Fauré, Gabriel (-Urbain)

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Fauré, Gabriel (-Urbain)

Fauré, Gabriel (-Urbain), great French composer and pedagogue; b. Pamiers, Ariège, May 12, 1845;d. Paris, Nov. 4, 1924. His father was a provincial inspector of primary schools; noticing the musical instinct of his son, he took him to Paris to study with Louis Niedermeyer; after Niedermeyer’s death in 1861, Faure studied with Saint-Saens, from whom he received thorough training in composition. In 1866 he went to Rennes as organist at the church of St.-Sauveur; returned to Paris on the eve of the Franco-Prussian War in 1870, and volunteered in the light infantry. He was organist at Notre Dame de Clignancourt (1870), St.-Honore d’Elyau (1871), and St.-Sulpice (1871–74). He then was named deputy organist (to Saint-Saens, 1874), choirmaster (1877), and chief organist (1896) at the Madeleine. In 1896 he was appointed prof, of composition at the Paris Cons. He was an illustrious teacher; among his students were Ravel, Enesco, Koechlin, Roger-Ducasse, Florent Schmitt, and Nadia Boulanger. In 1905 he succeeded Theodore Dubois as director and served until 1920. Then, quite unexpectedly, he developed ear trouble, resulting in gradual loss of hearing. Distressed, he made an effort to conceal it but was eventually forced to abandon his teaching position. From 1903 to 1921 he wrote occasional music reviews in Le Figaro (a selection was publ. as Opinions musicales, Paris, 1930). He was elected a member of the Academic des Beaux Arts in 1909, and in 1910 was made a Commander of the Legion d’honneur. Faure’s stature as a composer is undiminished by the passage of time. He developed a musical idiom all his own; by subtle application of old modes, he evoked the aura of eternally fresh art; by using unresolved mild discords and special coloristic effects, he anticipated procedures of Impressionism; in his piano works, he shunned virtuosity in favor of the Classical lucidity of the French masters of the clavecin; the precisely articulated melodic line of his songs is in the finest tradition of French vocal music. His great Requiem and his álégie for Cello and Piano have entered the general repertoire.

Works

DRAMATIC Barnabé, opéra- comique (1879; unfinished; not perf.); Caligula, op.52, incidental music to a play by A. Dumas pére (Paris, Nov. 8, 1888); Shi/lock, incidental music to a play by E. de Haraucourt, after Shakespeare, op.57 (Paris, Dec. 17, 1889); La Passion, incidental music to a play by Haraucourt (Paris, April 21, 1890); Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme, incidental music to a play by Moliere (1893); Pelléas et Mélisande, incidental music to a play by Maeterlinck, op.80 (London, June 21, 1898); Prométhée, tragédie lyrique, op.82 (Béziers, Aug. 27, 1900); Le Voile du bonheur, incidental music to a play by Clémenceau, op.88 (Paris, Nov. 4, 1901); Pénélope, drame lyrique (Monte Carlo, March 4, 1913); Masques et bergamasques, comedie musicale, op.112 (Monte Carlo, April 10, 1919). ORCH.: Suite d’orchestre, op.20 (1865–74; 1st movement publ. in 1895 as Allegro symphonique, op.68, in an arrangement for Piano, 4- Hands, byL. Boellmann); Violin Concerto, op.14 (1878–79; 2nd movement destroyed); Berceuse for Violin