Merveilleux Poulenc, que l'on voit ici, dans ce magnifique concerto, sous la direction de Prêtre avec toute cette poésie d'un monde fougueux, dynamique contrebalancé par des 'sauts atonaux' qui percutent la ligne musicale pour lui donner plus de vie! Une belle oeuvre singulière qui nous ravit.
Quel bonheur de pouvoir écouter et voir le compositeur au piano en compagnie de Jacques Février et de l'orchestre de la RTF sous la baguette de Georges Prêtre ; document exceptionnel. J'adore ce concerto de Poulenc, tout s'y trouve, beauté, grandeur, simplicité.
I agree, these video effects are absolutely stunning. I couldn't believe how drawn I was to this piece the first time I heard it...sounds like a modern Bach piece.
What a privilege to be able to watch the composer performing his marvelous 2 piano concerto! Fevrier outshines as a pianist -- but what a COMPOSER!! AHHHH!
thank you very very very much for posting this ... I watched this video without first reading the remarks and comments and I thought for myself, the one pianist looks just like Poulenc, and indeed it's Poulenc himself. WOW ! I've never seen a concerto, where the soloist is the composer. thanks again !!
As far as I know Poulenc rewrote the piano parts for this recording and let Février play all the more difficult passages. Poulenc obviously wasn't in good shape as a pianist at this time. But this video remains a great document about one of the greatest composers of the 20th cenury.
Thank you for this fantastic upload! I never knew there was a videotaped performance. I grew up listening to the recording by the same combination. For me, THAT is THE performance period
Georges Pretre passed away on Jan 5 2017 at age ninety two. According to the obit in The Guardian "He was still directing the Vienna Philharmonic in its New Year concerts in 2008 and 2010, and in Paris in 2013" He had a long relationship with Poulenc. "Prêtre even expressed irritation that Poulenc would never offer advice at rehearsal, instead contenting himself, after the recording was over, with sharing a bottle of the best champagne"..
This is amazing because the same musicians recorded the concerto for EMI in 1957. One of the frustrations of the recording was not knowing which parts were played by Poulenc. This video makes it possible now to tell what Poulenc played and to actually see him, as well as the other performers. For those who don't know, Poulenc is on the left in this video.
Uuuaauu! the best is the montagework. I wish could have a lot of musicworks for two pianos on video in this way, its a fantastic variety of cameraviews, bravo!
Why does everybody want to believe that he did this with no idea about music theory? He definitely studied musical scores, and definitely knew what he was looking at. That's a good thing! Relying solely on intuition is what holds art back, having a point of departure is what it's all about!!
My favorite piece by Francis Poulenc. Would love to see the other two movements, especially the second, which remains one of my favorite passages of music of all time.
I'm surprised that they had the sophistication at this time to be able to edit in dual shots where the pianos are merged like that. This piece is amazing! My friend played a flute piece by Poulenc and that was stunning as well.
Pretre also looks like he is thoroughly enjoying himself. He was a major advocate of Poulenc's music and conducted numerous performances of his orchestral works for EMI
at 4:40 i was like "ooh, was that Lambada?" hahahaa.. for anyone who doesn't know Lambada, try searching it here on YT. It's a very popular tune here in my country, and everybody my age up knows it. hahaha.. and it's kinda funny, anyway this concerto IS SO BEAUTIFUL!!!
I bought a vinyl version of this back in the '80s, on a whim...It has become one of my favourite pieces of music!! If Franz Liszt had miraculously met Kurt Weill shortly after the latter had completed the score for 'Dreigroschenopera' and decided to work together, the result might have been like this!
That's why they invented spell check. My mother was a concert pianist. She performed this with the Chautauqua Symphony in the late 60's. I'd put it on TH-cam but I'm sure a lot of so-called "experts" would tear it apart.
Agreed. If someone can perform better than your Mom, then they shouldn't be wasting their time on the internet making critical comments. They should be enriching our souls like your Mom does. Tell her "Brava!!!"
@CPU007beez You know, it's the kind of thinking like Poulenc did that pushes art forward. Learning rules and guides from theory can only hold you back, because you always rely on something that was done before. Poulenc is one of those composers who weren't afraid to rely on intuition more than theory, and I think that served him very well!
I agree ! totally... I have to practice my own pieces as well, especially he hard ones. There is nothing wrong in being a composer and using music to perform own piece. Composer's mind is very often occupied by another piece of music currently being composed... No mental energy left in memorizing a previous one.
i love the cinematography in this video. its so good for its time. and the piece...well what can i say about this piece. only...well thats its so amazing. i love the style of poulenc. i used to hate modern music like this...but only recently have i decided that it is the only way to display my personality thru music. its so crazy and odd. lol to the castanets lol.
