Louis Vierne Is a BAMF (and Proof That Organists Are Metal)

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- Louis Vierne is a certifiable badass organist from the end of the 19th - and early 20th centuries. He was born blind and had to have surgery to - be able to distinguish shapes and objects. Did that stop him from - playing the one instrument that literally requires you to distinguish - hundreds and hundreds of small objects from each other? Nope, he just - did it (and he learned from Cesar Franck, another great organist). -

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- In 1906 he got hit by a car and the doctors said they might have to - amputate his leg. Did you know you play an organ with both your hands - and both your feet? Well you do, and Vierne just re-learned how - to play with his feet after the accident. Because nobody tells Louis - Vierne no. -

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- And because he's a badass, Vierne went on to become the official - organist at the Notre Dame in Paris, a position he won by competitively - dunking on numerous other musicians. He considered this his greatest - achievement, and what Louis Vierne says goes. -

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- In one final act of badassery, he carried out his lifelong dream: to die - while playing at Notre Dame. In 1937, to a full recital hall in Notre - Dame, he was giving his 1,750th performance and actually - had a heart-attack while playing and died at the console, and keeled - over so that the low "E" played until they removed his body. To this day, no rock band has ever been so metal. -

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- Alright, so without the decoration, Louis Vierne is my favorite Organist - and composer from the period. The organ is, in my opinion, the coolest - instrument on the planet. It's the biggest, the loudest, and the most - impressive. It's also got the most wide and interesting array of sounds, - like having an orchestra at your fingertips. Vierne made some of my - favorite music for the organ (music that my lowly organ skills will - never let me play). He's also, obviously, pretty badass. -

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- In truth, I think all organists are pretty cool. They play a cool, - complicated instrument that really sounds like no other. They also play - with their hands and their feet. Someone once said when a musician mates - with an octopus, an organist is born. Come to think of it, Davy Jones - plays the Organ and he's pretty cool. Coincidence? I think not. -

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- If you get the chance, give Vierne a listen, you can look up his work on - YouTube or a Pandora Radio station in his name. Look especially for - Symphony No. 1 for Organ in D Minor, Op. 14. That's the first song I - heard of his live (and in my understanding is the one he was playing - when he died). -