and Orch., op.16 (1880; original version for Violin and Piano, 1879); Ballade for Piano and Orch., op.19 (Paris, April 23, 1881; original version for Solo Piano, 1877–79); Romance for Violin and Orch., op.28 (1882; original version for Violin and Piano, 1877); Sym. in D minor, op.40 (1884; Paris, March 15, 1885); Pavane for Orch. and Chorus ad libitum, op.50 (1887; Paris, March 28, 1888); Shylock, suite from the incidental music, op.57 (1890); Menuet in F major (1893); álégie for Cello and Orch., op.24 (1896?; original version for Cello and Piano, 1880); Pelléas et Mélisande, suite from the incidental music, op.80 (1898); Jules Cesar, suite after Caligula, op.52 (1905); Dolly, suite, op.56 (an orchestration by H. Rabaud [1906] of the pieces for Piano, 4-Hands, 1894–97); Fantaisie for Piano and Orch., op.lll (1918–19; Paris, March 14, 1919); Masques et bergamasques, suite from the comedie musicale, op.112 (1919); Chant funeraire (1921). CHAMBE R (all 1st perf. in Paris unless otherwise given): 2 violin sonatas: No. 1, op.13 (1875–76; Jan. 27, 1877) and No. 2, op.108 (1916–17; Nov. 10, 1917); 2 piano quartets: No. 1, op.15 (1876–79; Feb. 14, 1880; rev. 1883) and No. 2, op.45 (1885–86; Jan. 22, 1887); Romance for Violin and Piano, op.28 (1877; Feb. 3, 1883; 2nd version for Violin and Orch., 1882); Berceuse for Violin and Piano, op.16 (1879; Feb. 14, 1880; 2nd version for Violin and Orch., 1880); £legie for Cello and Piano, op.24 (1880; Dec. 15, 1883; 2nd version for Cello and Orch., 1896?); Papillon for Cello and Piano, op.77 (1884?); Petite pièce for Cello, op.49 (1887?); 2 piano quintets: No. 1, op.89 (1887–95; 1903–5; Brussels, March 23, 1906) and No. 2, op.115 (1919–21; May 21, 1921); Romance for Cello and Piano, op.69 (1894); Andante for Violin and Piano, op.75 (1897; Jan. 22, 1898); Sicilienne for Cello or Violin and Piano, op.78 (1898); Fantaisie for Flute and Piano, op.79 (July 28, 1898; orchestrated by L. Aubert, 1957); Sérénade for Cello and Piano, op.98 (1908); 2 cello sonatas: No. 1, op.109 (1917; Jan. 19, 1918) and No. 2, op.117 (1921; May 13, 1922); Piano Trio, op.120 (1922–23; May 12, 1923); String Quartet, op.121 (1923–24; June 12, 1925). KEYBOARD : Piano (all for Solo Piano unless otherwise given): 3 romances sans paroles, op.17 (1863); Interméde symphonique for Piano, 4-Hands (1869; included as the Ouverture in Masques et bergamasques, op.112); Gavotte (1869; also in the Sym., op.20, and Masques et bergamasques, op.112); Prélude et fugue (1869; fugue the same as op.84, no. 6); 8 pièces bréves, op.84 (1869–1902); Nocturne No. 1, op.33, no. 1 (1875), No. 2, op.33, no. 2 (1880), No. 3, op.33, no. 3 (1882), No. 4, op.36 (1884), No. 5, op.37 (1884), No. 6, op.63 (1894), No. 7, op.74 (1898), No. 9, op.97 (1908), No. 10, op.99 (1908), No. 11, op.104, no. 1 (1913), No. 12, op.107 (1915), and No. 13, op.119 (1921); Ballade, op.19 (1877–79; 2nd version for Piano and Orch., 1881); Mazurka, op.32 (1878); Barcarolle No. 1, op.26 (1880), No. 2, op.41 (1885), No. 3, op.42 (1885), No. 4, op.44 (1886), No. 5, op.66 (1894), No. 6, op.70 (1896), No. 7, op.90 (1905), No. 8, op.96 (1906), No. 9, op.101 (1909), No. 10, op.104, no. 2 (1913), No. 11, op.105 (1913), No. 12, op.!06bis (1915), and No. 13, op.116 (1921); Impromptu