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Nimbus

Francaix: The Music for Solo Piano, Duo & Duet

$32.99

Details

Composer
FRANCAIX, JEAN
Artist
Jones, Mcmahon, Farmer
Format
CD
Label
Nimbus
Released
Apr 01, 2012
Catalog #
NI5880
UPC
710357588020

About



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

Tracklist 68 tracks

  1. Disc 1
  2. 1 Scherzo 02:16
    Track
    1
    Title
    Scherzo
    Duration
    02:16
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  3. 2 No. 1. La capricieuse 01:44
    Track
    2
    Title
    No. 1. La capricieuse
    Duration
    01:44
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  4. 3 No. 2. La tendre 02:28
    Track
    3
    Title
    No. 2. La tendre
    Duration
    02:28
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  5. 4 No. 3. La pretentieuse 02:05
    Track
    4
    Title
    No. 3. La pretentieuse
    Duration
    02:05
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  6. 5 No. 4. La pensive 01:57
    Track
    5
    Title
    No. 4. La pensive
    Duration
    01:57
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  7. 6 No. 5. La moderne 04:42
    Track
    6
    Title
    No. 5. La moderne
    Duration
    04:42
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  8. 7 I. Elle semble d'abord 02:06
    Track
    7
    Title
    I. Elle semble d'abord
    Duration
    02:06
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  9. 8 II. Elle etait l'amour 01:31
    Track
    8
    Title
    II. Elle etait l'amour
    Duration
    01:31
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  10. 9 III. Elle trace des roses 01:26
    Track
    9
    Title
    III. Elle trace des roses
    Duration
    01:26
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  11. 10 IV. Elle a fait tout son corps aussi delie 01:11
    Track
    10
    Title
    IV. Elle a fait tout son corps aussi delie
    Duration
    01:11
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  12. 11 V. Elle celebrait tous les mystere de l'absence 01:35
    Track
    11
    Title
    V. Elle celebrait tous les mystere de l'absence
    Duration
    01:35
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  13. 12 VI. Voici la choeur aile des illustres danseuses! 03:33
    Track
    12
    Title
    VI. Voici la choeur aile des illustres danseuses!
    Duration
    03:33
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  14. 13 I. Prelude: Allegrissimo 02:12
    Track
    13
    Title
    I. Prelude: Allegrissimo
    Duration
    02:12
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  15. 14 II. Élégie: Andantino con moto 02:48
    Track
    14
    Title
    II. Élégie: Andantino con moto
    Duration
    02:48
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  16. 15 III. Scherzo: Vivace - 01:19
    Track
    15
    Title
    III. Scherzo: Vivace -
    Duration
    01:19
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  17. 16 IV. Toccata: Allegretto 03:10
    Track
    16
    Title
    IV. Toccata: Allegretto
    Duration
    03:10
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  18. 17 No. 1. Pour allecher l'auditoire 01:40
    Track
    17
    Title
    No. 1. Pour allecher l'auditoire
    Duration
    01:40
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  19. 18 No. 2. Pour le dames sentimentales 03:28
    Track
    18
    Title
    No. 2. Pour le dames sentimentales
    Duration
    03:28
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  20. 19 No. 3. En cas de succes 00:58
    Track
    19
    Title
    No. 3. En cas de succes
    Duration
    00:58
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  21. 20 No. 4. En cas de triomphe 01:41
    Track
    20
    Title
    No. 4. En cas de triomphe
    Duration
    01:41
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  22. 21 No. 5. En cas de delire 01:48
    Track
    21
    Title
    No. 5. En cas de delire
    Duration
    01:48
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  23. 22 Danse des trois arlequins 01:57
    Track
    22
    Title
    Danse des trois arlequins
    Duration
    01:57
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  24. 23 8 Variations sur le nom de Gutenberg 07:30
    Track
    23
    Title
    8 Variations sur le nom de Gutenberg
    Duration
    07:30
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  25. 24 Nocturne 04:23
    Track
    24
    Title
    Nocturne
    Duration
    04:23
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  26. Disc 2
  27. 1 No. 1. Pambiche 01:12
    Track
    1
    Title
    No. 1. Pambiche
    Duration
    01:12
