Symétrie

The title of this piece comes from the magnificent great Gregorian antiphon Salve Regina, probably written in the 11th century that has been since inspiring musicians for almost a thousand years. This...

This edition of the Variations on a theme by Gluck is based on the sole existent source, that is, the edition published during the composer's lifetime by Gambaro of Paris. The opening theme, on which...

This edition of the Sonata in G major, Op. 46, No. 1, is based on that of the Trois Sonates pour le Pianoforte (Three Sonatas for Pianoforte) published in 1804 by Breitkopf & Härtel. With the exceptio...

This edition of the Sonata in B flat major, Op. 46, No. 2, is based on that of the Trois Sonates pour le Pianoforte (Three Sonatas for Pianoforte) published in 1804 by Breitkopf & Härtel. With the exc...

This edition of the Sonata in E major, Op. 46, No. 3, is based on that of the Trois Sonates pour le Pianoforte (Three Sonatas for Pianoforte) published in 1804 by Breitkopf & Härtel. With the exceptio...

This edition of the work entitled Fantaisie sur un thème de Frescobaldi (Fantasia on a theme by Frescobaldi), composed around 1800, is based on the sole surviving source, namely the manuscript Ms 1206...

This edition of the 57 Variations on a theme by Grétry is based on the sole existing source, namely, the edition published by Zetter in Paris in 1824 under the title Étude de Piano ou 57 Variations su...

This Sonata was initially conceived (in 1995) for solo cello. It rapidly proved unplayable in this form. In 1996 it was entirely recast for two cellos. This was not simply a matter of transcribing it,...

Known above all for his operas, such as Manon (1884), Werther (1892) and Thaïs (1894), Jules Massenet (1842-1912) also left nearly 300 art songs for voice and piano or orchestral accompaniment. Most o...

Refus (1901) It was not until its publication on the 12th of January 1901 in Le Figaro that Refus was acknowledged to be one of Massenet's works. However, it marked the beginning of an interesting but...

Massenet composed Amoureux d'une étoile in August 1911, just one year before his death on the 13th of August 1912. The poem comes from a collection by Vice Admiral Eugène de Jonquières (1850-1919),...

The composer, known for his power of seduction, thus put his work at the service of his public image. He needed the press which, in turn, wished to benefit from his assistance, so much so that his pop...

Already practised in the salons of the second half of the 18th century, the genre of the romance experienced an unprecedented vogue under the Empire and then the Restoration. Defined in Jean-Jacques R...

These poetic 'collages' were born from a freedom left to words to arrange themselves in images, almost without the assent of thought. I say 'almost'. In this field, regardless of what one might allege...

Contrary to my custom, I decided to bring together in this cahier songs set to poems by three different writers. Their date of composition, which provides this (false) semblance of title, would certai...

I came to Reverdy late - I was already in my twenties - through two verses from Les Ardoises du toit, that I happened to be leafing through by chance at a friend's home: 'The last belltower still stan...

In the preface to my Trois Poèmes de Supervielle, recently published by Symétrie, I describe his poetry as 'familiar, peaceful and reassuring', deeming it 'faithful to all stages of our life'. But I d...

I can never repeat too often how much my taste in poetry - a certain kind of poetry - is indebted to Georges Schehadé. After a childhood carpeted with Victor Hugo's alexandrines, and an adolescence in...

Only seven secular compositions of his larger musical output have survived. Despite the small sample size, Pierre Fontaine's songs exhibit an originality and beauty that foreshadowed those of his famo...

La Légende de saint Nicolas (The Legend of Saint Nicholas) The Legend of Saint Nicholas was published on 1 January 1880 in the first issue of Saint-Nicolas: Journal illustré pour garçons et filles, a...

Recently discovered, Reynaldo Hahn's Sagesse cycle, inspired by Verlaine's collection, is among the works composed during his romantic relationship with Marcel Proust, between 1894 and 1896. He first...

In a tale by Anatole France, the king of Persia wanted to learn 'the universal history of men'. However, his scholars having taken so long in compiling the volumes, he will no longer have the time to...

My liking for Schehadé dates back to when I was very young. One of my aunts acted as secretary to the poet, and in the silken cocoon of those long afternoons when she was typing out the chansonnettes...

Those who feel intimidated by Le Soulier de satin or the Cinq Grandes Odes (and at the same time fascinated—and dwarfed—by their sheer immensity) are surprised, on opening his Phrases pour éventails,...

My liking for Schehadé dates back to when I was very young. One of my aunts acted as secretary to the poet, and in the silken cocoon of those long afternoons when she was typing out the chansonnettes...