Summary
La Courte Paille (The Short Straw), FP 178, is a set of seven songs for voice and piano, composed in 1960 by Francis Poulenc on poems by Maurice Carême. The duration of the work is roughly 8 minutes.
| La Courte Paille | |
|---|---|
| Songs by Francis Poulenc | |
| Catalogue | FP 178 |
| Based on | Poems by Maurice Carême |
| Composed | Summer 1960 |
| Performed | September 1961 |
| Scoring |
|
| Premiere | |
| Location | Festival de Royaumont (then Seine-et-oise department) |
History of the work edit
Composed in July–August 1960, the songs were premiered at the festival of Royaumont Abbey, in 1961, by soprano Colette Herzog and Jacques Février as the pianist.[1]
Titles edit
- Le sommeil
- Quelle aventure !
- La reine de cœur
- Ba, be, bi, bo, bu
- Les anges musiciens
- Le carafon
- Lune d'avril
Origin of the poems edit
Le sommeil, Ba, be, bi, bo, bu and Le carafon come from the collection of Maurice Carême La Cage aux grillons (1959).
Quelle aventure ! , La reine de cœur, Les anges musiciens and Lune d'avril come from the collection Le Voleur d'étincelles (1960).
Dedicatee edit
La Courte Paille is dedicated to the singer Denise Duval (1921–2016) in honor of her son Richard Schilling.[1]
Discography edit
- Fiançailles pour rire ; La Courte Paille - Colette Herzog (soprano) and Jacques Février (piano) - Deutsche Grammophon, 1963.
- 3 et 6 : Les Nuits d'été ; mélodies - Régine Crespin (soprano) and John Wustman (piano) - Decca Records, 1967.
- La Dame de Monte Carlo ; La Courte Paille - Mady Mesplé (soprano) and Gabriel Tacchino (piano) - EMI Group, 1986.
- Mélodies - Elly Ameling (soprano) and Dalton Baldwin (piano) - EMI Group, 1991.
- Voyage à Paris - Frederica von Stade (mezzo-soprano) and Martin Katz (piano) - BMG France, 1995.
- Mélodies - Felicity Lott (soprano) and Pascal Rogé (piano) - Decca Records, 1998.
References edit
- ^ a b La Courte Paille Archived 2013-06-30 at the Wayback Machine on the site of the Bibliothèque nationale de France
Clifton, Keith E. "Beyond Childhood: Poulenc, La courte paille, and the Aural Envelope." College Music Symposium 49/50 (2009/2010): 333-44.
External links edit
- Francis Poulenc (1899-1963) - La courte paille on YouYube
- La Courte Paille, cycle de mélodies ? by Joelle Brun-Cosme
- Francis Poulenc sur La courte paille on INA.fr (26 February 1961)
- La courte paille, FP178 on Hyperion with French lyrics and English translations
