It's not British, but...Poulenc Piano Music

On my very first trip to Paris, I attended a concert of piano music by members of Les Six (Milhaud, Honegger, Tailleferre, Poulenc, Durey and Auric). Nearly fifty years on, I do not recall the name of the pianist nor the exact repertoire. However, the main event was a performance of Poulenc's Improvisations for Piano. I was fascinated and have enjoyed and appreciated these sophisticated numbers ever since.

The Improvisations are a collection of fifteen piano pieces completed between 1932 and 1959. Despite the long gestation period, the liner notes are correct in regarding the complete set as “clearly conceived…as a single growing collection.” In later life, Poulenc remained proud of them, despite belittling many of his other piano works.

All these Improvisations were given a dedication, sometimes to fellow composers. The tender second is dedicated to Louis Durey, whilst the enigmatic fifth was offered to Georges Auric. The twelfth is subtitled "Hommage à Schubert," in which the essence of a Viennese waltz is captured, but with Poulenc’s own “take” on the form. The final Improvisation was dedicated to the legendary French singer, Édith Piaf. With its “bittersweet and passionate style” it is a moving tribute to this iconic star. This was my favourite number 46 years ago and it remains as such today.

The first of the Deux Novelettes nods towards Mendelssohn’s Songs Without Words, with its pastoral musings presented in a flowing manner. The second is “jazzy and chromatic” with “spicy harmonies” and a surprise ending. Both were completed in 1928. The Novelette in E Minor on a Theme of Manuel de Falla was composed thirty-one years later. It was a contribution to a commemorative publication, The House of Chester, 1860-1960 Album. This volume featured music by Lennox Berkeley, Eugene Goossens, John Ireland, and Gian Francesco Malipiero. The lengthy theme sourced from de Falla’s El amor brujo, is not developed but simply repeated several times with a subtle accompaniment “bathed in pedals.”

The first two Intermezzi were written in 1934, whilst the third was completed in 1943. They have often been grouped together. The first has been described as a “whirlwind tour of Paris” as ideally accompanying a scene from Chaplin’s Modern Times. The second was dedicated to the socialite and singer, the Comtesse Jean de Polignac. It opens with a wistful tune, develops with complex chromaticism, before rising to a climax, and closing quietly- all in the space of four minutes. The third Intermezzo, dating from 1943, at a time when the Germans were occupying the capital city, is modelled on Chopin or Fauré. It has been noted that in the final bars, Poulenc presented a sequence of twelve chords in all the keys. Altogether a beacon of hope in deeply troubling times.

Written for Vladimir Horowitz, the diminutive Presto in B flat major, (1934) makes a splendid encore. It balances elegance with virtuosity.

Francis Poulenc's Thème varié, is an uneven work. Individual variations are of considerable interest, but overall, it lacks cohesion. It opens with a tranquil theme (Très calme et sans hâte), followed by eleven diverse variations, each with a suggestive title. For example, there is a light-hearted Joyeuse, a turgid Noble, an idyllic Pastorale, a violent Sarcastique, and a pensive Mélancolique. The last variation/finale is relatively massive. For me it spoils the balance of the piece, despite containing interesting and effective music. The Thème varié was composed at Poulenc’s country house at Noizay between February and September 1951. It was dedicated to Geneviève Sienkiewicz, a family friend.

The recital concludes with the thoughtful Mélancolie, written in the communes of Talence and Brive, not too far away from Bordeaux, between June and August 1940. This was shortly after the Fall of France. It was dedicated to his chauffeur and “dear friend” Raymond Destouches. It is in Poulenc’s favourite key of D flat major and structured in ternary form with a complex middle section. It is signed to be played with “the song softly brought out” with an accompaniment “very wrapped in pedals.” Geoffrey Bush had suggested that the “melancholy” nature is not overstated, as might be expected due to the historical circumstances, but “suggests a nostalgia for past happiness, tinged with regret because it can never return.”

Paul Berkowitz is a Canadian pianist, born in Montreal. He is renowned for his interpretations of Schubert’s piano works, having recently completed a nine-CD survey of the composer’s major pieces. A graduate of McGill University and the Curtis Institute of Music, he studied under Rudolf Serkin. He currently serves as Professor of Piano at the University of California, Santa Barbara.

The booklet text is devised by the soloist and provides a detailed introduction and analysis of these pieces. The recording is excellent.

Any performance of Poulenc’s music must focus on the wide contrasts of style and tempo, with moods ranging from lively and rhythmic to brooding and sentimental. Add to this the inherent wit and urbanity that is his trademark. This disc presents a comprehensive conspectus of this achievement.  Paul Berkowitz has encapsulated the huge variety of these near-perfect vignettes in this new recording.

Track Listing:
Francis Poulenc (1899-1963)

10 Improvisations, FP 63 (1932-34)
2 Improvisations, FP 113 (1941)
2 Improvisations, FP 170 (1958)
Improvisation, FP 176 (1959)
2 Novelettes, FP 47 (1927-28)
Novelette, FP 173 (1959)
2 Intermezzi, FP 71 (1934)
Intermezzo, FP 118 (1943)
Presto in B flat major, FP 70 (1934)
Thème varié, FP 151 (1951)
Mélancolie, FP 105 (1940)
Paul Berkowitz (piano)
rec. 1-3 August 2023, St Peter’s Church, Boughton Monchelsea, Kent
Meridian CDE 84674