François Le Roux, Graham Johnson - Durey: Songs (Hyperion French Song Edition) (2002)

Tracklist

01. Hommage à Erik Satie
02. Chansons basques, Op. 23: No. 1, Prière
03. Chansons basques, Op. 23: No. 2, Polka
04. Chansons basques, Op. 23: No. 3, Attelage
05. Le bestiaire: Orpheus Poem 1. Orphée
06. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 1, La tortue
07. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 2, Le cheval
08. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 3, Le chèvre du Thibet
09. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 4, Le serpent
10. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 5, Le chat
11. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 6, Le lion
12. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 7, Le lièvre
13. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 8, Le lapin
14. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 9, Le dromadaire
15. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 10, La souris
16. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 11, L'éléphant
17. Le bestiaire: Orpheus Poem 2. Orphée
18. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 12, La chenille
19. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 13, La mouche
20. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 14, La puce
21. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 15, La sauterelle
22. Le bestiaire: Orpheus Poem 3. Orphée
23. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 16, Le dauphin
24. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 17, Le poulpe
25. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 18, La méduse
26. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 19, L'écrevisse
27. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 20, La carpe
28. Le bestiaire: Orpheus Poem 4. Orphée
29. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 21, Les sirènes
30. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 22, La colombe
31. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 23, Le paon
32. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 24, Le hibou
33. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 25, Ibis
34. Le bestiaire, Op. 17a: No. 26, Le bœuf
35. 2 Lieder romantiques, Op. 20: No. 1, Mon pâle visage
36. 2 Lieder romantiques, Op. 20: No. 2, Tu es telle qu'un fleur
37. Epigrammes de Théocrite, Op. 13: No. 1, Veux-tu, au nom des Nymphes
38. Epigrammes de Théocrite, Op. 13: No. 2, Ces roses, humides de rosée
39. Epigrammes de Théocrite, Op. 13: No. 3, Daphnis à la peau blanche
40. Epigrammes de Théocrite, Op. 13: No. 4, Tu dors, Daphnis
41. 3 Poèmes de Pétrone, Op. 15: No. 1, La boule de neige
42. 3 Poèmes de Pétrone, Op. 15: No. 2, La métempsychose
43. 3 Poèmes de Pétrone, Op. 15: No. 3, La grenade
44. Inscriptions sur un oranger, Op. 16: No. 1, Oranger dont la voûte épaisse
45. Inscriptions sur un oranger, Op. 16: No. 2, Bel arbre, pourquoi conserver ces deux noms
46. Images à Crusoé, Op. 11: No. 1, Crusoé
47. Images à Crusoé, Op. 11: No. 2, Vendredi
48. Images à Crusoé, Op. 11: No. 3, Association
49. Images à Crusoé, Op. 11: No. 4, L'arc
50. Images à Crusoé, Op. 11: No. 5, Visitation
51. Images à Crusoé, Op. 11: No. 6, Le perroquet
52. Images à Crusoé, Op. 11: No. 7, Attente

'Les Six' was the appellation given to a group of young French composers circa 1920 who briefly worked together as a counter-offensive to the excesses and giganticism of 'late-Romantics' typified by such composers as Mahler and Schoenberg. But the movement didn't last long and each of the 'six' soon went his (or in one case her) own way. The most familiar names of the six today are Poulenc, Honegger, Milhaud and Auric. Also, to some extent, Germaine Tailleferre. The least remembered member of the group is undoubtedly Louis Durey, who died as recently as 1979. Like Britain's Rutland Boughton and Alan Bush, his career was seriously hampered because of his well-publicised political beliefs. He was a communist, even setting to music some of the writings of Ho Chi Minh.

Durey's turn in our French Song Edition has now come, and this disc assembles a programme of his virtually unknown songs including settings of Apollinaire's Bestiaire, the only composer to set all thirty of them.

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