Francis Poulenc destroyed his earlier violin and piano works, with the only surviving sonata composed in 1942-43 at the request of violinist Ginette Neveu.
Composer Biography
Lili Boulanger was the first woman to win the prestigious Prix de Rome in 1913 for her cantata Faust et Hélène.
Compositional Technique
In her Nocturne, Lili Boulanger quotes the descending flute phrase that opens Debussy's Prélude à L'après-midi d'un faune.
Composition History
Ravel's Sonata for violin and piano No.1 'Posthume' was an earlier work from 1897, first published in 1975, from when he was a student at Paris Conservatoire.
Recording & Production
This album includes both the latest and the original versions of the Presto Tragico finale from Poulenc's Sonata for violin and piano, which he revised in 1949.
Composition History
Poulenc's Sonata for violin and piano was written in memory of the poet Federico García Lorca, and the second movement, Intermezzo, includes a quote from Lorca's 'Las seis cuerdas'.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Lili Boulanger, a composer featured on this album, was interested in the aesthetics of the symbolist movement and particularly fond of Debussy's music.
