Two giants of 19th-century Paris, Auguste Rodin and César Franck created masterworks of extensive range. Franck’s "Chorale in A Minor", his final composition, is the culmination of his musical work, simultaneously new and old, explosive with virtuosity, heartbreakingly beautiful with melodic sophistication. The monumental Rodin bronzes "The Thinker" (1904) and "The Three Shades" (1898) could be categorized the same way.

Artwork:

Auguste Rodin

The Thinker, 1904

Cast bronze, 72 x 38 x 54 in. (182.9 x 96.5 x 137.2 cm)

Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, Gift of Alma de Bretteville Spreckels, 1924.18.1

Photograph courtesy of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco

Composition: César Franck, "​Chorale in A Minor" (1890)