Neglected 20th Century French composers

[Serial_Apologist]

Thanks, Stan. Another totally unknown name to me!

[Serial_Apologist]

Early on in this thread we posted a link to 3 movements from André Jolivet's Mana Suite of 1935 for piano - an important work for its influence on a number of Messiaen's piano works from the end of the 1940s: the two Iles de feu; neumes rhythmiques and cantéyodjayâ - and, through them, on Boulez and his school. Here is the entire 6 movement work, together with the accompanying score:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mvv-1NVtExU

[Serial_Apologist]

Continuing the thread's focus on under-recognised French composers, in chronological order of birth, we come to the late romantic impressionist Pierre-Octave Ferroud (1900 - 1936), previously mentioned in passing. Unquestionably pre-Les Six in his balletic, colouristic aesthetic, he was a pupil of Florent Schmitt and, like him, given to orgiastic outbursts of pent-up energy. He also has Schmitt's Ravelian approach to harmony; and I wonder how many will find similarities with Bax's music? Here is his 1924 symphonic poem "Foules":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vhzWYTrkdUA

Ferroud died horrendously - decapitated in a road accident in Hungary; according to Wiki Poulenc wrote to Auric expressing his distress at the news.

[Serial_Apologist]

If Henri Sauguet's name has escaped British attention, this may have something to do with the stylistic impersonality of much of his music up to the post-WWII period, when he chose to pursue a populist direction, following an early devotion to Satie's aesthetic. Encouraged by Milhaud, Sauguet studied briefly with Koechlin. As an intended successor movement to Les Six, with Satie's blessing he founded L'Ecole d'Arceuil, after the name of the working class district of Paris Satie had made his home, with an aim to restore "harmonic purity" to French music. Consisting of himself and three other French composers little known about in the UK, Max Jacob, Roger Désormière and Henri Cliquet-Pleyel, the group folded with the death of Satie. Jacob died in a POW camp in the Second World War.

One might be hard put to think of Sauguet's most known works idiomatically belonging in any way to the 20th century, being closer to light 19th century French compsers such as Gounod, Delibes, Massenet, Offenbach and Messager. Here is the incidental music to the 1924 Diaghilev ballet La Chatte:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v68_-DmNZS4

Probably his most popular work in France is the ballet music Les forains, composed at the end of the Second World War with a populist approachability strongly redolent of the golden age of the Follies Bergères - which I accidentally typed "Fillies" just now - and an earworm of a waltz tune, a ritornello that sounds like it could have been written for a Jacques Tati film:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZhMCcxSI8Ks

A turn to greater seriousness of purpose and expanding resourcefulness, without recourse to symphonic methods or in any way recognising the advances of the Messiaen school, marked the music of the postwar period, the remaining years of Henry Sauguet (1901-1989), starting with the hour-long First Symphony dedicated to the victims of WWII of 1945. Here is the atmospheric choral Second Symphony of 1949, based on the seasons, subtitled "Allégorique":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_h0Mmfi7YAY

While in no way ever an avant-gardist, Sauguet was sufficiently interested in new technological resources by 1959 to compose some musique concrète studies for tape, closer in style to Satie than anything he had composed since his early years, of which the following link is an excerpt:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-i_Fpm8JSno

[Roslynmuse]

Thanks for the Sauguet survey, S_A, I know some of the early works but not the later ones. He was a prolific song-writer too; here's a trifle, Berceuse Créole (rather reminiscent of the Montsalvatge Cinco Canciones Negras) beautifully performed by Régine Crespin and John Wustmann:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wu-15uj43Do

[Gabriel Jackson]

As an intended successor movement to Les Six, with Satie's blessing he founded L'Ecole d'Arceuil, after the name of the working class district of Paris Satie had made his home, with an aim to restore "harmonic purity" to French music. Consisting of himself and three other French composers little known about in the UK, Max Jacob, Roger Désormière and Henri Cliquet-Pleyel, the group folded with the death of Satie. Jacob died in a POW camp in the Second World War.

The Max Jacob who died in Drancy internment camp in 1944 wasn't a composer, but an artist, novelist and poet (whose work was famously set by Poulenc). Composer Maxime Jacob became a monk and died in 1977.

[ahinton]

Continuing the thread's focus on under-recognised French composers, in chronological order of birth, we come to the late romantic impressionist Pierre-Octave Ferroud (1900 - 1936), previously mentioned in passing. Unquestionably pre-Les Six in his balletic, colouristic aesthetic, he was a pupil of Florent Schmitt and, like him, given to orgiastic outbursts of pent-up energy. He also has Schmitt's Ravelian approach to harmony; and I wonder how many will find similarities with Bax's music? Here is his 1924 symphonic poem "Foules":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vhzWYTrkdUA

Ferroud died horrendously - decapitated in a road accident in Hungary; according to Wiki Poulenc wrote to Auric expressing his distress at the news.

Sadly unavailable...

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Sadly unavailable...

Well, that means I can post this without doubling the Octaves:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBFwmtidYOg

Conducted by Emmanuel Krivine, no less!

[Alain Maréchal]

Sadly unavailable...

https://www.amazon.fr/Symphonie-En-Types-S%C3%A9r%C3%A9nades-Foules/dp/B00005S7WZ/ref=sr_1_7?__mk_fr_FR=%C3%85M%C3%85%C5%BD%C3%95%C3%91&keywords=Ferroud&qid=1565645407&s=music&sr=1-7

also, much less costly, on Qobuz.

[Bryn]

https://www.amazon.fr/Symphonie-En-T...s=music&sr=1-7

also, much less costly, on Qobuz.

Indeed. The Amazon CD price seems a Hell of a lot extra to pay for a bit of polycarbonate, a polystyrene case and a booklet. Pity that Qobuz has no PDF though.

[Serial_Apologist]

Thanks for the Sauguet survey, S_A, I know some of the early works but not the later ones. He was a prolific song-writer too; here's a trifle, Berceuse Créole (rather reminiscent of the Montsalvatge Cinco Canciones Negras) beautifully performed by Régine Crespin and John Wustmann:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wu-15uj43Do

Many thanks for this, Roslynmuse.

[Serial_Apologist]

The Max Jacob who died in Drancy internment camp in 1944 wasn't a composer, but an artist, novelist and poet (whose work was famously set by Poulenc). Composer Maxime Jacob became a monk and died in 1977.

Oh thanks for that correction, Gabriel - most kind.

[Serial_Apologist]

Well, that means I can post this without doubling the Octaves:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBFwmtidYOg

Conducted by Emmanuel Krivine, no less!

Thanks ferney - that appears to be a replacement of the same recording, on a different link.

[Gabriel Jackson]

Oh thanks for that correction, Gabriel - most kind.

Interestingly, both Max and Maxime Jacobs converted to Catholicism under the auspices of Jacques Maritain.

[Rolmill]

A shameless plug, in case anyone is interested: our church choir is performing Vierne's Messe Solennelle in a concert at 6.30pm this coming Saturday evening, in St Paul's Church, Rusthall, Tunbridge Wells. Some more popular, short pieces follow and the concert ends with Parry's extended (and infrequently performed, so far as I can tell) anthem 'Hear my Words, ye People'.

Free refreshments as well, if the programme is insufficiently tempting on its own!