Albéric Magnard, born in Paris in 1865, was a pupil of Dubois, Guiraud, Massenet and D’Indy at the Paris Conservatoire, and he frequented the circle of César Franck. In 1896 he became a teacher at Paris’s Schola Cantorum. Then, from 1904, he settled in the countryside on his estate at Manoir des Fontaines in Baron (Oise), where he died in 1914, shot by German troops while attempting to defend the property, which was set on fire along with many of his as yet unpublished compositions. In addition to four symphonies, he is also the author of operas, but chamber music is the genre in which he best expressed himself and into which he poured the influence of Beethoven and the counterpoint of the Schola Cantorum. His last chamber work, the Sonata for Cello and Piano Op.20 is among his most significant compositions. Composed between 1908 and 1910, it is structured in four movements like all his chamber works, betraying his devotion to German contemporaries and in opposition to the French tendency for three movements in symphonies and instrumental compositions.
Completed in 1905, the Piano Trio Op.18 was first performed at the Salle Aéolian in Paris in January 1906. Also in four movements, it presents more measured
writing than the Cello Sonata or Violin Sonata. The dialogue between the three instruments is refined and balanced without any break in interaction.
These are works by a brilliant composer faithful to tradition. On the whole the music can be described as an innovative and surprising, certainly deserving of wider recognition.
Other information:
- Recorded 13-14 October 2020 (Op.18) & 15-16 May 2022 (Op.20) in Perugia, Italy
- Booklet in English contains liner notes by the pianist and profiles of the artists
- Albéric Magnard (1865-1914) was born in Paris, the son of Francis Magnard, a bestselling author and editor of Le Figaro. Albéric could have chosen to live the comfortable life that his family's wealth afforded him, but he decided to make a career for himself in music, based entirely on his own talent. After military service and graduating from law school, he entered the Paris Conservatoire, where he studied counterpoint from 1886 on with Théodore Dubois and went to the classes of Jules Massenet. There he met Vincent d'Indy, with whom he studied fugue and orchestration privately for four years from 1888 to 1892, writing his first two Symphonies. From 1896, he was a teacher at the Schola Cantorum in Paris. From 1904, he settled in his countryside estate, where he died in 1914 shot by German troops while attempting to defend the property, which was set on fire along with many of his as yet unpublished compositions.
- Magnard's primary musical influences were contemporary French composers, particularly César Franck, whereas certain passages in his music demonstrate a more Germanic influence, foreshadowing the music of Gustav Mahler. His use of fugue and incorporation of chorale, together with the grandeur of expression, have caused him to be called a "French Bruckner".
- The two works on this CD, the Cello Sonata and Piano Trio, are highlights in Magnard’s oeuvre, highly expressive, original and passionate works by a still neglected composer.
- Played by the Trio Mezzena, Patria, Ballario, whose previous recordings for Brilliant Classics include piano trios by Ermanno Wolf Ferrari.
