Francis Poulenc - Biography
Francois Poulenc the witty and sometimes gravely profound French composer was born in Paris on January 7th 1899 and died there on January 30th 1963. He was born into a wealthy family in the pharmaceutical business. As so often the case Poulenc’s mother was the musical member of the family and taught him piano at an early age. He started piano studies under Riccardo Vines a close friend and interpreter of Satie and Ravel While still in his teens he joined a group called Nouveau Jeunes (New Youth) who were dedicated to Satie and his works. The New Youths morphed into the famed Les Six that was to include Darius Milhaud, Artur Honegger, Germaine Talleferre and George Auric. They surrounded themselves with members of the Dadaist and Futurist movement and their literary equivalent and partner was Jean Cocteau , the avant garde movements were the rage in post First World War Europe. Poulenc was in this period to write his first significant works like the piano piece Movements Perpetuels, Sonata for 4 Hands and the song cycle Poems of Max Jacob. Poulenc who was to become exclusively and openly gay was during this period having affairs with women and possibly fathered a daughter. Poulenc was interesting in this regard he was quite a devout Catholic later becoming mystically inclined but he had no guilt in being gay. Unlike the Jazz and Brazilian influences of Milhaud and the then ‘machine age’ music of Honegger Poulenc in contrast was to exude a French classism partly inherited from Ravel, Saint- Saens through Mozart. He was particularly interested in the Mozartian-like quality of wind music and wrote sonatas for almost every conceivable combination of wind instruments. In the 1920’s he was to compose a long series of piano music that was to include the works Napoli and Pastourelle he also was to become part of the circle of Diaghilev’s Ballet Russe and wrote the ballet Les Biches. Famed harpsichordist Wanda Landowska was to commission from Poulenc a concerto for harpsichord and chamber orchestra Concerto Champetre in 1927. He was to follow this up with a Concerto for 2 Pianos in 1932 and a dramatic Concerto for Organ, Tympani and Strings in 1938. Poulenc was to write a vast number of songs in the 1930’s and 1940’s, this was due in great part to his close friendship with the French lyric baritone Pierre Bernac whose was his exact cotemporary. For years since both were gay it was assumed that they were lovers but the release of their correspondence shows that they were friends who had a different set of companions.
Poulenc in the mid 1930’s was affected by the premature loss of friends particularly the composer Ferroud who was killed in an automobile accident at thirty six. Poulenc was to delve deeply into Catholic mysticism and this sent him to the Shrine of the Black Virgin of Rocamadour and evidently he felt a miraculous personal transformation in the presence of the Statue of the Madonna. Poulenc from there on was to devote a large percentage of his activity to composing religious works starting with the Litanies a la veirge Noire .Poulenc was to move to the right in his political and nationalistic views and support some rightist clerical political figures ;this along with setting some religious texts that were less than philo- Semitic have given Poulenc a reputation in some quarters as pro fascist but his correspondence along with his friendship of many Jews belie the charge. The collaborationist Vichy Government and occupation seemed not to have a great effect on Poulenc he wrote his two simple pieces for children Babar the Elephant and Les Animaux Modelles he also wrote an opera that is a very funny sexual satire La Mamelles de Tiresiais in 1945 with a text from futurist poet Apollinaire.
Poulenc still was writing a large amount of sacred music; besides a beautiful Mass in G minor, a series of motets Pour Un Temps de Penitence, a group of Small Prayers by St. Francis and most significantly a Stabat Mater written in the memory of a friend ,the painter Christian Berard and finally his choral masterpiece Gloria in G from 1959. Poulenc’s greatest work is his opera Dialogues des Carmelites based on the martyrdom of a Carmelite convent during the latter stages of the French Revolution is harrowing in its impact particularly the end where the nuns are on by one guillotined until there is just a solitary voice left in prayer. There was a dual premiere in 1957, first at La Scala in Italian then a few months later a triumphant second premiere at the Paris Opera. Happily a recording with the artists of the premiere was made with Pierre Dervaux conducting and Denise Duval and Rita Gorr heading an all star cast.
His next opera couldn’t be more different La Voix Humaine a 45 minute one women show with a text by Cocteau about a desperate woman on the telephone written for his favorite soprano Denise Duval. He was to write a few choral and chamber pieces in the early nineteen sixties. Poulenc died unexpectedly on January 30th 1963 of a heart attack.
Poulenc has maintained his popularity in the years after his death. Admittedly in the severe world of the Avant Garde he has been ignored and he isn’t well respected in German speaking countries but in his native France, Italy, America and England he is still very popular. The sensual beauty of his music whether secular or sacred is always pleasurable. Poulenc’s very appearance which remarkably resembled the famed French comedienne Fernandel was ebullient. Luckily much of his music was recorded by artists he was associated with including conductors Pretre and Cluytens, pianist Gabriel Tacchino and singers Bernac and Duval.
