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Divine Art

Cocteau

$18.99

Details

Composer
Various
Artist
Isabelle O'Connell
Format
CD
Label
Divine Art
Released
Mar 20, 2026
Catalog #
DDX21141
UPC
809730114120

About

In March 2026, Divine Art Records presents Cocteau from pianist Isabelle O'Connell, exploring the musical connections and artistic spirit of the multi-talented and influential French artist, filmmaker, novelist, and poet Jean Cocteau (1889-1963). Throughout his life, Cocteau worked with the legendary Ballets Russes, was involved with major art movements like Cubism and Surrealism, and was one of the most important avant-garde directors in cinema. Isabelle O'Connell's Cocteau is anchored by Irish composer Rhona Clarke's brand-new work Cocteau, written especially for O'Connell, and heard after the listener moves through Cocteau's contemporaries and collaborators in Paris a century ago: Erik Satie, Igor Stravinsky, and members of Le Groupe des Six for whom Cocteau was a figurehead (Georges Auric, Louis Durey, Arthur Honegger, Darius Milhaud, Francis Poulenc, Germaine Tailleferre). The initial spark for this revealing new album came from conversations between Isabelle O'Connell and Rhona Clarke during the COVID pandemic. Rhona had developed a fascination with the work of "this complete artist," and Cocteau is a set of six short pieces inspired by his drawings, paying tribute to his "overall aesthetic and personality, his quirkiness, modernism, sense of freedom, his mix of the sublime and the ridiculous." The works by Satie include his Trois Gnossiennes and Trois Gymnopédies (available as digital-only tracks), epitomising qualities that Cocteau so admired - clarity, refinement, with minimal and spare textures. The album also features the Ragtime Parade from the surrealist ballet Parade, conceived by Cocteau for the Ballets Russes, and Rêverie de l'enfance de Pantagruel from his orchestrated work Trois petites pièces montées, originally composed for a concert Cocteau organised. The album further includes Stravinsky's Ragtime and Les Cinq Doigts, Darius Milhaud's Le Boeuf sur le Toit from Cocteau's ballet, and three works by Germaine Tailleferre, the only female member of Le Groupe des Six. Though the composers of the group had differing styles, their music followed Cocteau's artistic principles, sometimes incorporating elements of American jazz and café music, often with a hint of humour or parody. L'Album des Six was the only work on which all six collaborated. Since her Carnegie Hall debut recital in 2002, Franco-Irish pianist Isabelle O'Connell has developed an international career as a soloist and chamber musician. She is co-founder of Grand Band, a piano sextet described by The New York Times as "six of the finest, busiest pianists active in New York's contemporary-classical scene." She has worked with composers John Adams, Meredith Monk, Donnacha Dennehy, Georg Friedrich Haas, Missy Mazzoli, Joan Tower, Kevin Volans, and Julia Wolfe. A Fulbright scholar, Isabelle currently serves on the piano faculty as Artist-in-Residence at Bard College and Conservatory of Music, New York.

