GERMAINE TAILLEFERRE  

(1892 - 1983)

One of the lesser-known members of Les Six in Paris in the 1920s, Germaine Tailleferre was associated directly with Auric, Honegger and Milhaud in Cocteau’s satirical Les Mariés de la Tour Eiffel. Influenced by the clarity and simplicity of Satie, and by her teacher Ravel, she wrote music that later ventured into explorations of new techniques, without ever deserting her original inspiration.
Stage Works
Tailleferre’s stage works include the 1921 collaboration with other members of Les Six Les Mariés de la Tour Eiffel. Other works for the theatre range from the 1923 ballet Le Marchand d’oiseaux (‘The Bird-Seller’) to the 1961 chamber opera Le Maître (‘The Master’), based on Ionesco.
Chamber Music
Examples of Tailleferre’s chamber music are found in her two violin sonatas and her Violin Sonatina, as well as in her Jeux de plein air (‘Games in the Open Air’) for two pianos.

Chamber Music - SAINT-SAENS, C. / MILHAUD, D. / DEBUSSY, C. / HONEGGER, A. (French Music for Clarinet and Piano) (Veglianti, Polimanti)
Naxos Regular CD 9.70166 
Arabesque Germaine Tailleferre – Ouverture - 1953 recording
Valérie Milot – Sonata for Solo Harp / I. Allegretto Various Artists – Atmosphere: Winter
Alexandre Tharaud – Tailleferre: Valse lente  – Autograph
Manuel Zigante – Trio Pour Piano, Violon Et Violoncelle (1916-17, Rev. 1978) Ed. Lemoine: I. Allegro Animato Cristina Ariagno, Massimo Marin, Manuel Zigante – Germaine Tailleferre: Chamber Music
Manuel Zigante – Trio Pour Piano, Violon Et Violoncelle (1916-17, Rev. 1978) Ed. Lemoine: III. Moderato Cristina Ariagno, Massimo Marin, Manuel Zigante – Germaine Tailleferre: Chamber Music
Germaine Tailleferre – Fleurs de France: I. Jasmin de Provence Cristina Ariagno – Tailleferre: Chamber Music and Piano Music
Germaine Tailleferre – Fleurs de France: II. Coquelicot de Guyenne Cristina Ariagno – Tailleferre: Chamber Music and Piano Music
Germaine Tailleferre – Fleurs de France: III. Rose d'Anjou Cristina Ariagno – Tailleferre: Chamber Music and Piano Music
Germaine Tailleferre – Fleurs de France: IV. Tournesol du Languedoc Cristina Ariagno – Tailleferre: Chamber Music and Piano Music
Germaine Tailleferre – Fleurs de France: V. Anthémis du Roussillon Cristina Ariagno – Tailleferre: Chamber Music and Piano Music
Germaine Tailleferre – Fleurs de France: VI. Lavandin de Haute-Provence Cristina Ariagno – Tailleferre: Chamber Music and Piano Music
Germaine Tailleferre – Images  Porter String Quartet – Tailleferre: The Music of Germaine Tailleferre
Germaine Tailleferre – Bretagne Porter String Quartet – Tailleferre: The Music of Germaine Tailleferre
Cristina Ariagno – Concertino for Harp and Piano: I. Allegretto   – Tailleferre: Musique pour Piano, Harpe, Chant
Cristina Ariagno – Concertino for Harp and Piano: II. Lento   – Tailleferre: Musique pour Piano, Harpe, Chant
Cristina Ariagno – Concertino for Harp and Piano: III. Rondo  – Tailleferre: Musique pour Piano, Harpe, Chant
Jennifer Swartz – 5 Preludes: No. 1. Quietude Various Artists – Grandjany / Hindemith / Lizotte / Salzedo / Tailleferre: Solo Harp Music
Jennifer Swartz – 5 Preludes: No. 2. Iridescence Various Artists – Grandjany / Hindemith / Lizotte / Salzedo / Tailleferre: Solo Harp Music
Jennifer Swartz – 5 Preludes: No. 3. Introspection Various Artists – Grandjany / Hindemith / Lizotte / Salzedo / Tailleferre: Solo Harp Music
Jennifer Swartz – 5 Preludes: No. 4. Lamentation Various Artists – Grandjany / Hindemith / Lizotte / Salzedo / Tailleferre: Solo Harp Music
Jennifer Swartz – 5 Preludes: No. 5. Whirlwind Various Artists – Grandjany / Hindemith / Lizotte / Salzedo / Tailleferre: Solo Harp Music
Jennifer Swartz – Suite Galactique, Op. 39: I. Exosphere Various Artists – Grandjany / Hindemith / Lizotte / Salzedo / Tailleferre: Solo Harp Music
Jennifer Swartz – Suite Galactique, Op. 39: II. Hymne au Bon Combat Various Artists – Grandjany / Hindemith / Lizotte / Salzedo / Tailleferre: Solo Harp Music
Jennifer Swartz – Suite Galactique, Op. 39: III. Scherzo del Pueblo Various Artists – Grandjany / Hindemith / Lizotte / Salzedo / Tailleferre: Solo Harp Music
Marcia Eckert, piano/Ruth Ehrlich, violin – Violin Sonata No. 2: I. Allegro non troppo Germaine Tailleferre – Tailleferre, G.: Violin Sonatas Nos. 1 and 2 / Pastorales / Berceuse / Romance / Impromptu / Rondo / Choral / Gaillarde
Marcia Eckert/Ruth Ehrlich – Violin Sonata No. 2: II. Adagietto Germaine Tailleferre – Tailleferre, G.: Violin Sonatas Nos. 1 and 2 / Pastorales / Berceuse / Romance / Impromptu / Rondo / Choral / Gaillarde
Marcia Eckert/Ruth Ehrlich – Violin Sonata No. 2: III. Finale: Allegro Germaine Tailleferre – Tailleferre, G.: Violin Sonatas Nos. 1 and 2 / Pastorales / Berceuse / Romance / Impromptu / Rondo / Choral / Gaillarde
Marcia Eckert/Ruth Ehrlich – Violin Sonata No. 1: I. Modere sans lenteur Germaine Tailleferre – Tailleferre, G.: Violin Sonatas Nos. 1 and 2 / Pastorales / Berceuse / Romance / Impromptu / Rondo / Choral / Gaillarde
Marcia Eckert/Ruth Ehrlich – Violin Sonata No. 1: II. Scherzo: Pas tres vite et sans rigueur Germaine Tailleferre – Tailleferre, G.: Violin Sonatas Nos. 1 and 2 / Pastorales / Berceuse / Romance / Impromptu / Rondo / Choral / Gaillarde
Marcia Eckert /Ruth Ehrlich– Violin Sonata No. 1: III. Assez lent Germaine Tailleferre – Tailleferre, G.: Violin Sonatas Nos. 1 and 2 / Pastorales / Berceuse / Romance / Impromptu / Rondo / Choral / Gaillarde
Marcia Eckert /Ruth Ehrlich– Violin Sonata No. 1: IV. Final: Tres vite Germaine Tailleferre – Tailleferre, G.: Violin Sonatas Nos. 1 and 2 / Pastorales / Berceuse / Romance / Impromptu / Rondo / Choral / Gaillarde
 

