For many listeners, this French composer will be recalled for a single work: the Pastorale for organ, completed in 1909. More adventurous folk will have come across the two Marco Polo discs of a selection of his orchestral music, including his masterpiece Au Jardin de Marguerite. These were issued in 1994.
A few biographical notes will be of interest. Roger-Ducasse was born in Bordeaux on 18 April 1873. He initially studied with Émile Pessard and André Gédalge and then, critically, with Gabriel Fauré. Success came when he won second prize for his cantata Alcyone in the Grand Prix de Rome. Much of his career was devoted to teaching, succeeding Paul Dukas as Professor of Composition at the Paris Conservatoire in 1935. Some of his distinguished pupils included Jacques Ibert, Jéhan Alain and the sadly ignored Scotsman, Francis George Scott as a private pupil.
His catalogue is wide-ranging and includes the opera Cantergril (1931) and several major orchestral works, including the Sarabande (1907), the Nocturne d’Hiver (1921) and the Epithalame (1923). There were chamber works, motets, songs, and piano music. A recording of his large-scale Mahler-esque Ulysse et les sirènes (1937) for chorus and orchestra remains a desideratum for his admirers. Jean Roger-Ducasse died at Le-Taillan-Médoc near Bordeaux on 19 July 1954, aged 81 years.
Several things inform Roger-Ducasse’s style. He absorbed a great deal from Bach, especially in the use of counterpoint, and this discipline gives his music a strong inner structure even when the surface becomes highly decorated. He did not try to integrate modernist tendencies into his compositions. Whilst not eschewing contemporary harmonies he used them more for interest than for shock. His music is rarely aggressive or bitter. Above all, stands the influence of his former teacher, Gabriel Fauré, from whom he inherited ‘classical restraint’ though Roger‑Ducasse often pushes rhythmic complexity much further than his mentor ever did.
The two above mentioned reviews contain detailed analysis, which I will not repeat here: I will remark on a few highlights (for me).
The Six Preludes date from 1907. Unlike Claude Debussy’s Préludes which were completed three years later, Roger-Ducasse does not attempt to provide a programme, literary or topographical. Each Prélude uses a limited amount of material, but is subject to "the logical unfolding, with flexibility and imagination, of a melodic, harmonic, or rhythmic motif, clearly established in the first measures of each piece" (M. Emmanuel, programme note). This thematic concentration is constantly enhanced by interesting harmonies. Martin Jones plays nos. 2, 5 and 6 here. The first performance of the complete cycle was on 13 January 1912, at the "Société Nationale," by the legendary French pianist, Marguerite Long.
Two numbers from Roger-Ducasse’s Four Études (1915) are sampled. The first, No.1 has all the hallmarks of Claude Debussy’s “Doctor Gradus ad Parnassum” from Children’s Corner. However, its middle section is infinitely more complex to play, with increased chromaticism and nods to modernist techniques. The second, a Fugue, opens lightly with a ‘très aimable’ theme derived from a children’s song. Despite being in ‘only’ two voices, this fugue (like many others) gets more complicated and technically difficult as it progresses. It balances the simplicity of the subject with demanding and dense episodes, stretto, and coda.
The Arabesque No.1 (1917) was dedicated to the violinist and friend of Maurice Ravel, Ms. Hélène Léon (Hélène Jourdan-Morhange). It is an elegant number that combines a succession of nimble motifs, flexible rhythms, and inventive harmonic and pianistic detail. Ostensibly in F-sharp major, it is chromatically wayward. Sadly, Martin Jones only played the first Arabesque here; No.2 was completed in 1919.
How anyone can play Roger-Ducasse’s Rythmes, also dating from 1917, I will never know. I followed this brilliantly played piece in the score: it is a thesaurus of rhythmic devices, made more complicated by a shower of accidentals. It is certainly not easily accessible to the average pianist. It would be a thoughtful and commanding encore for any recital.
Martin Jones needs little
introduction to piano music enthusiasts. Born in 1940, he is one of Britain’s
most versatile and prolific pianists, first receiving public attention on
winning the Dame Myra Hess Award in 1968. His international career spans major
concerto appearances, recitals, and broadcasts. Distinguished by his vast
discography on Nimbus Records, he has recorded complete piano cycles by
composers from Mendelssohn and Debussy to Grainger and Jean Françaix.
The liner notes are clear and informative. They include a good introduction to Roger-Ducasse’s life and work written by Rhys Ward, as well as detailed notes by Adrian Farmer on the present repertoire. They are, I believe extracted from the original 3-CD release.
After listening to this concise survey of Roger-Ducasse’s piano music, so imaginatively played, I feel that I should explore the full set, making up for lost time.
Track Listing:Jean Roger-Ducasse (1873-1954)
Barcarolle (1906)
Six Préludes II. Très calme; V. D'un rythme capricieux et tender; VI. Très souple (1907)
Arabesques (1917)
Etude en Sol dièse mineur (1914)
Barcarolle No. 2 (1920)
Etude en Sixtes (1916)
Quatre Etudes I. Prélude; II. Fugue (1915)
Etude en La bémol majeur (1916)
Romance (1923)
Rythmes (1917)
Martin Jones (piano)
rec. 2014, Concert Hall of the Nimbus Foundation, Wyastone Leys, Monmouth
Nimbus NI 7744
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