@Vlasta4444 Why I use music to perform my own work sometimes is because I have trouble remembering which of the several possibilities I chose to go with at any given point after I have written.
@sleazylagoon oh, you know Lambada too? hehehe.. Uhm, wait, i am quite confused.. hahaa.. He composed around nursery songs but he said "farewell to youth?" how does it relate to each other? But thanks, thanks for some history! appreciated it.. I really like music history.. :))
@mascagny i just think, the feeling for music is the main presumption for person who wants to be a musician..and poulenc has it, really..and it's more important than making one stupid mistake while playing!
Si vous aimez POULENC, regarded son opéra LA VOIX HUMAINE + 50 autres opéras de 50 compositeurs différents dans ma playlist 20th CENTURY OPERA, la PLUS REGARDÉE et PLUS COMPLETE de TH-cam en ce qui concerne lopéra du dernier siècle ( avec ARIA DEL CIRUJANO de l Opera opus operatorum de Roberto Rius et Pedro Ipuche Riva en avant-première mondiale )
Phantastic! That´s what makes youtube really great....we are playing this piece tonight with the Labeque-Sisters and Pretre (now 86) conducting....when was this recording taken?
Quelqu'un a noté que 5:59-6:13 est un hommage au théme du 2nd mouvement du concert en sol de Ravel? Poulenc:re-mib-re-do-sib-fa. Ravel: sol#-la-sol#-fa#-mi-si. C'est la meme chose!
What? Shure he's playing better!! He made the music that he wanted to here, no gym, no comercial style! Labeque are ok, but you cannot compair a composer who's playing also, with an interprete only ; Poulenc is amazing, it's like a revelation...
Hate to say this about 2:30 and portions of the 1st sound too similar to Prokofiev's 3rd piano concerto written 11 years BEFORE this one. The chromatic descents the repeated note figure and even some orchestration. The theme about 6' is great and presages minimalism - even some Nyman - but it is a shame not allowed to be carried out further
Likely because Poulenc and Prokofieff were incredibly close friends. In fact, one of Poulenc's last works - the sonata for oboe and piano - was dedicated to his memory
The humor is pure Poulenc as are the numerous poignant melodies.. Great as he was Prokofiev could not write like this and no one who knows the work of these composers at all well would mistake one for the other
Merveilleux Poulenc, que l'on voit ici, dans ce magnifique concerto, sous la direction de Prêtre avec toute cette poésie d'un monde fougueux, dynamique contrebalancé par des 'sauts atonaux' qui percutent la ligne musicale pour lui donner plus de vie! Une belle oeuvre singulière qui nous ravit.
Quel bonheur de pouvoir écouter et voir le compositeur au piano en compagnie de Jacques Février et de l'orchestre de la RTF sous la baguette de Georges Prêtre ; document exceptionnel. J'adore ce concerto de Poulenc, tout s'y trouve, beauté, grandeur, simplicité.
Superbe musique, magnifique, j'aime Poulenc...quelle liberté !
I agree, these video effects are absolutely stunning. I couldn't believe how drawn I was to this piece the first time I heard it...sounds like a modern Bach piece.
What a privilege to be able to watch the composer performing his marvelous 2 piano concerto! Fevrier outshines as a pianist -- but what a COMPOSER!! AHHHH!
thank you very very very much for posting this ... I watched this video without first reading the remarks and comments and I thought for myself, the one pianist looks just like Poulenc, and indeed it's Poulenc himself. WOW ! I've never seen a concerto, where the soloist is the composer. thanks again !!
Francis Poulenc himself is a super virtuoso on the piano and this concerto is such a delight.Very French in sentiment.
A BIG mahalo nui loa for posting this. I love Poulenc.
Merveilleuse musique, merveilleux chef!!
wow ... poulenc himself playing his concerto ... amazing ... rare ... wow .. thanks for sharing.
Poulenc is such a tremendous force as a composer! So fun to see the master work the keys in person.
I love this movement, especially from 5:45 onwards. It's like a gamelan dreamscape; beautifully mystical.
One of the most poetical passages of 20C music
I heard this at the BBC Proms and it's amazing. I'm awed at the sheer brilliance of it all.
That was amazing, and to hear Poulenc actually play it is even better.
As far as I know Poulenc rewrote the piano parts for this recording and let Février play all the more difficult passages.
Poulenc obviously wasn't in good shape as a pianist at this time.
But this video remains a great document about one of the greatest composers of the 20th cenury.