Louis Durey

The role of Sadko today is being played by Louis XIV. Scooter the Wonder Dog will be played by Louis Hayward.   The role of the Bobsie Twins is being played by Louis Tiffany and Louis Vuitton. The role of Ken Moss is being played by Louis Pasteur.  The role of Brian Carpenter is being played by Louis Armstrong . In the third half of the program, the role of Lenny the Listener will  be played by Louis Prima. Our featured French composer and member of Les Six is Louis Durey
Louis Durey was born in Paris, the son of a local businessman. It was not until he was nineteen years old that he chose to pursue a musical career after hearing a performance of a Claude Debussy work. As a composer he was primarily self-taught. From the beginning, choral music was of great importance in Durey’s productivity. His L'Offrande Lyrique (1914) has been called the first piece of French twelve-tone music.The first of his works to gain recognition in the music world was for a piano duet titled Carillons. At a 1918 concert this work attracted the interest of Maurice Ravel, who recommended him to his publisher.
Durey communicated with his colleague, Darius Milhaud, and asked him to contribute a piano piece that would bring together the six composers who, in 1920 were dubbed Les Six. This joint project was L'Album des Six. Despite the acclaim they received, Durey did not participate in the group's 1921 collaborative work Les mariés de la tour Eiffel, a decision which was a source of great irritation to Jean Cocteau.
After the Les Six period, Durey continued with his career. Never feeling the need to belong to the musical establishment, he voiced his growing left-wing ideals that put him in an artistic isolation that lasted for the rest of his life.
Following the break with Cocteau, Durey withdrew to his home in Saint-Tropez, Var, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, in the south of France. In addition to chamber music, at Saint-Tropez he wrote his only opera, L'occasion. In 1929, he married Anne Grangeon and moved back to Paris the following year. In the mid-thirties he joined the Communist Party and became active in the newly formed Fédération Musicale Populaire. During the years of the Nazi occupation of World War II, he worked with the French Resistance as a prominent member of the Front National des Musiciens and wrote anti-Fascist songs. After the war he embraced hard-line communism and his uncompromising political attitudes hindered his career. Needing to earn a living, in 1950 he accepted the post of music critic for a communist newspaper in Paris.
In the late 1950s and early 1960s he continued to compose but produced nothing of significance. His work on Vietnamese themes in the 1960s, based on his disgust with the turmoil France had left in Vietnam (formerly French Indochina) and the ensuing Vietnam War, seemed at that time in Paris to be a voice in the wilderness. He set poems by Ho Chi Minh and Mao Zedong. Other works include a string quartet, a flute sonatina, and Images à Crusoe.
Probably the least remembered of Les Six, Louis Durey died at Saint-Tropez in 1979.
Arundo-Donax Ensemble – Anime (Louis Durey)  – Les Six - I Sei
Arundo-Donax Ensemble – Lento (Louis Durey) – Les Six - I Sei
Arundo-Donax Ensemble – Tres Anime (Louis Durey) – Les Six - I Sei
Louis Durey – Le printemps au fond de la mer - 1953 recording  Les Six – Le Groupe des Six: Selected Works 1915-1945
Maria Lagios / Elizabeth Buccheri – La Tortue: Louis Durey  Maria Lagios, soprano Elizabeth Buccheri, piano – Songs of Les Six
Maria Lagios / Elizabeth Buccheri – Le Cheval: Louis Durey Maria Lagios, soprano Elizabeth Buccheri, piano – Songs of Les Six
Maria Lagios / Elizabeth Buccheri – Le Serpent: Louis Durey Maria Lagios, soprano Elizabeth Buccheri, piano – Songs of Les Six
Maria Lagios / Elizabeth Buccheri – La Puce: Louis Durey Maria Lagios, soprano Elizabeth Buccheri, piano – Songs of Les Six
Maria Lagios / Elizabeth Buccheri – La Sauterelle: Louis Durey Maria Lagios, soprano Elizabeth Buccheri, piano – Songs of Les Six
Maria Lagios / Elizabeth Buccheri – Le Poulpe: Louis Durey Maria Lagios, soprano Elizabeth Buccheri, piano – Songs of Les Six
Maria Lagios / Elizabeth Buccheri – Le Boeuf: Louis Durey Maria Lagios, soprano Elizabeth Buccheri, piano – Songs of Les Six
Louis Durey – Trois pièces brèves for oboe solo: Nr. 1, Modéré  Leo Lencsés – Various Composers: Fantaisies Pastorales
Louis Durey – Trois pièces brèves for oboe solo: Nr. 2, Modéré  Leo Lencsés – Various Composers: Fantaisies Pastorales
Louis Durey – Trois pièces brèves for oboe solo: Nr. 3, Allegro scherzando  Leo Lencsés – Various Composers: Fantaisies Pastorales
Maria Lagios / Elizabeth Buccheri – La Chévre Du Thibet: Louis Durey Maria Lagios, soprano Elizabeth Buccheri, piano – Songs of Les Six
Louis Durey – Sonatine, Nonchalant Ransom Wilson – Flute Music by Les Six, Milhaud, Poulenc Honegger, Durey, Tailleferre, Auric
Louis Durey – Sonatine, Lent et soutenu, assez animé Ransom Wilson – Flute Music by Les Six, Milhaud, Poulenc Honegger, Durey, Tailleferre, Auric
Louis Durey -Romance sans Paroles, op.21, Mathias Weber, piano