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Richard McMahon
  28. 2 No. 2. Baiao 01:27
    Track
    2
    Title
    No. 2. Baiao
    Duration
    01:27
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Richard McMahon
  29. 3 No. 3. Nube gris 01:03
    Track
    3
    Title
    No. 3. Nube gris
    Duration
    01:03
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Richard McMahon
  30. 4 No. 4. Merengue 00:38
    Track
    4
    Title
    No. 4. Merengue
    Duration
    00:38
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Richard McMahon
  31. 5 No. 5. Mambo 01:45
    Track
    5
    Title
    No. 5. Mambo
    Duration
    01:45
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Richard McMahon
  32. 6 No. 6. Samba lente 01:10
    Track
    6
    Title
    No. 6. Samba lente
    Duration
    01:10
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Richard McMahon
  33. 7 No. 7. Malambeando 01:08
    Track
    7
    Title
    No. 7. Malambeando
    Duration
    01:08
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Richard McMahon
  34. 8 No. 8. Rock n' Roll 02:13
    Track
    8
    Title
    No. 8. Rock n' Roll
    Duration
    02:13
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Richard McMahon
  35. 9 No. 1. Le bebe a la cuiller 00:55
    Track
    9
    Title
    No. 1. Le bebe a la cuiller
    Duration
    00:55
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer
  36. 10 No. 2. Jeune bretonne 00:31
    Track
    10
    Title
    No. 2. Jeune bretonne
    Duration
    00:31
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer
  37. 11 No. 3. Adolescentese peignant 00:58
    Track
    11
    Title
    No. 3. Adolescentese peignant
    Duration
    00:58
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer
  38. 12 No. 4. Fillette lisant 00:55
    Track
    12
    Title
    No. 4. Fillette lisant
    Duration
    00:55
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer
  39. 13 No. 5. Les deux soeurs 00:35
    Track
    13
    Title
    No. 5. Les deux soeurs
    Duration
    00:35
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer
  40. 14 No. 6. Au jardin du Luxembourg 01:44
    Track
    14
    Title
    No. 6. Au jardin du Luxembourg
    Duration
    01:44
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer
  41. 15 No. 7. Fillette au chapeau bleu 01:18
    Track
    15
    Title
    No. 7. Fillette au chapeau bleu
    Duration
    01:18
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer
  42. 16 No. 8. Fillette a la gerbe 00:28
    Track
    16
    Title
    No. 8. Fillette a la gerbe
    Duration
    00:28
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer
  43. 17 No. 9. Maddemoiselle Cahen d'Anvers 01:15
    Track
    17
    Title
    No. 9. Maddemoiselle Cahen d'Anvers
    Duration
    01:15
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer
  44. 18 No. 10. La petite pecheuse 00:28
    Track
    18
    Title
    No. 10. La petite pecheuse
    Duration
    00:28
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer
  45. 19 No. 11. Mademoiselle Grimprel au ruban bleu 00:57
    Track
    19
    Title
    No. 11. Mademoiselle Grimprel au ruban bleu
    Duration
    00:57
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer
  46. 20 No. 12. Au piano 00:30
    Track
    20
    Title
    No. 12. Au piano
    Duration
    00:30
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer
  47. 21 No. 13. Filette au chapeau a plume rose 01:29
    Track
    21
    Title
    No. 13. Filette au chapeau a plume rose
    Duration
    01:29
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer
  48. 22 No. 14. Les enfants de Madame Charpentier 01:21
    Track
    22
    Title
    No. 14. Les enfants de Madame Charpentier
    Duration
    01:21
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer
  49. 23 No. 15. Le petit collegien 00:55
    Track
    23
    Title
    No. 15. Le petit collegien
    Duration
    00:55
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer
  50. 24 No. 1. Le cherubin provisoire 01:50
    Track
    24
    Title
    No. 1. Le cherubin provisoire
    Duration
    01:50
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  51. 25 No. 2. Le reveur 02:00
    Track
    25
    Title
    No. 2. Le reveur
    Duration
    02:00
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  52. 26 No. 3. Le diablotin libere 00:47
    Track
    26
    Title
    No. 3. Le diablotin libere
    Duration
    00:47
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  53. 27 No. 1. Hommage a Handel 02:24
    Track
    27
    Title
    No. 1. Hommage a Handel
    Duration
    02:24
