Gabriel PIERNÉ (1863-1937)
Marche des petits soldats de plomb (1887) [2:08]
Piano Concerto (1887) [18:44]
Divertissements sur un Thème Pastoral (1931) [11:55]
Ramuntcho Suite No.1 (1908) [18:50]
Ramuntcho Suite No.2 (1908) [14:56]
Jean-Efflam Bavouzet (piano)
BBC Philharmonic/Juanjo Mena
rec. Studio 7, New Broadcasting House, Manchester, 19 December 2009 (Marche
des petits soldats de plomb) and 8-9 January 2010.
CHANDOS CHAN 10633 [67:23]
Gabriel Pierné is one of those composers whose name has long been in the shadow
of more popular composers; in this case that of Maurice Ravel, but also of
Albert Roussel; all three of whom coincidentally died in the same year. Pierné
was certainly no modernist, and he spent more energy on a fine career as a
conductor rather than on composing, which he did whilst on summer retreats
in Brittany. While lack of fashionable credit might have kept his name in
relative obscurity this is no reflection on the innate quality of his work,
and this fine recording will do no harm to his reputation.
The programme begins with the Marche des petits soldats de plomb acting
as an overture. This first appeared as a piano piece, but Pierné was able
to ride its popularity by making a charmingly inventive and once famous orchestral
version. The “old-fashioned nursery charm” of this opening is set directly
against the grand opening gestures of the Piano Concerto.My only previous
experience with Pierné’s C minor piano concerto on one of those
BIS ‘twins’ releases, coupled with the Tchaikovsky and Grieg concertos
and with Dag Achatz as soloist. This certainly didn’t make as huge an
impression as this spectacular new recording with Jean-Efflam Bavouzet. The
opening effect of the piano chords transforming into orchestral sound is quite
magical, and the booklet notes by Gerald Larner correctly identify an anticipation
of Rachmaninoff in some aspects of this music. The overall style is high romantic,
but with a clarity of expression which carries the listener along as easily
as anything by Saint-Saëns, who is also identified as an influential factor
in the structure of the piece. Pierné has his own magnificent big tune moments
though, and the first movement Allegro is a masterpiece of emotional
manipulation – heroic and triumphantly emotional by turns. The central movement
is a scherzo rather than a slower centre, the demanding journey of the first
movement having already been weighty enough to find us deserving a lighter
section. Fleeting and virtuosic piano writing and transparent orchestration
give this movement a delightfully balletic feel. This sets us up for the roller-coaster
ride of the Finale, which recalls the main theme from the first movement
as well as putting a cyclic structure to work which is reminiscent of techniques
employed by Pierné’s organ teacher César Franck. This is large-scale and ambitious
writing, but avoids becoming heavy through plenty of light and shade contrasts
both in material and orchestration, which is frequently quite sparing. The
vast range of the recording brings Pierné’s colours to vibrant life, and this
combined with such a potent performance grants this neglected concerto a well
deserved revival.
A much later work, the Divertissements sur un Thème Pastoral contrasts
hugely with the romantic overtones of the Piano Concerto. There are
elements of neo-classicism in the piece, and with the Parisian air filled
with the cultural revolutions of ‘Les six’ and the influx of new kinds of
popular music there would have been plenty for an imaginative composer to
get his teeth into. While the romantic feel is still present, this is tinged
with a palette which allows slide trombones and witty syncopation, swooping
film-music gestures and the introduction of an orchestral saxophone. This
‘new stuff’ appears with a slightly coy, almost Elgar-like reserve, but you
can sense the older composer enjoying himself immensely, and the closing moments
of the work are superbly uplifting.
The name Ramuntcho comes from a novel from 1897 by Pierre Loti. The
two suites performed here derive from Pierné’s incidental music from a stage
production of the story. This tells of an eponymous hero who returns to his
village after military service, only to find his bride-to be in enforced confinement
to a convent. The story ends with Gracieuse dying, torn between the choice
which she has to make between God and her lover. Pierné’s score delivered
more than the rather melodramatic tale would seem to indicate possible, but
he made full use of the regional colour in the story, conjuring the pungent
Basque atmosphere with confident ebullience in the Overture. There
are intensely beautiful moments, such as the scene in Le Jardin de Gracieuse,
the interaction of the two main characters depicted by a duet of flutes which
move lyrically over a bed of strings, harp and warm wind chords. Moving theatricality
is drawn out of La chamber de Franchita, in which the hero’s sick mother
lies, close to death. This desolation is punctured by the lively Fandango
which follows, recalling earlier village dances. The second suite opens
with another sprightly piece, evoking the folk-character of a cider house.
The piety and sober gloom of Le Couvent follows, rich in the kinds
of parallel progressions which Poulenc used in his opera on the Carmelites.
The whole thing closes with a Rhapsodie Basque, which opens with a
funereal tread, but gradually picks up tempo in a kind of review of the play
in reverse. Whatever the nature of the story, this is very fine music and
fully capable of standing alone as a concert work. The perfectly balanced
sonorities of the BBC Philharmonic do it magnificent justice.
This is a very fine disc indeed. Beautifully recorded and performed, Juanjo
Mena has a seemingly effortless control of every subtlety in these scores,
and as previously mentioned the cause of Gabriel Pierné should be greatly
enhanced with this release. The biggest item is the Piano Concerto,
and Jean-Efflam Bavouzet’s storming of the CD catalogue continues apace. Everything
here is well worth acquiring though, and this is a programme with no fillers.
Dominy Clements
Very fine indeed, and a high-quality programme with no fillers necessary.