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Figure Humaine
Francis Poulenc

Tenebrae

Figure Humaine

Price: € 19.95
Format: CD
Label: Signum Classics
UPC: 0635212019726
Catnr: SIGCD 197
Release date: 01 June 2010
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€ 19.95
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Label
Signum Classics
UPC
0635212019726
Catalogue number
SIGCD 197
Release date
01 June 2010
Album
Artist(s)
Composer(s)
EN
NL

About the album

Francis Poulenc is now considered to be among the most important composers of choral music of the 20th Century. Yet his early career reveals no trace of the dazzling and idiosyncratic unaccompanied choral textures so abundantly produced in the second half of his life.

This new collection of Poulenc's choral works is centered on his masterwork, the Figure Humaine. Even though it is only 20 minutes in length, the work is a supreme test of stamina, technical agility, range, aural skill and musicianship. The professional chamber choir Tenebrae (directed by former King's Singer Nigel Short) are more than capable of tackling this repertoire, and this disc promises to provide a new benchmark in interpretations of the work.

Tenebrae zet een nieuwe maatstaf voor interpretaties van Figure Humaine
Francis Poulenc wordt tegenwoordig beschouwd als een van de belangrijkste 20e-eeuwse componisten van koormuziek. Zijn vroege carrière onthult echter geen greintje van de indrukwekkende en eigenaardige a capellatexturen die hij in de tweede helft van zijn leven zo veelvuldig produceerde. Tot aan 1936 componeerde Poulenc slechts één koorwerk: het geringe en grillige Chanson á Boire uit 1922. Tegen het einde van zijn leven had Poulenc het idioom zo volledig omarmd dat hij kon beweren: “Ik denk dat ik het beste en zuiverste deel van mezelf in mijn koormuziek heb gestopt (…) Als mensen over vijftig jaar nog steeds geïnteresseerd zijn in mijn muziek, dan zullen ze meer interesse tonen in het Stabat Mater dan in de Mouvements Perpétuels.”

Deze collectie met koorwerken van Poulenc concentreert zich op zijn meesterwerk, de cantate Figure Humaine. Ook al is het slechts twintig minuten lang, het werk is een voortreffelijke test van uithoudingsvermogen, technische behendigheid, bereik, akoestische vaardigheden en muzikaliteit. Het professionele kamerkoor Tenebrae onder leiding van Nigel Short, voormalig lid van The King’s Singers, is meer dan capabel om dit repertoire aan te pakken, en dit album belooft om het werk van een nieuwe maatstaf voor interpretaties ervan te voorzien.

Artist(s)

Tenebrae (vocals)

Described as “phenomenal” (The Times) and “devastatingly beautiful” (Gramophone Magazine), award-winning choir Tenebrae is one of the world’s leading vocal ensembles, renowned for its passion and precision. For purity and precision of tone, and flawless intonation, Nigel Short’s chamber choir Tenebrae is pretty much unbeatable. – The Times Under the direction of Nigel Short, Tenebrae performs at major festivals and venues across the globe, including the BBC Proms, Wigmore Hall, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, Rheingau Musik Festival and Sydney Festival. The choir has earned international acclaim for its interpretations of choral music ranging from the Renaissance through to contemporary masterpieces, and it regularly commissions new music. Previous commissions have included works by Judith Bingham, Joanna Marsh, Owain Park, Josephine Stephenson, Joby Talbot and Roderick Williams. Tenebrae has enjoyed collaborations with some of the...
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Described as “phenomenal” (The Times) and “devastatingly beautiful” (Gramophone Magazine), award-winning choir Tenebrae is one of the world’s leading vocal ensembles, renowned for its passion and precision.

For purity and precision of tone, and flawless intonation, Nigel Short’s chamber choir Tenebrae is pretty much unbeatable.

– The Times

Under the direction of Nigel Short, Tenebrae performs at major festivals and venues across the globe, including the BBC Proms, Wigmore Hall, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, Rheingau Musik Festival and Sydney Festival. The choir has earned international acclaim for its interpretations of choral music ranging from the Renaissance through to contemporary masterpieces, and it regularly commissions new music. Previous commissions have included works by Judith Bingham, Joanna Marsh, Owain Park, Josephine Stephenson, Joby Talbot and Roderick Williams. Tenebrae has enjoyed collaborations with some of the UK’s leading orchestras, appearing alongside the London Symphony Orchestra, Aurora Orchestra, the Academy of Ancient Music and Britten Sinfonia. The choir also produces an annual Holy Week Festival in partnership with St John’s Smith Square, London.

Choral development is central to Tenebrae’s ethos, and through its Associate Artist Programme it provides crucial training and performance opportunities to young professional singers. Alongside its performance and recording schedule, the choir also runs a thriving Learning & Connection programme which encompasses partnerships with Music Centre London and London Youth Choirs, Tenebrae Effect workshops with amateur choirs, and its newest programme Singing Schools. Run in partnership with Ealing Music Service, Singing Schools aims to embed a long-lasting singing culture in local schools which might otherwise face barriers to music-making.

A concert by the British choir Tenebrae is more than a performance. It’s an experience that envelops the audience… this is one of the best choirs in the world.