No. 1, op.25 (1881), No. 2, op.31 (1883), No. 3, op.34 (1883), No. 4, op.91 (1905–06), and No. 5, op.102 (1909); Valse-caprice No. 1, op.30 (1882), No. 2, op.38 (1884), No. 3, op.59 (1887–93), and No. 4, op.62 (1893–94); Souvenirs de Bayreuth: Fantaisie en forme de quadrille sur les themes favoris de I’Anneau de Nibelung for Piano, 4-Hands, op. posth. (with Messager; 1888); Dolly, pieces for Piano, 4-Hands, op.56 (1894–97; orchestrated by H. Rabaud, 1906); Allegro symphonique for Piano, 4-Hands, op.68 (an arrangement by L. Boellmann [1895] of the 1st movement of the Suite d’orchestre, op.20 [c. 1865]); Theme et variations, op.73 (1895; orchestrated by Inghelbrecht, 1955); 9 preludes, op.103 (1909–10). VOCAL: C h o r a l : S a c r e d : Super flumina for Chorus and Orch. (1863); Cantique de Jean Racine for Chorus and Organ, op. 11 (1865; rev. version for Chorus, Harmonium, and String Quintet, 1866); Cantique a St. Vincent de Paul (1868; not extant); Tu es Petrus for Baritone, Chorus, and Organ (1872?); Messe basse for Soloists, Women’s Chorus, Harmonium, and Violin (1881); Messe de Requiem (1886–87; orig. in 5 movements for Soprano, Chorus, Organ, String Ensemble, and Timpani; Madeleine, Paris, Jan. 16, 1888; expanded to 7 movements, adding a Baritone Solo, Horns, and Trumpets, c. 1889; full orch. version, c. 1900); Tantum ergo in E major for Chorus, 3 Children’s Voices, Solo Voices, and Organ, op.65, no. 2 (1894); Sancta mater for Tenor, Chorus, and Organ (1894); Tantum ergo in F major for Soprano, Chorus, and Organ (1904). S e c u l a r : Les Djinns for Chorus and Orch., op.12 (1875?); La Naissance de Venus for Soloists, Chorus, and Orch., op.29 (1882; Paris, April 3, 1886); etc. S o n g s : Le Papillon et la fleur, op.l, no. 1 (V. Hugo; 1861); Mai, op.l, no. 2 (Hugo; 1862); Rêve d’amour, op.5, no. 2 (Hugo; 1862); L’Aube nait (Hugo; 1862); Puisque j’ai mis levre (Hugo; 1862); Tristesse d’Olympio (Hugo; 1865); Dans les mines d’une abbaye, op.2, no. 1 (Hugo; 1866); Les Matelots, op.2, no. 2 (T. Gautier; 1870); Lydia, op.4, no. 2 (Leconte de Lisle; 1870); Hymne, op.7, no. 2 (C. Baudelaire; 1870); Seulel, op.3, no. 1 (Gautier; 1871); L’Absent, op.5, no. 3 (Hugo; 1871); L’Aurore (Hugo; 1871); La Rancon, op.8, no. 2 (Baudelaire; 1871); Chant d’automne, op.5, no. 1 (Baudelaire; 1871); La Chanson de pecheur, op.4, no. 1 (Gautier; 1872); Aubade, op.6, no. 1 (L. Pomey; 1873); Tristesse, op.6, no. 2 (Gautier; 1873); Barcarolle, op.7, no. 3 (M. Monnier; 1873); Ici-bas!, op.8, no. 3 (S. Prudhomme; 1874); Au bord de I’eau, op.8, no. 1 (Prudhomme; 1875); Sérênade toscane, op.3, no. 2 (1878); Après un rêve, op.7, no. 1 (1878); Sylvie, op.6, no. 3 (P. de Choudens; 1878); Nell, op.18, no. 1 (Leconte de Lisle; 1878); Le Voyageur, op.18, no. 2 (A. Silvestre; 1878); Automne, op.18, no. 3 (Silvestre; 1878); Poeme d’un jour, op.21 (C. Grandmougin; 1878); Les Berceaux, op.23, no. 1 (Prudhomme; 1879); Notre amour, op.23, no. 2 (Silvestre; 1879); Le Secret, op.23, no. 3 (Silvestre; 1880–81); Chanson d’amour, op.27, no. 1 (Silvestre; 1882); La Fée aux chansons, op.27, no. 2 (Silvestre; 1882); Aurore, op.39, no. 1 (Silvestre; 1884); Fleur jetêe, op.39, no. 2 (Silvestre; 1884); Le Pays des rêves, op.39, no. 3 (Silvestre; 1884); Les Roses d’Ispahan, op.39, no. 