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  54. 28 No. 2. Hommage a Frederic Chopin 02:49
    Track
    28
    Title
    No. 2. Hommage a Frederic Chopin
    Duration
    02:49
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  55. 29 No. 3. Hommage a Domenico Scarlatti 03:20
    Track
    29
    Title
    No. 3. Hommage a Domenico Scarlatti
    Duration
    03:20
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  56. 30 No. 4. Hommage a Maurice Ravel 03:34
    Track
    30
    Title
    No. 4. Hommage a Maurice Ravel
    Duration
    03:34
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  57. 31 No. 5. Petit hommage a la musique contemporaine 02:15
    Track
    31
    Title
    No. 5. Petit hommage a la musique contemporaine
    Duration
    02:15
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  58. 32 No. 6. Hommage a Adolphe Adam 04:21
    Track
    32
    Title
    No. 6. Hommage a Adolphe Adam
    Duration
    04:21
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  59. 33 No. 1. Le nouveau-ne - No. 2. Le bebe - No. 3. Les jumeaux - No. 4. L'enfant egare 02:10
    Track
    33
    Title
    No. 1. Le nouveau-ne - No. 2. Le bebe - No. 3. Les jumeaux - No. 4. L'enfant egare
    Duration
    02:10
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer
  60. 34 No. 5. L'enfant sage - No. 6. L'enfant reveur - No. 7. L'ingenue 02:38
    Track
    34
    Title
    No. 5. L'enfant sage - No. 6. L'enfant reveur - No. 7. L'ingenue
    Duration
    02:38
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer
  61. 35 No. 8. Le petit soldat - No. 9. Le petit rat - No. 10. Un Jeune Loustic, ou le Mineur emancipe 03:58
    Track
    35
    Title
    No. 8. Le petit soldat - No. 9. Le petit rat - No. 10. Un Jeune Loustic, ou le Mineur emancipe
    Duration
    03:58
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer
  62. 36 Pour Jacqueline 07:27
    Track
    36
    Title
    Pour Jacqueline
    Duration
    07:27
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer
  63. Disc 3
  64. 1 I. Henri IV - II. Louis XIII - III. Monsieur de Montespan - IV. La voisin - V. Le grand trianon - VI. Jeune fille 04:49
    Track
    1
    Title
    I. Henri IV - II. Louis XIII - III. Monsieur de Montespan - IV. La voisin - V. Le grand trianon - VI. Jeune fille
    Duration
    04:49
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  65. 2 VII. Ronde Louis XV - VIII. Le beau fersen - IX. Le hameau - X. Napoleon - XI. Les cent marches 10:54
    Track
    2
    Title
    VII. Ronde Louis XV - VIII. Le beau fersen - IX. Le hameau - X. Napoleon - XI. Les cent marches
    Duration
    10:54
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones
  66. 3 I. Marche militaire enfantine - II. Brienne - III. La soiree chez barras - IV. La monaco - V. Musique arabe - VI. La fuite des cinq-cents 07:17
    Track
    3
    Title
    I. Marche militaire enfantine - II. Brienne - III. La soiree chez barras - IV. La monaco - V. Musique arabe - VI. La fuite des cinq-cents
    Duration
    07:17
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer
  67. 4 VII. Marche francaise - VIII. Marche autrichienne - IX. Berceuse du roi de rome - X. Mazurka - XI. Polonaise en re 08:59
    Track
    4
    Title
    VII. Marche francaise - VIII. Marche autrichienne - IX. Berceuse du roi de rome - X. Mazurka - XI. Polonaise en re
    Duration
    08:59
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer
  68. 5 XII. Marie walewska - XIII. Marche tragique - XIV. Valse viennoise - XV. Louis - XVI. Marche emperiale 10:23
    Track
    5
    Title
    XII. Marie walewska - XIII. Marche tragique - XIV. Valse viennoise - XV. Louis - XVI. Marche emperiale
    Duration
    10:23
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Adrian Farmer
  69. 6 I. Allegretto - Presto - Andantino - Allegro assai 06:17
    Track
    6
    Title
    I. Allegretto - Presto - Andantino - Allegro assai
    Duration
    06:17
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Richard McMahon
  70. 7 II. Larghetto - Allegretto vivo - Allegretto - Allegro con moto - Subito allegro vivo 08:30
    Track
    7
    Title
    II. Larghetto - Allegretto vivo - Allegretto - Allegro con moto - Subito allegro vivo
    Duration
    08:30
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Richard McMahon
  71. 8 III. Pastorale - Allegro alla turca - Poco sostenuto - Allegro furioso - Allegro 09:39
    Track
    8
    Title
    III. Pastorale - Allegro alla turca - Poco sostenuto - Allegro furioso - Allegro
    Duration
    09:39
    Composer
    Jean Françaix
    Performer
    Martin Jones, Richard McMahon