Thank you for this fantastic upload!
I never knew there was a videotaped performance.
I grew up listening to the recording by the same combination.
For me, THAT is THE performance period
Georges Pretre passed away on Jan 5 2017 at age ninety two. According to the obit in The Guardian "He was still directing the Vienna Philharmonic in its New Year concerts in 2008 and 2010, and in Paris in 2013" He had a long relationship with Poulenc. "Prêtre even expressed irritation that Poulenc would never offer advice at rehearsal, instead contenting himself, after the recording was over, with sharing a bottle of the best champagne"..
This is amazing because the same musicians recorded the concerto for EMI in 1957. One of the frustrations of the recording was not knowing which parts were played by Poulenc. This video makes it possible now to tell what Poulenc played and to actually see him, as well as the other performers. For those who don't know, Poulenc is on the left in this video.
Thanks for sharing! Excellent!
L, xh,tin Tze-Wenftbc m
Totally briliant and wonderfull!!
Uuuaauu! the best is the montagework. I wish could have a lot of musicworks for two pianos on video in this way, its a fantastic variety of cameraviews, bravo!
Well thanks and thanks for letting me at least enjoy your enjoyment. All this is beyond amazing!
The best of the contemporary and traditional.
......extraordinary.....
Why does everybody want to believe that he did this with no idea about music theory? He definitely studied musical scores, and definitely knew what he was looking at. That's a good thing! Relying solely on intuition is what holds art back, having a point of departure is what it's all about!!
My favorite piece by Francis Poulenc. Would love to see the other two movements, especially the second, which remains one of my favorite passages of music of all time.
The whole video is also on youtube
Bloody amazing piano concerto
great to see and hear this! thank you for sharing!
I agree with 4candles, first thing I thought of was gamelan. Amazing how he was able to convey that
merci beaucoup!
Wow! Thank you for sharing!
I'm surprised that they had the sophistication at this time to be able to edit in dual shots where the pianos are merged like that.
This piece is amazing! My friend played a flute piece by Poulenc and that was stunning as well.
These pianists created the work in 1932! Amazing authenticity.
Prêtre is SO elegant :)
Pretre also looks like he is thoroughly enjoying himself. He was a major advocate of Poulenc's music and conducted numerous performances of his orchestral works for EMI
i love how played it
at 4:40 i was like "ooh, was that Lambada?" hahahaa..
for anyone who doesn't know Lambada, try searching it here on YT. It's a very popular tune here in my country, and everybody my age up knows it. hahaha.. and it's kinda funny, anyway this concerto IS SO BEAUTIFUL!!!
I bought a vinyl version of this back in the '80s, on a whim...It has become one of my favourite pieces of music!!
If Franz Liszt had miraculously met Kurt Weill shortly after the latter had completed the score for 'Dreigroschenopera' and decided to work together, the result might have been like this!
That's why they invented spell check. My mother was a concert pianist. She performed this with the Chautauqua Symphony in the late 60's. I'd put it on TH-cam but I'm sure a lot of so-called "experts" would tear it apart.
Agreed. If someone can perform better than your Mom, then
they shouldn't be wasting their time on the internet making
critical comments. They should be enriching our souls like
your Mom does. Tell her "Brava!!!"
amazing.
The printed score tells who played what part. On the other hand, I love the split-camera effect here.
Too bad we couldn't have Poulenc and Poulenc for the 2 pianists. ;)
amazing...
Very well executed and edited! I love it!
beautiful ..
Hahahahaha!!!!! That first castanet entrance!
@CPU007beez You know, it's the kind of thinking like Poulenc did that pushes art forward. Learning rules and guides from theory can only hold you back, because you always rely on something that was done before. Poulenc is one of those composers who weren't afraid to rely on intuition more than theory, and I think that served him very well!
i love the ending so much
there's a video of Shostakovich performing his piano concerto (the one with trumpet) floating around if you're interested.
very nice
I play both Javanese and Balinese Gamelan instruments, and the music sounds quite a lot like intervals of a gamelan...great observation!
omg on 25th of april I´m going to play the oboe in this concert...will be fun =)
Very similar to Prokofiev third concerto, and very nice :)
@Verruckter: Poulenc did learn a lot of theory! Studied Bach like hell and was a student of Boulanger.
El gran Poulenc!
awesome.. i wish i could play like this :) muaha
I agree ! totally... I have to practice my own pieces as well, especially he hard ones.
