Paris Boulevard: Fin-de-siècle Piano Music
Dario Müller (piano)
Rec. Lugano, RSI, Auditorio Stelio Molo, 21 February 1981, 4 May 2019
DYNAMIC CDS7877 [56:19]
Curiously, Dario Müller seems to have stretched the time frame for this important period of French cultural history. I checked the definition of ‘fin-de-siècle’ and it would appear to refer to the 1880’s and 1890’s, an era typified by the art of Toulouse-Lautrec and which often demonstrated a ‘decadent gaiety’. Even if we consider a ‘long’ fin-de-siècle, the ‘terminus ad quem’ is the commencement of the First World War, but most of the music on this CD post-dates the start of that conflagration. I would classify only six or seven of these pieces as genuinely fitting the period.
Take, for example, the Hungarian Joseph Kosma’s delicious tune ‘Les feuilles mortes’ (Autumn Leaves). It is as ‘French’ in mood and sound as you can get, yet appeared as late as 1945, as part of a ballet score with a ‘book’ by the great French poet Jacques Prévert (1900-1977). This is hardly ‘fin-de- siècle’ by any stretch of the imagination. The same applies to Germaine Tailleferre’s delicious ‘Valse lente’, which was written in 1948 - although. interestingly, the booklet states that it was composed in 1928. It is no huge problem, as all the music on this CD is worthy of our attention, but it does seem a bit strange to get the basic historical premise wrong.
There is a difficulty with approaching the content of this CD: the track-listings give no indication of each composer’s birth and death, nor are the dates of most works given. To be fair, composer details are included in the liner notes, in an unusual form (at least to me). For example, Erik Satie is (Honfleur, 1886 – Paris, 1925). Another obstacle is the titles of each work. For example, the first track is listed as ‘Deuxième Gymnopédie’- very true, but it would have been more accurate to have listed it as Trois gymnopédies: no. 2, (1888). That was an easy one to unravel, but consider Poulenc’s Valse: on the rear cover it is simply that, but in the booklet track listing, its tempo ‘assez vif’ is added. It should have been cited as ‘Valse’ from L'album des Six (1919). I think this contextual information is extremely important, and due care should be taken to ensure that it is correct and consistent. I have tried to consolidate/correct/amplify the titles and have supplied dates of composition where possible.
A wide range of French composers are featured on this disc, including four members of ‘Les Six’. The main thread through this disc is Erik Satie, with six works spaced out in the programme; ‘Je te veux’ is my favourite piece. Debussy and Ravel are represented by a single piece each: Ravel’s ‘Fox-Trot’ from his ‘children’s opera’ L'enfant et les sortilèges (1925) is always a delight. I can never understand why this stage work is not a regular feature of Christmas broadcasts in this country, as it is full of magic charm and wonder.
Besides Joseph Kosma, four other non-French composers are included. I enjoyed Alfredo Casella’s ‘Cocktail Dance’, (or is it Cocktail’s?), a flippant but enjoyable little piece of salon music. Kurt Weill’s ‘Tango Habanera’ from the stage play Marie Galante is suitably lugubrious. Despite it being a harrowing story, this music is hot and sultry. Alexandre Tansman was born in Poland but spent most of his life in France. His Huit novelettes were written in 1936. The sixth number is the evocative ‘Blues.’ Finally, Ruggero Leoncavallo’s ‘Papillon’, scherzo for piano in B flat major (1906), makes a refreshing change from his ubiquitous one-act opera I pagliacci (1892).
The liner notes lack background detail about many of these compositions. Take Satie yet again: the fascinating ‘Le piège de Méduse’ is from a short play with text and music by the composer. It was published in 1913 and presented in seven short movements. In fact, these gnomic pieces are played without a break, and would seem to comprise of the entire score of the incidental music. Each number is a page long, and the score is unbarred and devoid of key signatures. The movements heard are ‘Quadrille’, ‘Valse’, ‘Pas vite’, ‘Mazurka’, ‘Un peu vif’ and ‘Polka’. They are associated with some surreal images involving a dancing, stuffed monkey. I need to know this, not to have to investigate and uncover these facts for myself.
I have made my thoughts clear about the disc’s documentation above. The Pissaro painting on the cover of The Boulevard Montmartre at Night (1897) gives a good clue to what the pianist was trying to achieve here. The programme order is well considered.; that said, I would not recommend through-listening to this CD. Despite being only a stingy 56 minutes of music, some selection and planning is required, else the entire recital is in danger of becoming blurred into one wallow of music. I suggest an exploration by date, taking five or six pieces at a time.
Certainly, the performance is excellent and committed. The recording is ideal. I enjoyed all the music on this CD, and it has given me several interesting avenues to explore further.
John France
Contents
Erik SATIE (1866-1925) Trois gymnopédies: no. 2, (1888) [03:08]
Reynaldo HAHN (1874-1947) Premières valses: no. 5, ‘a l’ombre rêveuse de Chopin’ (1898) [02:24]
Ruggero LEONCAVALLO (1857-1919) Papillon, scherzo for piano in B flat major (1906) [02:58]
Erik SATIE Je te veux (1897, pub. 1902) [04:26]
Henri SAUGUET (1901-1989) Galop from Les forains (1945) [01:21]
Georges AURIC (1899-1983) ‘Where is your Heart’ (from Moulin Rouge) (1952) [01:40]
Erik SATIE Le Piccadilly, Marche (1904) [01:48]
Claude DEBUSSY (1862-1918) Le petit nègre (1909) [01:57]
Maurice RAVEL (1875-1937) L'enfant et les sortilèges (1925): Five o' Clock Fox-Trot (arr. Roger BRANGA (1877-1959)) [02:25]
Erik SATIE Descriptions automatiques (1913): I. Sur un vaisseau [01:53]; II. Sur une lanterne [01:41]; III. Sur un casque [00:56]
Francis POULENC (1899-1963) Valse from L’album des Six (1919) [2:16]
Alfredo CASELLA (1883- 1947) Cocktail Dance (1918) [02:13]
Erik SATIE Le piège de Méduse (1913) [03:44]
Germaine TAILLEFERRE (1892-1983) Valse lente from Paris Magie (1948) [02:18]
Jean WIÉNER (1896-1982) Le grisbi (From Touchez pas au grisbi) (1954) [02:05]
Erik SATIE ‘Ragtime’ from Parade (1916) (arr. Hans OURDINE (1884-1966)) [02:37]
Vincent SCOTTO (1874-1952) ‘J'ai deux amours’ from Paris qui remue (1930) [02:05]
Alexandre TANSMAN (1897-1986) Huit novelettes: no. 6, Blues (1936) [03:36]
Darius MILHAUD (1892-1974) ‘Tango des fratellini’ from Le bœuf sur le toit op. 58 (1920) [02:10]
Kurt WEILL (1900-1950) ‘Youkali Tango-habanera’ from Marie Galante (1934) [03:17]
Joseph KOSMA (1905-1969) Les feuilles mortes (1945) [03:19]