Georges Auric

The role of Sadko today is being played by George Burns. Scooter the Wonder Dog will be played by George Will.   The role of the Bobsie Twins is being played by George W. and George H.W. Bush. The role of Ken Moss is being played by George Gershwin.  The role of Brian Carpenter is being played by George Stephanopoulos . In the third half of the program, the role of Lenny the Listener will  be played by  George Orwell . Our featured French composer and member of Les Six is Georges Auric . Georges Auric (15 February 1899 – 23 July 1983) was a French composer, born in Lodève, Hérault. He was an early film composer and considered one of Les Six, a group of artists informally associated with Jean Cocteau and Erik Satie. Before he turned 20 he had orchestrated and written incidental music for several ballets and stage productions.
Georges Auric – Roman Holiday - Original Soundtrack Theme from "Vacanze romane"  Princess Anne embarks on a highly publicized tour of European capitals. When she and her royal entourage arrive in Rome, she begins to rebel against her restricted, regimented schedule. One night Anne sneaks out of her room, hops into the back of a delivery truck and escapes her luxurious confinement. A sedative she was forced to take earlier starts to take effect, and the Princess is soon fast asleep on a public bench. She is found by Joe Bradley, an American newspaper reporter stationed in Rome. He takes her back to his apartment. The next morning Joe dashes off to cover the Princess Anne press conference, unaware that she is sleeping on his couch. Once he realizes his good fortune, Joe promises his editor an exclusive interview with the Princess.
Georges Auric – scherzo Peter Verhoyen – Poulenc, Milhaud, Auric, Mower and others, Original works for piccolo and piano
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra – Orphee Suite: Main Title  – Georges Auric: Orphee / Ruy Blas / Thomas I'imposteur
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra – Orphee Suite: Orpheus And The Princess – Georges Auric: Orphee / Ruy Blas / Thomas I'imposteur
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra – Orphee Suite: In Zone I – Georges Auric: Orphee / Ruy Blas / Thomas I'imposteur
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra – Orphee Suite: Looking For The Princess – Georges Auric: Orphee / Ruy Blas / Thomas I'imposteur
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra – Orphee Suite: Orpheus And Eurydice – Georges Auric: Orphee / Ruy Blas / Thomas I'imposteur
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra – Orphee Suite: In Zone II - Finale – Georges Auric: Orphee / Ruy Blas / Thomas I'imposteur
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra – Orphee et Eurydice (arr. G. Auric): Complainte d'Eurydice – Georges Auric: Orphee / Ruy Blas / Thomas I'imposteur
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra – Les Parents Terribles – Georges Auric: Orphee / Ruy Blas / Thomas I'imposteur
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra – Thomas I'imposteur Suite: Main Title – Georges Auric: Orphee / Ruy Blas / Thomas I'imposteur In the First World War, when Paris is expected to fall to the Germans, the attractive widow, Princesse de Bormes, organises a convoy of cars to evacuate the wounded from the front, and bring them back to her villa in Paris to recuperate. The authorities will not give them passes until an innocent 16-year-old boy, Guillaume Thomas de Fontenoy, joins them and is mistaken as the nephew of the popular General de Fontenoy. The Princess is enraptured by Thomas and her daughter, Henriette, falls in love with him. Thomas feels impelled to see more of the action of the war.
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra – Thomas I'imposteur Suite: Meeting The Bishop – Georges Auric: Orphee / Ruy Blas / Thomas I'imposteur
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra – Thomas I'imposteur Suite: Clemence And Henriette – Georges Auric: Orphee / Ruy Blas / Thomas I'imposteur
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra – Thomas I'imposteur Suite: On The Fringes Of The Drama - The Spirit Of Adventure – Georges Auric: Orphee / Ruy Blas / Thomas I'imposteur
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra – Thomas I'imposteur Suite: Across The Dunes On Motorbikes – Georges Auric: Orphee / Ruy Blas / Thomas I'imposteur
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra – Thomas I'imposteur Suite: Hell At Rheims - Finale – Georges Auric: Orphee / Ruy Blas / Thomas I'imposteur
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra – Ruy Blas Suite: Main Title – Georges Auric: Orphee / Ruy Blas / Thomas I'imposteur
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra – Ruy Blas Suite: Festival – Georges Auric: Orphee / Ruy Blas / Thomas I'imposteur
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra – Ruy Blas Suite: Through Mountains And Gorges – Georges Auric: Orphee / Ruy Blas / Thomas I'imposteur
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra – Ruy Blas Suite: The Bouquet – Georges Auric: Orphee / Ruy Blas / Thomas I'imposteur
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra – Ruy Blas Suite: The Wounded Messenger – Georges Auric: Orphee / Ruy Blas / Thomas I'imposteur
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra – Ruy Blas Suite: Conversation Between Ruy Blas And The Queen – Georges Auric: Orphee / Ruy Blas / Thomas I'imposteur
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra – Ruy Blas Suite: Ruy Blas' Fortune – Georges Auric: Orphee / Ruy Blas / Thomas I'imposteur
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra – Ruy Blas Suite: Love Scene - Return Of Don Cesar - Death Of Don Guritan – Georges Auric: Orphee / Ruy Blas / Thomas I'imposteur
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra – Ruy Blas Suite: The Meeting In The Park – Georges Auric: Orphee / Ruy Blas / Thomas I'imposteur
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra – Ruy Blas Suite: The Queen's Escape - Nocturnal Procession – Georges Auric: Orphee / Ruy Blas / Thomas I'imposteur
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra – Ruy Blas Suite: The Poison - Finale – Georges Auric: Orphee / Ruy Blas / Thomas I'imposteur
Bonjour Tristesse OST
Cecile, decadent young girl who lives with her rich playboy father Raymond. When Anne, Raymond's old love interest, comes to Raymond's villa, Cecile is afraid for her way of life.