– St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Tenebrae’s ever-increasing discography has brought about collaborations with Signum, Decca Classics, Deutsche Grammophon, EMI Classics, LSO Live and Warner Classics. In 2012 Tenebrae was the first-ever ensemble to be multi-nominated in the same category for the BBC Music Magazine Awards, securing the accolade of ‘Best Choral Performance’ for the choir’s recording of Victoria’s Requiem Mass, 1605. In 2016 Tenebrae received its second BBC Music Magazine Award for a recording of Brahms and Bruckner Motets, the profits from the sale of which benefit Macmillan Cancer Support. In 2018, the choir received its first Grammy nomination for its album of part songs from the British Isles, Music of the Spheres.

Signum’s current roster includes many excellent ensembles but the choral jewel in the crown is surely Tenebrae – Nigel Short’s outstanding chamber choir.

– Gramophone Magazine

‘Passion and Precision’ are Tenebrae’s core values. Through its continued dedication to performance of the highest quality, Tenebrae’s vision is to inspire audiences around the world through dramatic programming, flawless performances and unforgettable experiences.


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Nigel Short (conductor)

Composer(s)

Francis Poulenc

Francis Jean Marcel Poulenc was a French composer and pianist. Poulenc's wealthy family intended him for a business career in the Rhone Poulenc family company and did not allow him to enrol at a music college. Largely self-educated musically, he studied with the pianist Ricardo Viñes, who became his mentor after the composer's parents died. Poulenc soon came under the influence of Erik Satie, under whose tutelage he became one of a group of young composers known collectively as Les Six. This group of French composers from the 1920s aimed to clear music of the impressionism of Claude Debussy, and German influences such as the Romanticism of Richard Wagner and Richard Strauss. Their motto was 'L'art pour l'art': they composed music for the sake of...
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Francis Jean Marcel Poulenc was a French composer and pianist. Poulenc's wealthy family intended him for a business career in the Rhone Poulenc family company and did not allow him to enrol at a music college. Largely self-educated musically, he studied with the pianist Ricardo Viñes, who became his mentor after the composer's parents died. Poulenc soon came under the influence of Erik Satie, under whose tutelage he became one of a group of young composers known collectively as Les Six. This group of French composers from the 1920s aimed to clear music of the impressionism of Claude Debussy, and German influences such as the Romanticism of Richard Wagner and Richard Strauss. Their motto was "L'art pour l'art": they composed music for the sake of music, without any 'meaning' or extramusical intents. In his early works Poulenc became known for his high spirits and irreverence. During the 1930s a much more serious side to his nature emerged, particularly in the religious music he composed from 1936 onwards, which he alternated with his more light-hearted works.

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Press

Play album Play album
01.
Mass in G: Kyrie
03:25
(Francis Poulenc) Tenebrae
02.
Mass in G: Gloria
04:09
(Francis Poulenc) Tenebrae
03.
Mass in G : Sanctus
02:26
(Francis Poulenc) Tenebrae
04.
Mass in G: Benedictus
03:46
(Francis Poulenc) Tenebrae
05.
Mass in G : Agnus Dei
04:56
(Francis Poulenc) Tenebrae
06.
Litanies a la Vierge Noire
08:19
(Francis Poulenc) Tenebrae
07.
Salve Regina
04:23
(Francis Poulenc) Tenebrae
08.
Un Soir de Neige : De grandes cuillers de neige
01:09
(Francis Poulenc) Tenebrae
09.
Un Soir de Neige : La bonne neige le ciel noir
01:37
(Francis Poulenc) Tenebrae
10.
Un Soir de Neige : Bois meurtri
02:12
(Francis Poulenc) Tenebrae
11.
Un Soir de Neige : La nuit le froid la solitude
01:05
(Francis Poulenc) Tenebrae
12.
Figure Humaine : I. Bientôt
02:45
(Francis Poulenc) Tenebrae
13.
Figure Humaine : II. Le Rôle des Femmes
02:05
(Francis Poulenc) Tenebrae
14.
Figure Humaine : III. Aussi bas que le silence
01:34
(Francis Poulenc) Tenebrae
15.
Figure Humaine : IV. Patience
01:58
(Francis Poulenc) Tenebrae
16.
Figure Humaine : V. Premiere Marche la voix d'un autre
01:00
(Francis Poulenc) Tenebrae
17.
Figure Humaine : VI. Un Loup
01:42
(Francis Poulenc) Tenebrae
18.
Figure Humaine : VII. Un feu sans tache
03:49
(Francis Poulenc) Tenebrae
19.
Figure Humaine : VIII. Liberté
04:30
(Francis Poulenc) Tenebrae
20.
Quatre petites prieres de Saint Francois d'Assise : Salut, Dame Sainte
02:10
(Francis Poulenc) Tenebrae
21.
Quatre petites prieres de Saint Francois d'Assise : Tout Puissant
01:15
(Francis Poulenc) Tenebrae
22.
Quatre petites prieres de Saint Francois d'Assise : Seigneur, je vous en prie
01:21
(Francis Poulenc) Tenebrae
23.
Quatre petites prieres de Saint Francois d'Assise : O mes tres chers freres
01:55
(Francis Poulenc) Tenebrae
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