Florent Schmitt ‒ Ombres, Op 64

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Florent Schmitt (1870-1958), Ombres (shadows) Op 64 for solo piano (1913 - 1917)
Performed by Vincent Larderet (2011)
00:00 - No. 1 J'entends dans le lontain...
13:00 - No. 2 Mauresque
18:45 - No. 3 Cette ombre, mon image...
The son of a cloth manufacturer, Schmitt was born in 1870 in Blâmont, Meurthe-et-Moselle, in the province of Lorraine. Something of a late starter, he had his first musical education in Nancy. In 1889 he entered the Paris Conservatoire, where he studied with Dubois, Lavignac, Massenet and Fauré, whom he greatly admired and whose influence may be heard in his very early works. Schmitt won the Prix de Rome in 1900 with his cantata Sémiramis, and his reputation was soon after confirmed by the appearance of his major choral work Psaume XLVII (Psalm 47). He was seldom in residence, and spent much of his time travelling throughout Europe sampling the contemporary music on offer. Throughout a long and highly productive life, Schmitt continued to compose a host of stage, orchestral, vocal, chamber and piano works. During his career he was President of the Société nationale de musique, and a member of the Société musicale indépendante. In 1914 he was enlisted into military service, and sent to serve in the front line at his own request. After the war, from 1921 to 1924 he was Director of the Lyons Conservatoire, and in 1929 became music critic for Le Temps, a position which he occupied in the manner of a high arbiter of national taste. In 1936, as mentioned above, Schmitt was elected to the Institut de France and the Académie des Beaux-Arts.
With Ombres (‘Shadows’), Op.64, written between 1913 and 1917, Florent Schmitt reached full maturity and signed an indisputable masterpiece, which deserves a place at the summit of French piano literature alongside Debussy’s Images and Ravel’s Gaspard de la nuit. In fact, Ombres shares certain aspects with those scores: comparable length, the same triptych form whose completely independent pieces are inspired by poems and, finally, the same orchestral treatment of the piano writing. Here one might speak of veritable symphonic poems for piano. Inspired by an excerpt from Lautréamont’s Chants de Maldoror, quoted as an epigraph - ‘In the distance I hear prolonged cries of the most poignant suffering’ - the first piece is the most ambitious of his entire piano oeuvre in its length (the only one to exceed ten minutes), but especially in its fearsome technical difficulties. Based on two amply developed main themes - the one rebellious, the other, which follows immediately, quite inward, but both full of dramatic, painful feeling; this first part, written in the dark year of 1917, obviously echoes the conflict of the Great War. Faithful to his wish to ‘see all the masterpieces written initially for piano before being orchestrated’, a version for piano and orchestra would be realised and first performed by Jacques Février and the Orchestre Colonne in 1930. Shorter and having no literary support, Mauresque serves as an entertaining interlude. After a brief, threatening introduction, the main theme is stated languorously and indolently, and a second motif with its Debussyst progressions of fifths maintains the piece in a serene atmosphere devoid of dramatic feelings. The last piece, once again bringing Debussy to mind, is inspired by a Walt Whitman poem: ‘This shadow, my image that comes and goes, seeking its life...‘ Florent Schmitt, after Debussy in Images or Ravel in Miroirs, broaches the typically Impressionistic theme of the reflected image
and here uses absolutely remarkable harmonies and crystalline colours.
Unlike Ravel, who dedicated each movement of his Gaspard de la nuit to pianist friends (Harold Bauer, Jean Marnold and Rudolph Ganz), Schmitt dedicated each movement of Ombes to literary or social acquaintances: lecturer/writer Paul Loyonnet; Linette Chalupt, daughter of the poet René Chalupt; and Yvonne Müller, soon to become the wife of Italian composer Alfredo Casella.
Read more at: florentschmitt.com/2013/08/05/...
As a side note, I have to say this is one of the most impressively intricate and beautiful scores for piano I've ever laid eyes upon. Note: it appears to have been started in 1912, rather than 1913

Пікірлер: 162

@gerardbegni2806 6 жыл бұрын

A masterpiece of the Franch piano music. The writing for the piano is generally very thick. This explains why the composer most often choses three staves

@gerardbegni2806 7 жыл бұрын

IN a book impossible to find nowadays, the pianist Alfred Cortot described the Franch piano music of the first half of the XXth Century and ranked Ombres very high.

@Medtnaculuss 7 жыл бұрын

Interesting! I'd love to hear about some of the other works he mentions in the book.

@roberthayes7737 3 жыл бұрын

I think I have a copy of that book lying around somewhere. EDIT: I checked, and it's the English translation of the first volume. From what I could find, there are three volumes and Schmitt is discussed in the second one. EDIT #2: I have a copy of the second volume (in French). Could send scanned pages if you like. Also, aside from the book being very old (published 1932), this particular copy was signed by Cortot himself.

@mkeating52 2 жыл бұрын

@@roberthayes7737 What's the book called?

@roberthayes7737 2 жыл бұрын

@@mkeating52 It's called 'French Piano Music.' As far as I know, only the first volume has been translated into English, but (as I think I mentioned above), Cortot's comments on Schmitt are in Volume 2.

@gerardbegni2806 2 жыл бұрын

@@mkeating52 The modern music of piano. Since I wo rote the comment 4 years ago, a second edition was issued.. Cortot was indeed a very great pianist and musiciOccupation

@dspannplayspiano 5 жыл бұрын

A flamboyant piece of intense, rushing colors. That sweet resolution at 5:43...

@cedricrlongreen 7 жыл бұрын

This piece is like a beautiful splash of color

@resorcinolamide 7 ай бұрын

I have many emotions about this piece but I love it

@olla-vogala4090 8 жыл бұрын

Good job, thanks for sharing!

@Medtnaculuss 8 жыл бұрын

+olla-vogala Thanks!

@PeterLunowPL 2 жыл бұрын

the beginning reminds me a bit of Scarbo by Ravel ,but the music is completely original and stunningly beautiful !!