SKU: BT.SLB-00595900

INSSTR inches. French.

A previously unreleased piece by Francis Poulenc, published with permission from the Bibliothèque Historique de la Ville de Paris and Benoît Seringe, secretary of the Association des amis de Francis Poulenc [Association of the Friends ofFrancis Poulenc]. Le Voyageur sans bagage [The Traveller Without Luggage], which had been premiered in 1937 with music by Darius Milhaud, was reprised on 1 April 1944 at the Thé tre de la Michodière; Francis Poulenc was asked to compose new stage music. Theentire unpublished score lay undiscovered until Bérengère de l’Épine, a librarian at the Bibliothèque Historique de la Ville de Paris, announced the existence of a manuscript in the Association de la Régie Thé trale collection.Poulenc finalised the score between 19 and 21 March 1944. It contains nine songs, all written for a small instrumental ensemble including oboe, clarinet, cello and piano. However, at the end of the manuscript, the composer echoes the second song Lent [Slow] and creates another version for cello and piano; curiously, the original version of the song has not been erased in the manuscript. Poulenc seems to suggest that we consider the piece for cello and piano, that we have publishedhere, as a different piece of music. It was premiered on Wednesday 23 January 2013 by Marc Coppey, accompanied by Jean-François Heisser, in the organ auditorium of the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et Danse de Paris (CNSMDP), during thesymposium for the fiftieth anniversary of Poulenc’s death.Given in a dramatic context, some elements allow us to get an idea of the character of the piece, which Benoît Seringe, Poulenc’s beneficiary, judiciously chose to name Souvenirs.The main character of Anouilh’s play, Gaston, is suffering from amnesia at the end of World War One. Several families try to claim him; they want him to be their missing relative. The Renaud family prove to be particularly stubborn, but Gaston doesnot recognize himself in the child and young man they depict: a ruthless and violent person. In Act 1 Scene 3, left alone for a moment, overwhelmed by the story of the “old Gaston” that is gradually coming to light, and outraged by the desire ofthose around him to appropriate him (to the detriment of the person he would like to be from now on), he whispers these words: “You all have proof, photographs that look like me, memories as clear as day… I’ve listened to you all and it’s slowlycausing a hybrid person to rise up in me; a person in which there is a piece of each of your sons and nothing of me.” Poulenc chose to place the second piece from his stage music score as these words are spoken.He borrowed part of the material, as he often did, from an earlier composition. In this particular case, the beginning is a recycled version of the “slow and melancholic” section from L’Histoire de Babar , composed between 1940 and 1945, andpremiered in 1946 (unless it is Babar that reuses the musical idea from Voyageur ).The eponymous elephant decides to leave in search of the great forest. He embraces the old lady, promises her he will return and reassures her that he will never forget her. Left alone, the old lady, feeling sad and pensive, wonders when she’ll seeher friend Babar again. The situation is similar to that in Voyageur sans bagage: solitude, sadness, a distressing and introspective time, fear of oblivion, the presence of memories…