There is nothing wrong in being a composer and using music to perform own piece. Composer's mind is very often occupied by another piece of music currently being composed... No mental energy left in memorizing a previous one.
i love the cinematography in this video. its so good for its time. and the piece...well what can i say about this piece. only...well thats its so amazing. i love the style of poulenc. i used to hate modern music like this...but only recently have i decided that it is the only way to display my personality thru music. its so crazy and odd. lol to the castanets lol.
L'autore al I pianoforte legge, il II pianista suona praticamente a memoria. (Grande documento!)
Ahh to see and hear the actual composers in action - such a marvel!
(Can we get Liszt now) :)
....unique
Who knows where to find others vids with Francis Poulenc. This one is amazing, even if Poulenc doesn't play as Labeque sisters...
gamelaaan sounds~
i love the passage at 2:37-2:54, but isn't the same of another of his works?
1:28 - congratulations man, you're completely OUT
@Vlasta4444 Why I use music to perform my own work sometimes is because I have trouble remembering which of the several possibilities I chose to go with at any given point after I have written.
Awesome
I played it on sunday (but not as a pianist, I play bassoon!)
Nice reference to gamelan early in this movement, and later on again.
Sounds like Chasing Sheep is Best Left to Shepherds by Michael Nyman at the beginning
My son plays this!!!!
Hahahaa, I love the very ending :)
STILL the definitive performance!
2:39...Mesmerizing!
@sleazylagoon oh, you know Lambada too? hehehe.. Uhm, wait, i am quite confused.. hahaa.. He composed around nursery songs but he said "farewell to youth?" how does it relate to each other? But thanks, thanks for some history! appreciated it.. I really like music history.. :))
@mascagny i just think, the feeling for music is the main presumption for person who wants to be a musician..and poulenc has it, really..and it's more important than making one stupid mistake while playing!
"I'm going to Gamelon" - opening of the Poulenc Concerto for Two Pianos
Si vous aimez POULENC, regarded son opéra LA VOIX HUMAINE + 50 autres opéras de 50 compositeurs différents dans ma playlist 20th CENTURY OPERA, la PLUS REGARDÉE et PLUS COMPLETE de TH-cam en ce qui concerne lopéra du dernier siècle ( avec ARIA DEL CIRUJANO de l Opera opus operatorum de Roberto Rius et Pedro Ipuche Riva en avant-première mondiale )
Phantastic! That´s what makes youtube really great....we are playing this piece tonight with the Labeque-Sisters and Pretre (now 86) conducting....when was this recording taken?
Francis Poulenc.
Quelqu'un a noté que 5:59-6:13 est un hommage au théme du 2nd mouvement du concert en sol de Ravel? Poulenc:re-mib-re-do-sib-fa. Ravel: sol#-la-sol#-fa#-mi-si. C'est la meme chose!
that's what I thought too
Could somebody please post LES BICHES? The music of that ballet is so funny!
OMFG
Music for television before this thing called "MTV."
@Beaudereck Free jazz: yes, Poulenc: no. Poulenc is known to have based music upon movements of Haydn and Saint-Saens.
What happened to the complete concert on TH-cam?
I've always wondered why Liberace never performed works for piano like this?
@petezilla no, not at all! Alot of artists have "not having a point of departure" as a point of departure, and it is being part of their mentality.
@luigibattista10 hahahaha! Glad you heard it too! hahahahhaa.. you know that song too? hehehe
i always start laughing
@cellolove7 what possible reasons can you have for stating this???
@luigibattista10from which country are u from? :)
@4candles :-)
@mascagny
Especially you're perfect ;)
What? Shure he's playing better!! He made the music that he wanted to here, no gym, no comercial style! Labeque are ok, but you cannot compair a composer who's playing also, with an interprete only ; Poulenc is amazing, it's like a revelation...
:)
@luigibattista10 From PH. How can i private message you? I cannot view your channel.
Can you please provide the date and the place where this concert took place? Thank you.
when was this filmed?
i have to adapt
1960 ou '61 je crois.
Hate to say this about 2:30 and portions of the 1st sound too similar to Prokofiev's 3rd piano concerto written 11 years BEFORE this one. The chromatic descents the repeated note figure and even some orchestration. The theme about 6' is great and presages minimalism - even some Nyman - but it is a shame not allowed to be carried out further
Likely because Poulenc and Prokofieff were incredibly close friends. In fact, one of Poulenc's last works - the sonata for oboe and piano - was dedicated to his memory
alphabet661 Poulenc always do that, i always hear Ravel, Sbelius, Albinoni, Mozart, Debussy... He is a pastiche. That's why i love him.
The humor is pure Poulenc as are the numerous poignant melodies.. Great as he was Prokofiev could not write like this and no one who knows the work of these composers at all well would mistake one for the other