This album is the fourth volume in a series exploring jazz-influenced piano literature, focusing on French and Belgian composers after World War I.
Composer Biography
Darius Milhaud, a member of Les Six, was known for his exuberant personality and experimentation, incorporating Brazilian melodies and early jazz into his works.
Performer Biography
Gottlieb Wallisch, the pianist on this album, made his debut at age twelve in the Golden Hall of the Vienna Musikverein and became the youngest professor at the Geneva University for Music in 2010.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Young French composers were fascinated by jazz, seeing it as a way to revitalize the Western tradition and free French art music from German Classicism and Wagnerism.
Compositional Technique
Erik Satie, a cabaret pianist, composed a "Stand-Walk Marche" in 1904, which was a melody with a ragtime stutter over a march accompaniment, later used for the song "La Diva de l'Empire."
Historical Context
The new musical vogue of jazz spread in France and Belgium in 1918, thanks to the triumphant tour of James Reese Europe's Hellfighter Military Band.
Historical Context
The period in Paris known as "le tumulte noir" (the Black craze) saw Montmartre become a kind of Harlem, with almost every bar featuring an orchestra with saxophones, banjos, and drums.
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Remembranza
Ponce, M.M.: Suite Cubana / 2 Etudes / 4 Danzas Mexicanas / Piano Sonata No. 2 / Rapsodia Cubana I / Scherzino / Preludios Encadenados
Severac, D. De: Cerdana, 5 Etudes Pittoresques / Sous Les Lauriers Roses / Les Naiades Et Le Faune Indiscret / Baigneuses Au Soleil
Ginastera: The Complete Music For Piano & Piano Chamber Ensembles
