AF­TER­S­HOCKS OF THE SOUL

Where Debussy depicted star-crossed lovers Pelléas and Mélisande and the collapse of a world order, Fauré used the tale as the basis for a work of opulently romantic stage music. The fact remains, however, that Fauré served as a precursor for the Impressionism of Debussy. His naturalist “La Mer” is his attempt to render in auditory and rhythmic form the movements of the sea. Lili Boulanger, a composer who penned short works of overwhelming intimacy in the course of her brief life, is a latter-day heir to the great music of 19th-century France. Pianist and composer Eugen d’Albert, too, was acquainted with the French tradition, even though his rarely performed cello concerto is more akin to a brilliant piece in the style of German Romantics.

PROGRAMME:
Gabriel Fauré: Suite from Pelléas et Mélisande, op. 80
Eugen d’Albert: Cello Concerto in C major, op. 20
Lili Boulanger: D’un soir triste
Claude Debussy: La Mer. Three symphonic sketches