Tracklist 33 tracks

  1. 1 Rag-Time Parade (arr. H. Ourdine for piano) 02:22
    Track
    1
    Title
    Rag-Time Parade (arr. H. Ourdine for piano)
    Duration
    02:22
    Composer
    Erik Satie
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  2. 2 Pas trop vite 01:19
    Track
    2
    Title
    Pas trop vite
    Duration
    01:19
    Composer
    Germaine Tailleferre
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  3. 3 Hommage à Debussy 01:35
    Track
    3
    Title
    Hommage à Debussy
    Duration
    01:35
    Composer
    Germaine Tailleferre
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  4. 4 Très vite 02:23
    Track
    4
    Title
    Très vite
    Duration
    02:23
    Composer
    Germaine Tailleferre
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  5. 5 Ragtime (version for solo piano) 05:18
    Track
    5
    Title
    Ragtime (version for solo piano)
    Duration
    05:18
    Composer
    Igor Stravinsky
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  6. 6 Gnossienne No. 1 04:28
    Track
    6
    Title
    Gnossienne No. 1
    Duration
    04:28
    Composer
    Erik Satie
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  7. 7 Gnossienne No. 2 02:35
    Track
    7
    Title
    Gnossienne No. 2
    Duration
    02:35
    Composer
    Erik Satie
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  8. 8 Gnossienne No. 3 03:22
    Track
    8
    Title
    Gnossienne No. 3
    Duration
    03:22
    Composer
    Erik Satie
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  9. 9 I. Andantino 00:43
    Track
    9
    Title
    I. Andantino
    Duration
    00:43
    Composer
    Igor Stravinsky
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  10. 10 II. Allegro 00:59
    Track
    10
    Title
    II. Allegro
    Duration
    00:59
    Composer
    Igor Stravinsky
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  11. 11 III. Allegretto 00:49
    Track
    11
    Title
    III. Allegretto
    Duration
    00:49
    Composer
    Igor Stravinsky
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  12. 12 IV. Larghetto 01:24
    Track
    12
    Title
    IV. Larghetto
    Duration
    01:24
    Composer
    Igor Stravinsky
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  13. 13 V. Moderato 00:42
    Track
    13
    Title
    V. Moderato
    Duration
    00:42
    Composer
    Igor Stravinsky
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  14. 14 VI. Lento 00:54
    Track
    14
    Title
    VI. Lento
    Duration
    00:54
    Composer
    Igor Stravinsky
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  15. 15 VII. Vivo 00:29
    Track
    15
    Title
    VII. Vivo
    Duration
    00:29
    Composer
    Igor Stravinsky
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  16. 16 VIII. Pesante 01:02
    Track
    16
    Title
    VIII. Pesante
    Duration
    01:02
    Composer
    Igor Stravinsky
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  17. 17 Le boeuf sur le toit, Op. 58 (arr. H. Mouton for piano) 01:56
    Track
    17
    Title
    Le boeuf sur le toit, Op. 58 (arr. H. Mouton for piano)
    Duration
    01:56
    Composer
    Darius Milhaud
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  18. 18 Reverie de l'enfance de Pantagruel 01:34
    Track
    18
    Title
    Reverie de l'enfance de Pantagruel
    Duration
    01:34
    Composer
    Erik Satie
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  19. 19 Prélude 01:25
    Track
    19
    Title
    Prélude
    Duration
    01:25
    Composer
    Georges Auric
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  20. 20 Romance sans paroles, Op. 21 02:46
    Track
    20
    Title
    Romance sans paroles, Op. 21
    Duration
    02:46
    Composer
    Louis Durey
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  21. 21 Sarabande, H. 26 01:51
    Track
    21
    Title
    Sarabande, H. 26
    Duration
    01:51
    Composer
    Arthur Honegger
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  22. 22 Mazurka 01:49
    Track
    22
    Title
    Mazurka
    Duration
    01:49
    Composer
    Darius Milhaud
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  23. 23 Valse in C Major, FP 17 02:00
    Track
    23
    Title
    Valse in C Major, FP 17
    Duration
    02:00
    Composer
    Francis Poulenc
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  24. 24 Pastorale 01:32
    Track
    24
    Title
    Pastorale
    Duration
    01:32
    Composer
    Germaine Tailleferre
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  25. 25 I. Antigone 04:53
    Track
    25
    Title
    I. Antigone
    Duration
    04:53
    Composer
    Rhona Clarke
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  26. 26 II. Portrait I 04:19
    Track
    26
    Title
    II. Portrait I
    Duration
    04:19
    Composer
    Rhona Clarke
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  27. 27 III. Blood of a poet 04:24
    Track
    27
    Title
    III. Blood of a poet
    Duration
    04:24
    Composer
    Rhona Clarke
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  28. 28 IV. Orpheus 04:28
    Track
    28
    Title
    IV. Orpheus
    Duration
    04:28
    Composer
    Rhona Clarke
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  29. 29 V. Portrait II 03:47
    Track
    29
    Title
    V. Portrait II
    Duration
    03:47
    Composer
    Rhona Clarke
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  30. 30 VI. Oedipus 04:11
    Track
    30
    Title
    VI. Oedipus
    Duration
    04:11
    Composer
    Rhona Clarke
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  31. 31 No. 1. Lent et douloureux 03:43
    Track
    31
    Title
    No. 1. Lent et douloureux
    Duration
    03:43
    Composer
    Erik Satie
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  32. 32 No. 2. Lent et triste 02:52
    Track
    32
    Title
    No. 2. Lent et triste
    Duration
    02:52
    Composer
    Erik Satie
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell
  33. 33 No. 3. Lent et grave 02:40
    Track
    33
    Title
    No. 3. Lent et grave
    Duration
    02:40
    Composer
    Erik Satie
    Performer
    Isabelle O'Connell