Darius Milhaud

The role of Sadko today is being played by Darius Campbell. Scooter the Wonder Dog will be played by Darius Slay.   The role of the Bobsie Twins is being played by Darius and Davis Miles. The role of Ken Moss is being played by Darius Denesh.  The role of Brian Carpenter is being played by Darius Mockus.   In the third half of the program, the role of Lenny the Listener will  be played by  Darius Grala. Our featured French composer and member of Les Six is Darius Milhaud. 

Milhaud, Darius 1892-1974. Concertos,violin, orchestra,no. 2

Milhaud conducting his Second Violin Concerto, Concertino

de printemps [and] Danses de Jacarémirim.

Capitol Classics, [1949?] Louis Kaufman, violin; Artur Balsam, piano (in 3d work); members of the French National Radio Diffusion Orchestra, the composer conducting (in 1st and 2d works)

Milhaud, Darius 1892-1974. 

Les Choéphores. Text by Paul Claudel. Columbia[1963]. 

Incidental music to Paul Claudel's version of Choephori, 

by Aeschylus  Vera Zorina, as Choéphore, Irene Jordan, as Electra, and 

McHenry Boatwright, as Orestes;  Virginia Babikian, soprano; 

 Schola Cantorum of New York, Hugh Ross, director; New York Philharmonic; 

 Leonard Bernstein, conductor. 

Milhaud, Darius 1892-1974. Suite provençale ; La création du monde  

 New York RCA Victor, [1962] Soria series Boston Symphony Orchestra; 

Charles Munch, conductor. 

Milhaud, Darius 1892-1974. The four seasons (Les quatre saisons) 

Epic [1960] Spring (Concertino de printemps) for violin and chamber 

orchestra (Szymon Goldberg, violin)--Summer (Concertino 

d'été) for viola and ensemble of 9 (Ernst Wallfisch, 

viola)--Autumn (Concertino d'automne) for 2 pianos and 

ensemble of 8 (Geneviève Joy, Jacqueline Bonneau, pianos)-

-Winter (Concertino d'hiver) for trombone and string 

orchestra (Maurice Suzan, trombone)Ensemble des solistes des concerts

 Lamoureux; the composer conducting. 

Arthur Honegger

The role of Sadko today is being played by Arthur Godfrey. Scooter the Wonder Dog will be played by Arthur Schnitzler.   The role of the Bobsie Twins is being played by Arthur Sullivan and W.S. Gilbert. The role of Ken Moss is being played by Arthur Ferrante.  The role of Brian Carpenter is being played by Arthur Crudup.   In the third half of the program, the role of Lenny the Listener will  be played by  Arthur Elwell Fisher. Our featured French composer and member of Les Six is Arthur Honegger. 
 Honegger, A. Concerto da camera for flute, English horn and string orchestra. 
William Kosinski, English Horn; Arthur Glegghorn, flute; Gerald Caylor, clarinet;  Don Christlieb, bassoon; Los Angeles Chamber Symphony; Harold Byrns, conductor. 
 Arundo-Donax Ensemble – Allegro Tristemente (Arthur Honneger) Les Six
Arundo-Donax Ensemble – Romanza (Arthur Honneger) Les Six
Arundo-Donax Ensemble – Allegro Con Fuoco (Arthur Honneger)  Les Six
Arturo Sacchetti – Deux Pièces Pour Orgue: Fugue (Honneger)  – Organ History: Erik Satie & French Rarities Of The XXth Century
Arturo Sacchetti – Deux Pièces Pour Orgue: Choral (Honneger)– Organ History: Erik Satie & French Rarities Of The XXth Century
New Orchestral Society of Boston – Honneger: Pacific 231 
Honegger, Arthur, 1892-1955. Symphony no. 2, for strings and trumpet. Angel, [1969] Orchestre de Paris; Charles Munch, conductor. 

Francis Poulenc

Poulenc, Francis,1899-1963. 4 Motets pour un temps de penitence. Laudes de Saint-
Antoine de Padoue. Music Guild,  [1969?] Jocelyn Chamonin, soprano; 

Stephane Caillat Vocal Ensemble; Stephane Caillat, conductor. 

Frankie Laine, Ghost Riders in the Sky

Frank Black and the Catholics, The Man who was Too Loud.

Frank Sinatra, My Way 

Poulenc, Francis,1899-1963. Concerto in G minor, for organ, strings and tympani. 
Columbia,  [1963] E. Power Biggs, organ; Philadelphia Orchestra; Eugene

Ormandy, conductor.  

Gloria. Piano concerto. Angel 1976. 
City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and Chorus; Louis Frémaux, conductor, 

with (in the 1st work) Norma Burrowes, soprano, and the C.B.S.O. Chorus,

and (in the 2d work) Cristina Ortiz, piano.  

Frank Zappa, Twenty Small Cigars, Chunga's Revenge

Donovan, Prayer of St. Francis, Brother Sun, Sister Moon

Erik Satie

Satie, Erik, 1866-1925. Piano music of Erik Satie, vol. 6. 
Angel, [1972?] 
Trois petites pièces montées.--Ogives.--Danses gothiques.-
-Sonatine bureaucratique.--Poudre d'or (Valse).--Pages 
mystiques.--Douze petits chorals. 
Aldo Ciccolini, piano. 

Satie, Erik,1866-1925. Piano music of Erik Satie, vol. 4. 
Angel, [1971?] Gnossiennes, nos. 4-6.--Nouvelles pièces froides.--
Primière pensée et Sonneries de la Rose-Croix.--Deux rêveries nocturnes.

--Petite ouverture à danser.--Quatre préludes.--Le Fils des étoiles. 
Aldo Ciccolini, piano. 

