Poulenc: Chamber Music

Featuring

Kolja Lessing
Eva-Maria May
Henrik Wiese
Alexander Wienand
Francis Poulenc

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Historical Context

Poulenc was part of the 'Groupe des Six', a legendary union of six composers formed in 1919, including Georges Auric, Louis Durey, Arthur Honegger, Darius Milhaud, and Germaine Tailleferre.

Compositional Technique

Poulenc's music often features moments of extreme dissonant tension and unexpected severity, using 'modern' techniques to highlight extreme expressive values.

Composer's Artistic Vision

Poulenc's musical style remained rooted in tradition from Baroque to Impressionism, despite later radical stylistic changes like serialism in the 1950s.

Composer Biography

Francis Poulenc was born in Paris in 1899 and his oeuvre spanned over four decades until his sudden death in 1963.

Compositional Technique

Poulenc's piano style is known for its colorful richness, beauty of sound, and brilliance, with his Improvisations being among his favorites.

Composition History

Poulenc dedicated his Violin Sonata to the memory of Federico Garcia Lorca, a poet and dramatist who was an early victim of the Spanish Civil War, as a sign of resistance during wartime.

Composer Biography

Poulenc's life was marked by the early deaths of his mother and father, which led to a creative remembrance transferred to music and a deep religiosity.