Henri Tomasi: Paysages (1930)

00:00 - I. Marine (Mouettes): Librement, sans rigueur dans le rhythme
04:00 - II. Clairière (Matin d'été): Andantino
07:00 - III. Forêt (Chants d'oiseaux): Allegretto
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Piano: Emilie Capulet
Year of Recording: 2017-2018
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"Henri Tomasi was a French classical composer and conductor. He was born in Marseille on 17 August 1901 to a family who originated from Corsica. At the age of seven he entered the Conservatoire de Musique de Marseille, and during those early summers he stayed with his grandmother in Corsica, where he learned traditional Corsican songs. World War I delayed his entrance into the Paris Conservatoire, but in 1921 he eventually began his studies there. His teachers included Philippe Gaubert, Vincent d'Indy, Georges Caussade, and Paul Vidal. In 1927 he won the ‘Prix de Rome’. World War II marked a turning point in Tomasi’s fortunes. He began to achieve international recognition, when previously his reputation had been confined to his native France. He now became one of the foremost French composers of his day. He was drawn especially towards opera, composing twelve in all between 1941-1971. Yet, instrumental music also seemed to stir a passion. He wrote twenty concertos for some of the most eminent soloists around at the time. A car accident in 1952, in which he broke one of his legs, put an end to his conducting career four years later. He also had to contend with encroaching deafness. His remaining years were devoted to composition. He died in 1971.
Paysages are three short pieces dating from 1930 and were premiered a year later by Jean Doyen one of its dedicatees. The first piece Marine evokes the soaring of seagulls, borne on gusts of wind. Clairière savours the teeming life of the woodland glade. Birdsong, enveloped in luminous hues are sewn into the fabric of the third piece Forêt, pointing the way to Messiaen’s Catalogue d’oiseaux which was to come some decades later." (Stephen Greenback)
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Note: I am not completely sure that the cover in the presentation slide actually corresponds to the score; it was hard to find anything.
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[@lelilleolee]

Nice

[@monsieurmuire3514]

You're were right to be unsure about the cover : it's a picture album of Ange Tomasi (1883-1950), a Corsican photographer.