Blood, Sweat and Tears Theme and Variations 

Eric Burdon, Going to America

Gabriel Fauré

The role of Sadko today is being played by Roman Gabriel. Scooter the Wonder Dog will be played by Gabriel Gonzaga.  The role of the Bobsie Twins is being played by Gabriel and  Labial Lipgloss. The role of Ken Moss is being played by Gabriel Landeskog. The role of Brian Carpenter is being played by Gabriel Iglesias.   In the third half of the program, the role of Lenny the Listener will  be played by Gabriel Olds.
Gabriel Urbain Fauré  (12 May 1845 – 4 November 1924) was a French composer, organist, pianist and teacher. He was one of the foremost French composers of his generation, and his musical style influenced many twentieth-century composers. Among his best-known works are his Pavane, Requiem, nocturnes for piano and the songs "Après un rêve" and "Clair de lune". Although his best-known and most accessible compositions are generally his earlier ones, Fauré composed many of his most highly regarded works in his later years, in a harmonically and melodically much more complex style.
Fauré, Gabriel, 1845-1924. Fantasie for piano and orchestra, op.111. London,[1974] Alicia de Larrocha, piano; London Philharmonic Orchestra; Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, conductor.

Fauré, Gabriel, 1845-1924.  Cinq mélodies de Venise, op. 58.  Philips.   Cover title: Mandoline and other songs.  Souzay, Gérard, 1918-2004. baritone   Baldwin, Dalton. piano

Fauré, Gabriel, 1845-1924.  Piano quartet in G minor, op.45.  RCA Victor [1964]   For violin, viola, violoncello, and piano.   Festival Quartet. Nikolai Graudan, cello; Szymon Goldberg, violin; Victor Babin, piano;  William Primrose, viola

The complete songs of Gabriel Fauré. Westminster, [1956]   Renée Doria, Berthe Monmart, sopranos; Jacques Dutey, Pierre Mollet, baritones; Paul Derenne, tenor; Simone Gouat, Tasso Janopoulo, Harry Cox, piano.


In 1920, at the age of 75, Fauré retired from the Conservatoire because of his increasing deafness and frailty. In that year he received the Grand-Croix of the Légion d'honneur, an honour rare for a musician. In 1922 the president of the republic, Alexandre Millerand, led a public tribute to Fauré, a national hommage, described in The Musical Times as "a splendid celebration at the Sorbonne, in which the most illustrious French artists participated, [which] brought him great joy. It was a poignant spectacle, indeed: that of a man present at a concert of his own works and able to hear not a single note. He sat gazing before him pensively, and, in spite of everything, grateful and content."
Fauré suffered from poor health in his later years, brought on in part by heavy smoking. Despite this, he remained available to young composers, including members of Les Six, most of whom were devoted to him. Nectoux writes, "In old age he attained a kind of serenity, without losing any of his remarkable spiritual vitality, but rather removed from the sensualism and the passion of the works he wrote between 1875 and 1895."

In his last months, Fauré struggled to complete a string quartet. Twenty years earlier he had been the dedicatee of Ravel's String Quartet. Ravel and others urged Fauré to compose one of his own. He refused for many years, on the grounds that it was too difficult. When he finally decided to write it, he did so in trepidation, telling his wife, "I've started a Quartet for strings, without piano. This is a genre which Beethoven in particular made famous, and causes all those who are not Beethoven to be terrified of it."  He worked on the piece for a year, finishing it on 11 September 1924, less than two months before he died, working long hours towards the end to complete it.  The quartet was premiered after his death;  he declined an offer to have it performed privately for him in his last days, as his hearing had deteriorated to the point where musical sounds were horribly distorted in his ear.

Fauré died in Paris from pneumonia on 4 November 1924 at the age of 79. He was given a state funeral at the Église de la Madeleine and is buried in the Passy Cemetery in Paris.

Georges Bizet

The role of Sadko today is being played by Gorgeous George. Scooter the Wonder Dog will be played by  George Gobel.  The role of the Bobsie Twins is being played by George Crawley and Logan Weston. The role of Ken Moss is being played by George Patton. The role of Brian Carpenter is being played by George M. Cohan.   In the third half of the program, the role of Lenny the Listener will  be played by George Orwell .  
Georges Bizet ( 25 October 1838 – 3 June 1875), registered at birth as Alexandre César Léopold Bizet, was a French composer of the romantic era. Best known for his operas in a career cut short by his early death, Bizet achieved few successes before his final work, Carmen, which has become one of the most popular and frequently performed works in the entire opera repertory.
During a brilliant student career at the Conservatoire de Paris, Bizet won many prizes, including the prestigious Prix de Rome in 1857. He was recognised as an outstanding pianist, though he chose not to capitalise on this skill and rarely performed in public. Returning to Paris after almost three years in Italy, he found that the main Parisian opera theatres preferred the established classical repertoire to the works of newcomers. His keyboard and orchestral compositions were likewise largely ignored; as a result, his career stalled, and he earned his living mainly by arranging and transcribing the music of others. Restless for success, he began many theatrical projects during the 1860s, most of which were abandoned. Neither of his two operas that reached the stage in this time—Les pêcheurs de perles and La jolie fille de Perth—were immediately successful.
After the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71, during which Bizet served in the National Guard, he had little success with his one-act opera Djamileh, though an orchestral suite derived from his incidental music to Alphonse Daudet's play L'Arlésienne was instantly popular. The production of Bizet's final opera, Carmen, was delayed because of fears that its themes of betrayal and murder would offend audiences. After its premiere on 3 March 1875, Bizet was convinced that the work was a failure; he died of a heart attack three months later, unaware that it would prove a spectacular and enduring success.

