Henri Dutilleux: Sarabande et Cortège (1942)

00:00 - I. Sarabande: Assez lent
03:10 - II. Cortège: Mouvement de marcia
_____
Bassoon: Julien Hardy
Piano: Simon Zaoui
Year of Recording: 2020
_____
"Henri Dutilleux composed Sarabande et Cortège in 1942 for the Paris Conservatory. As a more recent composition, Dutilleux was a prolific French composer known for his use of modality and craftsmanship in his compositions. Extremely critical of his own work, Dutilleux only allowed a small number of his works to be published and disowned most of his pieces before his Piano Sonata, Op. 1 in 1946, as he believed them to be compositionally immature. Upon his recent passing in 2013, an article b y Paul Griffiths in the New York Times stated, "...But his (Dutilleux's) voice, marked by sensuously handled harmony and color, was his own."

Dutilleux's originality is demonstrated through this work written for bassoon and piano. Composed in two contrasting movements, the dance-like Sarabande begins this piece in a mysterious triple meter. The thin French tone and color is contrasted with the playful Cortège that interrupts this gorgeous slow section. Defined as a funeral procession or march, the Cortège requires the performer to convey drama through intense articulations and dynamics. Both the Sarabande and the Cortège include cadenzas that charge the bassoonist to soar into the extreme high register of the instrument. Dutilleux's concern for detail and artistry make Sarabande et Cortège not only a staple piece but possibly one of the best works in the bassoon repertoire." (Kim Stevenson)
____
© COPYRIGHT Disclaimer, Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976. Allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use.