information on the work in question. Chapter four contains a conclusion and examines some of the trends explored by the various composers. Finally, three Appendices follow: a bibliography, a note on further organ toccatas from the French Romantic era and an abstract respectively