Maria Callas/Orchestre de l'Opéra National de Paris/Georges Prêtre – Carmen (1997 Digital Remaster), Act 1: L'amour est un oiseau rebelle (Habanera) Maria Callas/Nicolai Gedda/Andréa Guiot/Robert Massard/Georges Prêtre – Bizet: Carmen
Bizet – Carillon' from 'L'Arlésienne Various Artists – 150 Classical Masterpieces
Bizet, Georges – Bizet: Les Pecheurs des Perles / Act 1 - "Au fond du temple saint" Luciano Pavarotti – Pavarotti The 50 Greatest Tracks
Georges Bizet – L'Arlesienne - Prelude Various Artists – Classical Moods - 100 Top Classical Favorites Of All Time
Bizet, Georges – Bizet: Variations On A Theme From G. Bizet's "Carmen" (The Gypsy Song Act II) White House Version Yuja Wang – Fantasia
Bizet, Georges – Bizet: Ouvre ton coeur - Bolero Cecilia Bartoli & Myung-Whun Chung – Cecilia Bartoli - Chant d'Amour
Georges Bizet – March (from Jeux D'Enfants) Various Artists – A Calendar Of Classics - A 12 CD Set Of Romantic Classics For Every Month Of The Year
Les Brown – Bizet Had His Day – Truly Les Brown & His Band of Renown
Georges Bizet – Carmen: L'amour est un oiseau rebelle (Habanera) Georges Bizet – The Classic 100 – Music of France Sally-Anne Russell
Bizet, Georges – Bizet: Absence - Absence  – Marilyn Horne: The Complete Decca Recitals  poem by Gautier, Théophile
Lithuanian Chamber Orchestra – Symphony in C Major: II. Adagio Various Artists – Best of Bizet
Lithuanian Chamber Orchestra – Symphony in C Major: IV. Allegro vivace Various Artists – Best of Bizet
Glenn Gould – Piano Sonata No. 3 in F-Sharp Minor, Op. 23: I. Drammatico
George Bizet – La Patrie: Overture

Emmanuel Chabrier

Alexis Emmanuel Chabrier   (January 18, 1841 – September 13, 1894) was a French Romantic composer and pianist. Although known primarily for two of his orchestral works, España and Joyeuse marche, he left an important corpus of operas (including the increasingly popular L'étoile), songs, and piano music as well. These works, though small in number, are of very high quality, and he was admired by composers as diverse as Debussy, Ravel, Richard Strauss, Satie, Schmitt, Stravinsky, and the group of composers known as Les six. Stravinsky alluded to España in his ballet Petrushka, Ravel wrote that the opening bars of Le roi malgré lui changed the course of harmony in France, Poulenc wrote a biography of the composer, and Richard Strauss conducted the first staged performance of Chabrier's incomplete opera Briséïs.
Chabrier was also associated with some of the leading writers and painters of his time. He was especially friendly with the painters Claude Monet and Édouard Manet, and collected Impressionist paintings before Impressionism became fashionable. A number of such paintings from his personal collection are now housed in some of the world's leading art museums.
Chabrier – Feuillet d'album Various Artists – Classics for your Pregnancy – Pregnancy Classical Music for Relaxation and Meditation
Emmanuel Chabrier – Rhapsodie Espana Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – A Calendar Of Classics - October
Chabrier, Alexis Emmanuel – Chabrier: Larghetto for Horn and Orchestra - Larghetto for Horn and Orchestra Hermann Baumann & Gewandhausorchester Leipzig & Kurt Masur – French Horn Music
Chabrier, Alexis Emmanuel – Chabrier: Fête polonaise - Fête polonaise Detroit Symphony Orchestra & Paul Paray
Alexis Emanuel Chabrier – Marche Joyeuse 21st Century Symphony Orchestra
Emmanuel Chabrier – Chabrier: Les cigales Susan Graham – Un Frisson Français - A Century of French Song
Emmanuel Chabrier – Suite Pastorale: Idylle  Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra
Wiener Philharmoniker – Chabrier: Gwendoline - Overture Wiener Philharmoniker & John Eliot Gardiner – Chabrier: España; Suite pastorale
Georges Gautier/Michel Fockenoy/René Schirrer/Orchestre de l'Opéra National de Lyon/Sir John Eliot Gardiner – L' Étoile, ACT 1: No. 1 - Chanson à 2 voix et choeur: "Du monde! ... De ma main, cher camarade" (Ouf/Patacha/Zalzal) Sir John Eliot Gardiner/Orchestre de l'Opéra National de Lyon – Chabrier - L'Etoile
Chabrier, Alexis Emmanuel – Chabrier: Danse slave - Danse slave Detroit Symphony Orchestra & Paul Paray
Emmanuel Chabrier – Le Roi Malgré Lui: Act I, I. Prélude
Emmanuel Chabrier – Pièces pittoresques 1. Paysage Marcelle Meyer – Piano Performances 1925-1957
Rena Kyriakou – Suite de Valse Rena Kyriakou & Walter Klien – Chabrier: Complete Piano Music
Emmanuel Chabrier – Works: Air de ballet  – Rarities of Piano Music 1987-1988 Peter Froundjian
Wiener Philharmoniker – Chabrier: Suite pastorale - 2. Danse villageoise Wiener Philharmoniker & John Eliot Gardiner – Chabrier: España; Suite pastorale
Wiener Philharmoniker – Chabrier: Suite pastorale - 3. Sous-bois
Wiener Philharmoniker – Chabrier: Suite pastorale - 4. Scherzo-Valse
Franck Leguérinel, François Charruyer – Ronde gauloise Agnès Mellon, Franck Leguérinel, Françoise Tillard, François Charruyer – Emmanuel Chabrier: Complete Songs/Les Mélodies
RCA Victor Symphony Orchestra – Jocelyn: Berceuse Various Artists – French Masters: Ravel, Debussy, Chabrier, Godard, Poulenc, Ibert, Duparc, Duruflé
In his final years, Chabrier was strained by financial problems caused by the collapse of his bankers, suffered from failing health brought on by the terminal stage of syphilis, and depression about the neglect of his stage works in France. The death of his beloved 'Nanine' in January 1891 greatly affected him. He became obsessed with the composition of his opera Briséïs, which was inspired by a tragedy of Goethe and melodic echos of Wagner, but he completed only one act. At the Paris premiere of Gwendoline, which finally took place in December 1893, the ailing composer in a box did not understand that the applause was for him. In 1892 he had written to his friend Lecocq: "Never has an artist more loved, more tried to honor music than me, none has suffered more from it; and I will go on suffering from it for ever".
He succumbed to general paralysis in the last year of his life, dying in Paris at the age of 53. Although he had asked to be buried near the tomb of Manet, he was laid to rest in the cemetery of Montparnasse.

