Francaix: The Music for Solo Piano, Duo & Duet

$24.99
Label
Nimbus
Release Date
April 1, 2012
Format
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    Featuring ⌄
    • COMPOSER
      FRANCAIX, JEAN
    • PERFORMER
      Jones, Mcmahon, Farmer
    Product Details ⌄
    • RELEASE DATE
      April 01, 2012
    • UPC
      710357588020
    • CATALOG NUMBER
      NI5880
    • LABEL
      Nimbus
    • NUMBER OF DISCS
      3
    • GENRE
      Instrumental
    Works ⌄

    1. Scherzo

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    2. No. 1. La capricieuse

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    3. No. 2. La tendre

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    4. No. 3. La pretentieuse

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    5. No. 4. La pensive

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    6. No. 5. La moderne

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    7. I. Elle semble d'abord

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    8. II. Elle etait l'amour

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    9. III. Elle trace des roses

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    10. IV. Elle a fait tout son corps aussi delie

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    11. V. Elle celebrait tous les mystere de l'absence

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    12. VI. Voici la choeur aile des illustres danseuses!

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    13. I. Prelude: Allegrissimo

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    14. II. Élégie: Andantino con moto

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    15. III. Scherzo: Vivace -

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    16. IV. Toccata: Allegretto

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    17. No. 1. Pour allecher l'auditoire

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    18. No. 2. Pour le dames sentimentales

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    19. No. 3. En cas de succes

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    20. No. 4. En cas de triomphe

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    21. No. 5. En cas de delire

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    22. Danse des trois arlequins

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    23. 8 Variations sur le nom de Gutenberg

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    24. Nocturne

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    25. No. 1. Pambiche

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Richard McMahon

    26. No. 2. Baiao

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Richard McMahon

    27. No. 3. Nube gris

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Richard McMahon

    28. No. 4. Merengue

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Richard McMahon

    29. No. 5. Mambo

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Richard McMahon

    30. No. 6. Samba lente

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Richard McMahon

    31. No. 7. Malambeando

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Richard McMahon

    32. No. 8. Rock n' Roll

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Richard McMahon

    33. No. 1. Le bebe a la cuiller

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer

    34. No. 2. Jeune bretonne

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer

    35. No. 3. Adolescentese peignant

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer

    36. No. 4. Fillette lisant

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer

    37. No. 5. Les deux soeurs

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer

    38. No. 6. Au jardin du Luxembourg

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer

    39. No. 7. Fillette au chapeau bleu

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer

    40. No. 8. Fillette a la gerbe

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer

    41. No. 9. Maddemoiselle Cahen d'Anvers

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer

    42. No. 10. La petite pecheuse

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer

    43. No. 11. Mademoiselle Grimprel au ruban bleu

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer

    44. No. 12. Au piano

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer

    45. No. 13. Filette au chapeau a plume rose

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer

    46. No. 14. Les enfants de Madame Charpentier

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer

    47. No. 15. Le petit collegien

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer

    48. No. 1. Le cherubin provisoire

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    49. No. 2. Le reveur

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    50. No. 3. Le diablotin libere

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    51. No. 1. Hommage a Handel

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    52. No. 2. Hommage a Frederic Chopin

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    53. No. 3. Hommage a Domenico Scarlatti

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    54. No. 4. Hommage a Maurice Ravel

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    55. No. 5. Petit hommage a la musique contemporaine

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    56. No. 6. Hommage a Adolphe Adam

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    57. No. 1. Le nouveau-ne - No. 2. Le bebe - No. 3. Les jumeaux - No. 4. L'enfant egare

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer

    58. No. 5. L'enfant sage - No. 6. L'enfant reveur - No. 7. L'ingenue

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer

    59. No. 8. Le petit soldat - No. 9. Le petit rat - No. 10. Un Jeune Loustic, ou le Mineur emancipe

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer

    60. Pour Jacqueline

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer

    61. I. Henri IV - II. Louis XIII - III. Monsieur de Montespan - IV. La voisin - V. Le grand trianon - VI. Jeune fille

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    62. VII. Ronde Louis XV - VIII. Le beau fersen - IX. Le hameau - X. Napoleon - XI. Les cent marches

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones

    63. I. Marche militaire enfantine - II. Brienne - III. La soiree chez barras - IV. La monaco - V. Musique arabe - VI. La fuite des cinq-cents

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer

    64. VII. Marche francaise - VIII. Marche autrichienne - IX. Berceuse du roi de rome - X. Mazurka - XI. Polonaise en re

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer

    65. XII. Marie walewska - XIII. Marche tragique - XIV. Valse viennoise - XV. Louis - XVI. Marche emperiale

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer

    66. I. Allegretto - Presto - Andantino - Allegro assai

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Richard McMahon

    67. II. Larghetto - Allegretto vivo - Allegretto - Allegro con moto - Subito allegro vivo

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Richard McMahon

    68. III. Pastorale - Allegro alla turca - Poco sostenuto - Allegro furioso - Allegro

      Composer: Jean Françaix

      Performer: Martin Jones, Richard McMahon




FRANÇAIX Scherzo. 5 Portraits de jeunes filles. Eloge de la danse. Piano Sonata. 5 Encores. Danse des 3 Arlequins. 8 Variations. Nocturne. 3 Equisses sur les touches blanches. La Promenade d’un Musicologue Eclectique. De la Musique avant tout chose. Pour Jacqueline. Si Versailles m’etait conté. Scuola di Ballo. 1 8 Danses exotiques. 1 15 Portraits d’enfants d’Auguste Renoir. 2 Napoléon 2 • Martin Jones, 1 Richard McMahon, 2 Adrian Farmer (pn) • NIMBUS NI 5880/2 (3 CDs: 19:05)


