| | Germaine
Tailleferre ___________
Gian
Andrea Lodovici | |
Germaine
Tailleferre e Darius Milhaud
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Germaine
Marcelle Tailleferre was born the 19 April 1892 in Saint-Maur-DES-Fossés,
a small town situated close to Paris, from a family of the small bourgeoisie.
Germaine, the youngest of the five children, soon gave test of her dowries of
improvisation at piano, but she had to fight against the paternal will in order
to follow the regular studies at the Conservatory. Onlooker, careful, but shy
and a little afraid of the public, after the numerous successes with the piano
studies and of "contrappunto" (with Eva Mayer, Dallier, Caussade, and
Estyle), she decided to dedicate herself to her first love: the composition.
In the 1917 Erik Satie accidentally listened to "Jeux en plein air"
for two pianos and he immediately defined her "his musical daughter".
Germaine became one of the "Nouveaux Jeunex, group of the Parisians young
composers, later called "Le groupe des Six" by the critic Henry Collet.
Under the spiritual guide of Erik Satie, the young Poulenc, Milhaud, Honegger,
Auric, Durey and Germaine organized various concerts introducing their own works,
but officially only a short piano album with a piece of every member of the group
was published.
The enthusiasm of the revolutionary Jean Cocteau, who already
collaborated with Satie and Picasso in the Ballet Parade, joined them in their
only collective work (Durey didn't participate) "Les Mariee of the Tour Eiffel.
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| "Le
groupe des Six" was immediately split up, but they all remained friends and
continued to see each other, celebrating every decennial with the presentation
of concerts with collective programs (b). Germaine Tailleferre also studied composition
with Koechlin, but above all she discovered many works together with her companion
Darius Milhaud and by assiduously seeing her friend Maurice Ravel.
Perhaps
in this first period of her life she composed her most famous works: the "Sonata
1" for violin and piano, the Ballade for piano and orchestra, the quartet
for arches, pieces for a solo piano and for two pianos, without forgetting the
most famous Ballet: "Les marchands d'oiseaux" ,that was represented
93 times in a few years. Her works were executed from the greatest interpreters
of the age: Alfred Cortot, Jacques Thibaud, Arthur Rubinstein, Marguarite Long,
Ricardo Vines. She was also interpreter of the Concert for piano and orchestra,
another famous piece.
It was during her third travel to the United States
in 1926 that she met the most famous illustrator and art comic player Ralph Barton
in New York: it was love at the first sight. That same evening Barton, young but
already divorced three times, asked her to marry him. The wedding was rich of
innovations and fabulous acquaintances as the presence of Charlie Chaplin. In
these years many of her works were executed by great directors like Koussevitzky,
Mengelberg, and Inghelbrecht. Later they moved to Paris, but soon because of several
events, Germaine divorced. Barton, strong but unstable, returned to New York and
killed himself in 1931.
Later Germaine met a French lawyer, Jean Lageatand
and she married him in 1932. From this wedding her only daughter Françoise
was born. |
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Germaine had to fight against her husband's jealousy to continue her compositions.
The successes continued: in 1934 one of her most meaningful works was executed,
the "Concerto Grosso", for two pianos, chorus and orchestra. In 1936
the Concert for violin and orchestra was executed. Finally, she assiduously worked
with the great poet Paul Valery and composed a deep and essential melodrama entitled
"Cantate du Narcisse" executed in 1942.
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In
the meantime the second World War burst out and Germaine sheltered herself in
United States. But this time she didn't find the security of a job and of a family.
In 1946 she settled down in Paris. The years after the War wasn't easy. When
she was 54 years old she had to accept compromises in every day life and had to
compose music for documentaries, opéra-comique and ballets:
In '53
she published with great success the "Sonate pour Harpe" dedicated to
Zabaleta and during the following years the "Partita" for piano in a
neoclassic style and rich of advanced melodies. Then "Hommage à Rameau"
for two pianos and percussions and many other works. About 300 various works were
composed.
Her style brings her to develop simple topics in works rich of intense
melodies but pleasant and comprehensive for public, especially in the second part
of her life.
Among the many prizes: the nomination as Officer of the Legion
of Honour, Great Cross of the National Order of Merit, Great prize at the Academy
of Fine Arts, Great Prize of the City of Paris, the Italy Prize. At the age of
78 she begins to teach at the Schola Cantorum and at the age of 84 at the Ecole
Alsacienne in Paris. Zoltan Pesko will direct "Concerto de la Fidelitè"
for the anniversary of her 90 years of age and Germaine will die the following
year on 7 Nov 1983 in Paris. |
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a)
The same year of birth of Arthur Honegger and Darius Milhaud.
b)
In a letter written by Milhaud to Durey: "..Everybody is free: you love Ravel,
Arthur (Honegger) loves Schmitt, I love Magnard, Francis (Poulenc) loves Roussel,
Tailleferre loves all the world and Auric loves nobody! Freedom to us…". |
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