 

Claudio Abbado

From high atop 

Patisserie Claude

187 W 4th St
(between Jones St & Barrow St)
New York, NY 10014 it's time once again for Sadko's World of Music.The role of Sadko today is being played by Claudio Arrau. Scooter the Wonder Dog will be played by  Appius Claudius Sabinus Inregillensis.  The role of the Bobsie Twins is being played by  Claudio and Velveeta Aquaviva. The role of Ken Moss is being played by  Claudio Monteverdi. The role of Brian Carpenter is being played by Claudio Castagnoli.   In the third half of the program, the role of Lenny the Listener will  be played by  Claudio Sanchez.  Claudio Abbado, who decided to become a conductor after hearing a concert at La Scala at the age of eight and went on to lead the Milan opera company and top orchestras for more than half a century, has died at the age of  80.
Claudio Abbado – Symphony No. 31 in D Major, K. 297 (300a) "Paris": I. Allegro assai – Mozart: Symphonies No. 31 "Paris" & 25; Masonic Funeral Music; Posthorn Symphony [Expanded Edition]Sony Classical/Legacy Berlin Philharmonic
Claudio Abbado – 1812 Overture, Op. 49: Largo; Andante; Allegro giusto Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Claudio Abbado, Tchaikovsky: Complete Symphonies; 1812 Overture, March Slave; Romeo and Juliet Concert Overture; Nutcracker Suite Sony Bmg Europe
Ligeti, György – Ligeti: Atmosphères – Ligeti: Atmosphères; Volumina; Lux aeterna; Lontano Wiener Philharmoniker 2012 Deutsche Grammophon GmbH, Berlin
Claudio Abbado/Emmanuel Pahud/Berliner Philharmoniker – Flute Concerto No. 2 in D, K.314: I. Allegro aperto - Mozart Warner Classics 1997 EMI Records ltd
Claudio Abbado – Marche Slave, Op. 31Sony Classical Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Ravel, Maurice – Ravel: Piano Concerto in G - 3. Presto Martha Argerich & Berliner Philharmoniker & Claudio Abbado – Ravel: Piano Concerto in G; Gaspard de la Nuit; Sonatine Deutsche Grammophon
Giuseppe Verdi – Nabucco, Act 3: "Va pensiero...Oh, chi piange?" – Verdi: Opera Hits Ambrosian Opera Chorus, London Symphony Orchestra and Claudio Abbado Nicolai Ghiaurov
Prokofiev, Sergei – Prokofiev: 2. Romance - 2. Romance Elena Obraztsova & Adolph Herseth & London Symphony Chorus & London Symphony Orchestra & Chicago Symphony Orchestra & Claudio Abbado – Prokofiev: Alexander Nevsky; Scythian Suite; Lieutenant Kijé
Angela Gheorghiu/Daniela Barcellona/Roberto Alagna/Julian Konstantinov/Orféon Donostiarra/Eric Ericson Chamber Choir/Bo Wannefors/José Antonio Sainz Alfaro/Berliner Philharmoniker/
Claudio Abbado/Swedish Radio Choir – Messa di Requiem, Dies irae: Tuba mirum
Wagner, Richard – Wagner: Die Walküre - Concert version / Dritter Aufzug - The Ride of the Walkyres Berliner Philharmoniker & Claudio Abbado – Claudio Abbado - The Berlin Album  Deutsche Grammophon
Prokofiev, Sergei – Prokofiev: 1. Russia under the Mongolian Yoke - 1. Russia under the Mongolian Yoke Elena Obraztsova & Adolph Herseth & London Symphony Chorus & London Symphony Orchestra & Chicago Symphony Orchestra & Claudio Abbado – Prokofiev: Alexander Nevsky; Scythian Suite; Lieutenant Kijé Deutsche Grammophon
Claudio Abbado;Berliner Philharmoniker – Kammermusik No. 1, Op.24 No.1: IV. Finale: 1921 (Lebhaft)  – Hindemith: Kammermusik 1-7 & Der Schwanendreher  Warner Classics 2007 EMI Records ltd

Adolphe Adam

From high atop Adams, NY, it's time once again for Sadko's World of Music. The role of Sadko today is being played by Adam Sander. Scooter the Wonder Dog will be played by  Adam Arkin.   The role of the Bobsie Twins is being played by  Adam West and Adam East . The role of Ken Moss is being played by Adam Smith . The role of Brian Carpenter is being played by Adam Brody.   In the third half of the program, the role of Lenny the Listener will  be played by  Adam Ant.  Our featured great French composer today is Adolphe Adam.
Adam, Adolphe
Le Corsaire (ballet), Le Corsaire - Act 1 - Overture and opening of Scene 1
Performed by: Richard Bonynge, English Chamber Orchestra
La Filleule des Fées (ballet), Prologue (Guillaume's Farm-House) - Nos. 3, 4 and 5 Andrew Mogrelia Conductor Queensland Symphony Orchestra Brisbane  Marco-Polo Rel. December 15, 2001
La Jolie Fille de Gand (ballet), Act 1 - Tableau II (The Main Square In Ghent) No.3 Pas De Deux Andrew Mogrelia Conductor Queensland Symphony Orchestra Brisbane  Marco-Polo Rel. February, 2001
Les Pantins de Violette (operetta), La Chanson du Canari Performed by: Sumi Jo, soprano; Richard Bonynge,  English Chamber Orchestra Decca 2010
French overtures  Mercury.   Adam: If I were king.    Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Paul Paray, conductor.
Adam, Adolphe,1803-1856.    Giselle.  RCA Victor, [1959]    Paris Conservatoire Orchestra; Albert Wolff, conductor.