4 (Leconte de Lisle; 1884); Noel, op.43, no. 1 (V. Wilder; 1886); Nocturne, op.43, no. 2 (Villiers de ITsle Adam; 1886); Les Présents, op.46, no. 1 (Villiers de 1’Isle Adam; 1887); Clair de lune, op.46, no. 2 (P. Verlaine, 1887); Larmes, op.51, no. 1 (J. Richepin; 1888); Au cimetière, op.51, no. 2 (Richepin; 1888); Spleen, op.51, no. 3 (Verlaine; 1888); La Rose, op.51, no. 4 (Leconte de Lisle; 1890); Chanson and Madrigal, op.57 (Harau-court; 1889); En prière (S. Bordese; 1889); Cinq mélodies “de Venise,” op.58 (Verlaine): Mandoline; En sourdine; Green; A Clyméne; C’est I’extase (1891); Sérénade du Bourgeois gentilhomme, op.posth. (Moliere; 1893); La Bonne Chanson, op.61 (Verlaine): line Sainte en son aureole; Puisque I’aube grandit; La Lune blanche luit dans les bois; J’allais par des chemins perfides; J’ai presque peur, en vérité; Avant que tu ne t’en allies; Done, ce sera par un clair jour d’été; N’est-ce pas?; L’Hiver a cesse (1892–94); Prison, op.83, no. 1 (Verlaine; 1894); Soir, op.83, no. 2 (A. Samain; 1894); Le Parfum inperissable, op.76, no. 1 (Leconte de Lisle; 1897); Arpége, op.76, no. 2 (Samain; 1897); Mélisandé’s Song, op.posth. (Maeterlinck; tr. by Mackail; 1898); Dans laforet de septembre, op.85, no. 1 (C. Mendes; 1902); La Fleur qui va sur I’eau, op.85, no. 2 (Mendes; 1902); Accompagnement, op.85, no. 3 (Samain; 1902); Le Plus Doux Chemin, op.87, no. 1 (Silvestre; 1904); Le Ramier, op.87, no. 2 (Silvestre; 1904); Le Don silencieux, op.92 (J. Dominique; 1906); Chanson, op.94 (H. de Regnier; 1906); Vocalise-etude (1907); La Chanson d’áve, op.95 (C. Van Lerberghe; 1906–10); Le Jardin clos, op.106 (Van Lerberghe; 1914); Mirage, op.113 (Baronne A. de Brimont; 1919); C’est la paix, op.114 (G. Debladis; 1919); L’Horizon chimérique, op.118 (J. de la Ville de Mirmont; 1921).

Bibliography

I L. Vuillemin, G. F et son oeuvre (Paris, 1914); L. Aguettant, La Genie de G. R (Lyons, 1924); A. Bruneau, La Vie et les oeuvres de G. F. (Paris, 1925); C. Koechlin, G. F. (Paris, 1927; Eng. tr., 1945; 2nd ed., 1949); P. Faure-Fremiet, G. F. (Paris, 1929; 2nd ed., aug., 1957); G. Servieres, G. F. (Paris, 1930); V. Jankelevitch, G. F. et ses melodies (Paris, 1938; 3rd ed., aug., 1974, asG. F. et I’inexprimable); G. Faure, G. F. (Paris, 1945); C. Rostand, L’Oeuvre de G. F (Paris, 1945); N. Suckling, F. (London, 1946); M. Favre, G. F.s Kammermusik (Zurich, 1949); V. Jankelevitch, Le Nocturne: F, Chopin et la nuit, Satie et le matin (Paris, 1957); E. Vuillermoz, G. F. (Paris, 1960; Eng. tr., 1969); M. Long, Au piano avec G. F. (Paris, 1963); J.-M. Nectoux, F. (Paris, 1972; 3rd ed., aug., 1995); idem, Phonographie de G. F. (Paris, 1979); R. Orledge, G. F. (London, 1979); J.-M. Nectoux, ed., G. F: Correspondance (Paris, 1980); idem, G. F: His Life through His Letters (London, 1984); J. Barrie Jones, tr. and ed., G. F: A Life in Letters (London, 1989); R. Tait, The Musical Language of G. F (N.Y. and London, 1989); J. Nectoux, G. F; Le voix du clair-obscur (Paris, 1990; Eng. tr., 1991, as G. F: A Musical Life}; C. Breitfeld, Form und Struktur in der Kammermusik von G. F (Kassel, 1992); P. Jost, ed., G. F, Werk und Rezeption: Mit Werkverzeichnis und Bibliographic (Kassel, 1996); E. Phillips, G. F: A Guide to Research (N.Y., 1999).