Pi èce inédite de Francis Poulenc, publiée avec l’autorisation de la Bibliothèque historique de la ville de Paris et de Benoît Seringe, secrétaire de l’Association des Amis de Francis Poulenc.Le 1er avril 1944, Le Voyageur sans bagage d’Anouilh, qui avait été créé en 1937 avec de la musique de Darius Milhaud, est repris au Thé tre de la Michodière. Francis Poulenc a été sollicité afin d’écrire une nouvelle musique de scène. On ignoraittout de cette partition inédite, jusqu’au jour où Bérengère de l’Épine, conservateur la Bibliothèque historique de la ville de Paris, nous signala l’existence d’un manuscrit dans le fonds de l’Association de la Régie thé trale.Poulenc mit au point sa partition entre le 19 et le 21 mars 1944. Elle comprend neuf numéros, tous écrits pour un petit effectif instrumental réunissant un hautbois, une clarinette, un violoncelle et un piano.Cependant, la fin de son manuscrit, le compositeur reprend le no 2 Lent et en donne une seconde version, pour violoncelle et piano. Curieusement, la version originale de ce numéro n’est pas biffée dans le manuscrit.Poulenc semble nous inviter considérer comme un morceau distinct cette pièce pour violoncelle et piano dont nous proposons ici l’édition. Elle a été créée par Marc Coppey, accompagné de Jean-François Heisser, lors du concert donné durant lecolloque organisé pour le cinquantenaire du décès de Poulenc, le mercredi 23 janvier 2013, salle d’orgue du Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (CNSMDP).Quelques éléments sur le contexte dramatique permettront de se faire une idée du caractère du morceau, que Benoît Seringe, ayant droit Poulenc, a judicieusement choisi d’intituler Souvenirs.Le personnage principal de la pièce d’Anouilh, Gaston, a été retrouvé amnésique la fin de la Première Guerre Mondiale. Plusieurs familles le réclament. On veut voir en lui un parent disparu. Les Renaud se montrent particulièrement tenaces ; maisGaston ne parvient se reconnaître dans l’enfant et le jeune homme dont on lui trace le portrait : un être violent et sans scrupule. Au tableau 3 de l’acte I, resté seul un moment, écrasé par l’histoire de cet autre lui-même qu’il découvre peu peu, indigné par le désir des personnes qui l’entourent de le ramener elles au détriment de celui qu’il voudrait être désormais, il se murmure ces paroles : « Vous avez tous des preuves, des photographies ressemblantes, des souvenirs précis commedes crimes… je vous écoute tous et je sens surgir peu peu derrière moi un être hybride où il y a un peu de chacun de vos fils et rien de moi »…C’est sur ces mots que Poulenc a choisi de placer le no 2 de sa partition de musique de scène.Comme il le fait souvent, il emprunte une composition antérieure une part de son matériau. Dans ce cas précis, il réutilise pour le début du morceau la section « Lent et mélancolique » de l’Histoire de Babar, composée entre 1940 et 1945, créée en1946 ( moins que ce ne soit Babar qui réutilise l’idée musicale du Voyageur). Le héros-éléphant s’est décidé partir pour retrouver la grande forêt. Il a embrassé la vieille dame, lui a promis de revenir, l’a rassurée : jamais il ne l’oubliera.Rest� �e seule, la vieille dame, triste et pensive, se demande quand elle reverra son ami Babar. La situation est similaire celle du Voyageur sans bagage : solitude, tristesse, instantde trouble et de retour sur soi, crainte de l’oubli, présence des souvenirs….

SKU: PE.EP72785A

ISBN 9790577011349. 210 x 297mm inches. English.

From the composer:

How did it all begin? And what happened next?

I found myself pondering these questions in an art gallery in Bremen, in a James Turrell installation that carved through three storeys of the gallery.  Looking down from the top floor through great circles of colour-changing light to the distant sparkling points in a dark ellipse on the ground floor, I felt that I was looking back in time to the origins of the universe – and I started to hear children’s voices in my mind’s ear, accompanied by twinkling metal percussion.

It occurred to me that the beginning of our world was a good story to be sung by children, especially the unique Hallé Children’s Choir, and accompanied by the magnificent Hallé Orchestra.

Haydn&rs quo;s Creation&n bsp;immediately comes to mind as a precedent, but that is a setting and elaboration of the Book of Genesis.  I thought we should tell the modern version of our story, and be as scientifically accurate as possible.

That&rsqu o;s easier said than done!  For a start, it’s hard to find a modern account of creation that is anything like as compact as the one in Genesis.  I talked about it with my regular collaborator, Alasdair Middleton.  Neither of us could remember being taught anything about the Big Bang or Evolution at school, although I had certainly spent many happy hours making papier-mâché dinosaurs.  So the first thing we had to do was a lot of research – reading books for grown-ups, books for children, looking at charts and diagrams and watching films.  There was a wonderful moment, reading Adam Rutherford’s < em>The Origin of Life, when I had the glorious feeling I understood everything – but that quickly evaporated as soon as I put the book down.

Scientific ideas seem to date very quickly, so this account of the beginning of our world is necessarily provisional.  It&rs.

SKU: CF.FAS30

ISBN 9780825858109. UPC: 798408058104. 8.5 X 11 inches. Key: D major.

A solid piece in a processional style by noted composer Joseph Compello, Horizons is both melodic and engaging. The work has a strong lyrical line that is beautifully blended with an enchanting pizzicato section. This helps to augment the driving pulse th.
The processional style of Horizons will be ideal for young string ensembles which are seeking a more serious style of music but which are not yet capable of performing at a brisk tempo. Older groups, however, should not perform this piece at a fast pace, otherwise the processional feel will be lost.The articulation throughout should be marcato except where otherwise marked. A light staccato touch is required in the accompaniment beginning at bar 11. Very young ensembles always need guidance in performing accents and loud dynamics tastefully.At m. 20, the cellos have a countermelody which is separate from the bass part. If the ensemble does not have basses, the part may be covered on the piano. At m. 45, the cellos have optional notes to allow extra time to prepare for pizzicato. Likewise at m. 53, cues are included for violin 2, viola and cello to allow time to prepare for arco.The effectiveness of the final section beginning at m. 71 should be played as broadly as possible. The 100 tempo is a suggestion.Performance time with the repeat is just under three minutes.Thank you for choosing this composition. I hope you and your students enjoy performing it.- Joseph CompelloGlen Arm, Maryland, 2005.