César Franck

From high atop Frankfort, KY, it's time once again for Sadko's World of Music. The role of Sadko today is being played by Cesar Chavez. Scooter the Wonder Dog will be played by  César Millan.   The role of the Bobsie Twins is being played by  Pierre Caesar and Pablo Caesar. The role of Ken Moss is being played by César Tovar  . The role of Brian Carpenter is being played by Cesar Pelli.   In the third half of the program, the role of Lenny the Listener will  be played by  Cesar Romero.  Our featured great French composer today is César Franck
Franck, César, 1822-1890.  The music of Franck.  Mercury [1960]         Marcel Dupré at Saint-Sulpice, v.3        Olympian series.        Grande pièce symphonique.--Fantaisie in A major.-- Pastorale.  511    Marcel Dupré playing the gallery organ in the Church of  Saint-Sulpice, Paris.  Recorded midsummer 1959.
Franck, Cesar, 1822-1890.   Variations symphoniques, piano, orchestra.  Symphonic variations.   Angel [1973]      Alexis Weissenberg, piano; Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra;  Herbert von Karajan, conductor.
Franck, César, 1822-1890.  Symphony, D minor.   Angel [1970] Orchestre de Paris; Herbert von Karajan, conductor.
Fránck, Cesar, 1822-1890.     The complete organ works.    [Toledo, Ohio]  Gregorian Institute of America [1964]    Jean Langlais playing the organ in the Basilica of St.  Clotilde, Paris.
Franck, César, 1822-1890.   Chorales  Chorale no. 1, in E major. Chorale no. 2, in B minor.   Chorale no. 3, in A minor.   Columbia [1957?]       Albert Schweitzer, organ.
Psyché (symphonic poem) ; Le chasseur maudit (symphonic poem) / Franck    Camden, N.J. :  RCA Victor, [1955?]  Chicago Symphony Orchestra ;   Désiré Defauw  , conductor. 

Claude Debussy

From high atop Claude, Montana, it's time once again for Sadko's World of Music. The role of Sadko today is being played by Claude Rains. Scooter the Wonder Dog will be played by  Claude King.   The role of the Bobsie Twins is being played by  Claude and Maude Pompidou. The role of Ken Moss is being played by  Claude Monet. The role of Brian Carpenter is being played by Claude Giroux.   In the third half of the program, the role of Lenny the Listener will  be played by  Claude Pepper.  Our featured great French composer today is Claude Debussy.
Achille-Claude Debussy  22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918  was a French composer.   Debussy was among the most influential composers of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, and his use of non-traditional scales and chromaticism influenced many composers who followed.
Debussy's music is noted for its sensory component and frequent eschewing of tonality. The French literary style of his period was known as Symbolism, and this movement directly inspired Debussy both as a composer and as an active cultural participant.
Claude Achille Debussy : his story and his music. Sine Qua Non, 1974.
Debussy, Claude, 1862-1918   Walter Gieseking plays Debussy.  Odyssey, [1969]  Walter Gieseking, piano.
Debussy, Claude, Boulez conducts Debussy.  Columbia, 1969 New Philharmonia Orchestra, London.  Cleveland Orchestra.
Debussy's private life was often turbulent. At the age of 18 he began an eight-year affair with Marie-Blanche Vasnier, wife of a Parisian civil servant. The relationship eventually faltered following his winning of the Prix de Rome in 1884 and obligatory residence in Rome.
On his permanent return to Paris and his parents' home on the avenue de Berlin (now rue de Liège) he began a tempestuous relationship with Gabrielle ('Gaby') Dupont, a tailor's daughter from Lisieux, soon cohabiting with her on the Rue de Londres, and later the Rue Gustave Doré. During this time he also had an affair with the singer Thérèse Roger, to whom he was briefly engaged. Such cavalier behaviour was widely condemned, and precipitated the end of his long friendship with Ernest Chausson. He ultimately left Dupont for her friend Rosalie ('Lilly') Texier, a fashion model whom he married in 1899, after threatening suicide if she refused him. Although Texier was affectionate, practical, straightforward, and well liked by Debussy's friends and associates, he became increasingly irritated by her intellectual limitations and lack of musical sensitivity. In 1904, Debussy was introduced to Emma Bardac, wife of Parisian banker Sigismond Bardac, by her son Raoul, one of his students. In contrast to Texier, Bardac was a sophisticate, a brilliant conversationalist, and an accomplished singer. After despatching Lilly to her father's home in Bichain on 15 July 1904, Debussy secretly took Bardac to Jersey for a holiday. On their return to France, Debussy wrote to Texier from Dieppe on 11 August, informing her their marriage was over, but still making no mention of Bardac. Debussy briefly moved to an apartment at 10 av. Alphand. On 14 October, five days before their fifth wedding anniversary, Texier attempted suicide, shooting herself in the chest with a revolver while standing in the Place de la Concorde; she survived, although the bullet remained lodged in her vertebrae for the rest of her life. The ensuing scandal was to alienate Debussy from many of his friends, whilst Bardac was disowned by her family.

In the spring of 1905, finding the hostility towards them intolerable, Debussy and Bardac (now pregnant) fled to England, via Jersey. Bardac's divorce was finalized in May.The couple settled at the Grand Hotel in Eastbourne from 24 July to 30 August 1905, where Debussy was to correct proofs to his symphonic suite La mer, and celebrate his divorce from Texier on 2 August.
After a brief visit to London, the couple returned to Paris in September, buying a house in a courtyard development off the Avenue du Bois de Boulogne (now Avenue Foch), where Debussy was to reside for the rest of his life. Their daughter (the composer's only child) Claude-Emma was born there on 30 October. Her parents were eventually married in 1908, their troubled union enduring until Debussy's death in 1918. More affectionately known as 'Chouchou', Claude-Emma was possibly the only person Debussy ever loved, and a great musical inspiration to him (she was the dedicatee of his Children's Corner suite). Debussy was to remark towards the end of his life, when gravely ill, that were it not for Chouchou, he might have committed suicide. She outlived her father by scarcely a year, succumbing to the diphtheria epidemic of 1919 after her doctor administered the wrong treatment