Had Jean Françaix been born a decade or so earlier, we would be referring to Les Sept rather than Les Six. As it was, the French-polished and long-lived composer (1912–97) followed in the footsteps of his slightly older confrères, particularly Poulenc, in typifying the French style of his era: witty, light-hearted, and insouciant. Françaix’s music derives from the bouncy rhythms and diatonic melodies of French folk music, but mixes in the vulgarity of the boulevard, the harmonic asperity of Stravinsky, and an occasional hint of 1920s jazz, all done with assured craftsmanship. While many of his concertos have been recorded—the best-known are the sprightly Piano Concertino (1932) and the Clarinet Concerto—Françaix’s output for solo piano has not. The only previous recordings I discovered are by Annette Middlebeek on a hard-to-find Koch disc from 2001, and another from 2008 by Nicole Narboni on the obscure label CDBY, which I have never heard of. (The latter recital is intriguingly promoted as “Narboni on Food, Felines, Fathers, and Jean Françaix.”) I did not manage to do any comparative listening—my order of the Koch disc failed to materialize by deadline— but in any case this new Nimbus set trumps both in terms of completeness alone.


Although Françaix was an expert orchestrator, probably more skilled than Poulenc, whose Story of Babar the Elephant he arranged for orchestra, the younger composer first made his mark as a pianist. He continued to play throughout his life, not only his own works but also music by other composers, often teaming with the cellist Maurice Gendron. Many of his compositions involve piano, and I notice a three-disc set of chamber music with the composer at the piano is scheduled to be released late in 2012 (this being the year of Françaix’s centenary, of course).


Meanwhile, we have the indefatigable Martin Jones to bring us up to speed on the keyboard works. The set opens with the early, mostly staccato Scherzo, a favorite of the composer that he played often, and it shows him at his most deft in its clarity and harmonic sleight of hand. The Scherzo sets the tone for the rest of the program and is tossed off with perfect élan here by Jones. Françaix preferred miniatures, and many of the larger works are in fact suites made up of several short movements. Some, such as the oddly titled Promenade d’un Musicologue Eclectique , are composed of tributes to other composers such as Chopin, Ravel, and Adam. Françaix always sounds like himself, but Ravel was clearly a major influence along with Chabrier and, to some extent, Satie. We might expect a work titled Piano Sonata to be more serious in tone but that expectation is quickly dashed; the first movement scampers off like a French poodle. (The same thing happens in the composer’s one symphony.) The sonata’s second movement (Elégie) features an Impressionistic bell-like accompaniment. Timing is one of the composer’s finest assets: Nothing outstays its welcome, and just as one might be tiring of high spirits a pensive moment of lyricism comes along, like the lovely “La Tendre” in the Five Portraits of Young Girls suite. The gentle Nocturne’s arpeggiated left hand registers like updated Fauré, and it is this piece, the composer’s final composition for solo piano (1994), that brings the first disc to a close.


In the duo and two-piano works Jones is joined by Richard McMahon or Adrian Farmer. The Eight Exotic Dances of 1957 draw on popular Latin and jazz forms. The final movement is titled Rock’n’roll but it is far more jazz than rock, a musical genre too earthy for the fastidious Françaix, I suspect. Napoléon and Si Versailles m’etait conté are two-piano arrangements of music from films, while Scuola di ballo is a ballet score from 1933, which, 30 years later, the composer reworked for himself and his daughter Claude to play. The resulting score is more elaborate than a mere reduction, as you will hear if you compare it to the orchestral version recorded by Thierry Fischer and the Ulster Orchestra (Hyperion). It draws on music by Boccherini in much the same way as Stravinsky reinterpreted Pergolesi in Pulcinella , and forms a joyous finale to the program.


Devotees of piano music and avowed completists owe a lot to Martin Jones, truly one of the finest of British pianists. For Nimbus he has recorded a good deal of Spanish music (including multiple discs of Mompou), a Czerny series, Szymanowski, and several others. He is a sparkling technician, but beyond that he always manages to sound utterly sympathetic in the music he chooses to record. His partners in this enterprise are equally at home; McMahon, for one, has a formidable reputation in duet work. Nimbus’s recording strikes me as perfect; as usual, there is air around the sound but it is never muddy, always crisp, and suits the piano to a T. While it may be asking too much to listen to the three discs straight through (though I did so without any ill effect, several times), this is undoubtedly a delightful set to dip into and certainly a significant addition to the catalog.


FANFARE: Phillip Scott