Gouvy: Sérénades for Flute and Strings

Featuring

Markus Brönnimann
Ilka Emmert
Haoxing Liang
Silja Geirhardsdottir
Jean-Marc Apap
Niall Brown

Michael Kleiser
Kreisler String Quartet
Louis Théodore Gouvy

Did you know?

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Composer Biography

Gouvy's German nationality prevented him from studying at the prestigious Paris Conservatoire, though he still moved among musicians and composed extensively.

Composer Biography

Théodore Gouvy, born in 1819, had joint French and German heritage, constantly moving between the two cultures.

Historical Context

During the Franco-Prussian War in 1870, Gouvy's music was criticized by some as too French and by others as too German, due to heightened nationalist reactions.

Cultural Impact

After Gouvy's death in 1898, his music was largely forgotten for a century until the Institut Théodore Gouvy was established in 1995 to rediscover and promote his works.

Composer Biography

Théodore Gouvy was friends with many famous composers and musicians of his time, including Brahms, Franck, Grieg, Rossini, Saint-Saëns, Clara Schumann, and Tchaikowski.

Recording & Production

This album was recorded in Saarbrücken in two sessions: October 2012 for Sérénades Op. 84 and Op. posth., and January 2013 for Sérénade Op. 82 and flute and piano works.

Composer's Artistic Vision

Gouvy's Sérénades for piano and chamber forces, inspired by Schubert and Mendelssohn, are characterized by melodic and harmonic elegance and contrapuntal liveliness.