It is strange that so often the music that strikes the listener as the most effortless, the most natural—as if an idea appeared fully formed in the mind of the composer—is that which requires of him the most labor to bring forth. Such was the case with Gabriel Fauré’s First Piano Quintet, though one can find not a trace of struggle in the work’s haunting first theme. As early as 1887, Fauré was sketching its melodies and by 1890, the Quintet existed in a rather loosely drafted form. Save for a fragmentary performance at the composer’s home, recounted by his son Emmanuel, nothing was heard of the work during its composition or for some time afterwards, nor did it yet progress into a unified work. With the turn of the decade, problems arose for Fauré. Worsening bouts of depression suppressed his creative output and, at the behest of his friends, he left for a recuperative stay in Venice, where he was the guest of Winnaretta Singer, heiress to the Singer sewing machine fortune. His spirits returned, but his creative output turned towards the composition of songs with his two Verlaine cycles and La bonne chanson. Overlooking a brief period of work in 1896, Fauré did not return to seriously working on the Quintet until the summer of 1903. He completed the work two years later and it received its premiere in Brussels on March 23, 1906.
Though begun in the 1880s, Fauré’s Quintet is ranked among the few works of the genre that appeared in the 20th century, where, in contrast to the string quartet, it was fast becoming a vestige of the waning Romantic period. Certainly, its expansive and lyric melodies, subtle counterpoint and melodic development, and well-wrought forms place it directly in the headwinds of the artistic trends at the turn of the century. Fauré is known for the Classical restraint he practiced alongside his glowingly Romantic melodies, but the Piano Quintet embraces, at least on it surface, the Classical tradition even more so by eliminating the “dance” movement and utilizing the three-movement structure seen in the sonatas of that period. Two moderately paced movement—the Molto moderato first movement and the Allegretto moderato, which establish a peculiar weight to the entire work by shunning the faster tempi associated with either one or both of these movements—frame of an ethereal central Adagio.Joseph DuBose
Located in historic Round Top, Texas, The James Dick Foundation for the Performing Arts and its sole project, The International Festival-Institute at Round Top, were founded in 1971 by world-renowned concert pianist James Dick. Begun with a handful of gifted young pianists in rented space on the town square, the project is now an internationally acclaimed European-styled music institute for aspiring young musicians and distinguished faculty. Over a thirty eight year period and with the help of its patrons and friends, The James Dick Foundation for the Performing Arts has developed superb year round education and performance programs.
Classical Music | Piano Music
Gabriel Fauré
Piano Quintet No. 1 in d minor, Op. 89 Play
Recorded on 04/06/2006, uploaded on 05/21/2009
Musician's or Publisher's Notes
It is strange that so often the music that strikes the listener as the most effortless, the most natural—as if an idea appeared fully formed in the mind of the composer—is that which requires of him the most labor to bring forth. Such was the case with Gabriel Fauré’s First Piano Quintet, though one can find not a trace of struggle in the work’s haunting first theme. As early as 1887, Fauré was sketching its melodies and by 1890, the Quintet existed in a rather loosely drafted form. Save for a fragmentary performance at the composer’s home, recounted by his son Emmanuel, nothing was heard of the work during its composition or for some time afterwards, nor did it yet progress into a unified work. With the turn of the decade, problems arose for Fauré. Worsening bouts of depression suppressed his creative output and, at the behest of his friends, he left for a recuperative stay in Venice, where he was the guest of Winnaretta Singer, heiress to the Singer sewing machine fortune. His spirits returned, but his creative output turned towards the composition of songs with his two Verlaine cycles and La bonne chanson. Overlooking a brief period of work in 1896, Fauré did not return to seriously working on the Quintet until the summer of 1903. He completed the work two years later and it received its premiere in Brussels on March 23, 1906.
Though begun in the 1880s, Fauré’s Quintet is ranked among the few works of the genre that appeared in the 20th century, where, in contrast to the string quartet, it was fast becoming a vestige of the waning Romantic period. Certainly, its expansive and lyric melodies, subtle counterpoint and melodic development, and well-wrought forms place it directly in the headwinds of the artistic trends at the turn of the century. Fauré is known for the Classical restraint he practiced alongside his glowingly Romantic melodies, but the Piano Quintet embraces, at least on it surface, the Classical tradition even more so by eliminating the “dance” movement and utilizing the three-movement structure seen in the sonatas of that period. Two moderately paced movement—the Molto moderato first movement and the Allegretto moderato, which establish a peculiar weight to the entire work by shunning the faster tempi associated with either one or both of these movements—frame of an ethereal central Adagio. Joseph DuBose
More music by Gabriel Fauré
Après un rève
Piano Quartet in C minor, Op. 15
Piano Quartet No. 2 in G Minor, Op. 45
Nocturne in e-flat minor, Op. 33, No. 1
Impromptu No. 3 in A-flat Major, Op. 34
From Requiem: Hostias
Élégie in C minor Op. 24
Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 1, Op. 13
Piano Quartet in C minor, Op. 15
Morceau de Concours
Performances by same musician(s)
Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 4, Op. 58 (Rondo Vivace)
Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat major, Op. 73
Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, in a minor, opus 43
Piano Concerto No. 1 in b-flat minor, Op. 23
Piano Concerto No. 2 in g minor, Op. 22
Piano Quintet in g minor, op. 57
Concerto for Piano and Orchestra (Canzone)
Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, Op.43 (Variation 18)
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Courtesy of The International Festival-Institute at Round Top
Located in historic Round Top, Texas, The James Dick Foundation for the Performing Arts and its sole project, The International Festival-Institute at Round Top, were founded in 1971 by world-renowned concert pianist James Dick. Begun with a handful of gifted young pianists in rented space on the town square, the project is now an internationally acclaimed European-styled music institute for aspiring young musicians and distinguished faculty. Over a thirty eight year period and with the help of its patrons and friends, The James Dick Foundation for the Performing Arts has developed superb year round education and performance programs.