Poème, Op.25

Lento e misterioso - animato - poco lento - allegro - lento

For those who know nothing of his music, Chausson’s claim to posthumous fame rests on the unfortunate manner of his death - which was the result of a fall from his bicycle when out riding with his daughter in the countryside near Mantes. It was a sad end for one of the most dedicated musicians of his generation. Having studied first with Massenet, which was an education, and then with Franck, which was an inspiration, he was not only well equipped technically but also thoroughly convinced of the high seriousness of his profession as a composer.

It is an indication of his seriousness that when he was asked by no less a violinist than Eugène Ysaÿe for a concerto, he rejected the proposal because he disliked the thought of writing virtuoso music. He did not reject Ysaÿe entirely, however. Some time in 1893, inspired by a Turgenev story about a violinist with mystic powers, he conceived the idea of a piece for violin and orchestra that would be not so much heroic as poetic and would include several solo passages without accompaniment. That was the origin of the Poème which, by the time he had completed it three years later, had developed its own logic, independently of the Turgenev story. Constructed in a single movement, the Poème is based on two main themes - one theme for the three slow sections, another for the two quick ones that alternate with them.

Lento e misterioso - animato - poco lento - allegro - lento

As a disciple of César Franck and a composer with an extensive private income, Chausson was not only convinced of the high seriousness of his profession but also was in a position to respect it. Nothing could persuade him to write a concerto - “I prefer to leave acrobatics like that to gymnasts,” he once said of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto - and, if it had been any one other than Eugène Ysaÿe who wanted such a thing from him, he would probably have given no further thought to the idea of writing a work for violin and orchestra. Some time in 1893, however, inspired by a Turgenev story about a violinist with mystic powers, he conceived the idea of a piece for violin and orchestra that would be not so much heroic as poetic. As he told Ysaÿe at the time, “it would be very free in form with several passages where the violinist plays alone.” That was the origin of the Poème which he completed in 1896 and which Ysaÿe first performed at Nancy and then at the Concerts Colonne in Paris in April 1897.

The violin-and-piano version of the work, which must have been written alongside the orchestral version, puts the purely musical content of the score to a severe test. During the course of working on the Poème, Chausson had found that the music was developing its own logic, independently of the Turgenev story, and felt that he could in all honesty announce that “there is no description, no story, nothing but sensation.” The immediacy of sensation apparent even in the piano arrangement, with its far narrower colour range, confirms the truth of his statement.

Constructed in a single movement, the Poème is based on two main themes - one for the three slow sections, the other for the two quick ones that alternate with them. In the Lento e misterioso introduction the piano tentatively outlines a useful melodic idea but it is the unaccompanied violin that expands on it and introduces the contemplative first theme in its definitive form in E flat minor. After a solo cadenza, which is surely intended as a tribute to Ysaÿe’s skill in performing unaccompanied Bach, the tempo changes to animato. In this case too it takes time for the new theme to take a definitive shape but, when it does, it is developed to a climax with the melodic line in double-stopped octaves on the violin.

The turning point of the piece occurs in the second Allegro section which, though devoted mainly to its own lyrical material, is invaded from below by the reminders of the main theme. The piano emphasises the demand and provokes a crisis that resolves into a full-scale return of the Lento theme - triumphant in a sense but still harmonised in E flat minor. It is not until the end of a poetic coda, radiant with violin trills, that the harmonies resolve onto E flat major.

Lento e misterioso - animato - poco lento - allegro - lento

For those who know nothing of his music, Chausson’s claim to posthumous fame rests on the unfortunate manner of his death - which was the result of a fall from his bicycle when out riding with his daughter in the countryside near Mantes in 1899. It was a sad end for a composer who, though he had graduated in law before taking up music, and though he was the recipient of a considerable private income, was one of the most dedicated musicians of his generation. Having studied first with Massenet, which was an education, and then with Franck, which was an inspiration, he was not only well equipped technically but also thoroughly convinced of the high seriousness of his profession as a composer.

It is an indication of his seriousness that when he was asked by no less a violinist than Eugène Ysaÿe for a concerto, he rejected the proposal because he disliked the thought of writing virtuoso music. He did not reject Ysaÿe entirely, however. Some time in 1893, inspired by a Turgenev story about a violinist with mystic powers, he conceived the idea of a piece for violin and orchestra that would be not so much heroic as poetic and would include several solo passages without accompaniment. That was the origin of the Poème which he completed in 1896 and which Ysaÿe first performed at the Concerts Colonne in Paris the following year.

During the course of working on it, Chausson had found that the music was developing its own logic, independently of the Turgenev story, and felt that he could in all honesty announce that “there is no description, no story, nothing but sensation.” Constructed in a single movement, the Poème is based on two main themes - one theme for the three slow sections, another for the two quick ones that alternate with them.

The orchestra tentatively tries out a few melodic ideas in the opening Lento e misterioso but it is the solo violin that, on its unaccompanied first entry, actually introduces the contemplative main theme in its definitive form in E flat minor. After a solo cadenza, which is surely intended as a tribute to Ysaÿe’s skill in performing unaccompanied Bach, the tempo changes to a quicker (Animato) pace. In this case too it takes time for the new theme to take shape but, when it does, it is developed to a climax with the melodic line on orchestral violins and in double-stopped octaves on the solo instrument.

Both the second slow section (Poco lento) and the second quick section (Allegro) develop particularly expressive versions of their respective themes. The turning point of the piece occurs towards the end of the Allegro which, though devoted mainly to its own lyrical material, is invaded from below by reminders on lower strings and brass of the Lento theme. Trumpets emphasize the demand and provoke a crisis that resolves into a full-scale return of the main theme - triumphant in a sense but still harmonised in E flat minor. It is not until the end of a poetic coda, radiant with violin trills, that the harmonies resolve onto E flat major.

(first British performance in this version)

Lento e misterioso - animato - poco lento - allegro - lento

As a disciple of César Franck and a composer with an extensive private income, Chausson was not only convinced of the high seriousness of his profession but also was in a position to respect it. Nothing could persuade him to write a concerto - “I prefer to leave acrobatics like that to gymnasts,” he once said of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto - and, if it had been any one other than Eugène Ysaÿe who wanted such a thing from him, he would probably have given no further thought to the idea of writing a work for violin and orchestra. Some time in 1893, however, inspired by a Turgenev story about a violinist with mystic powers, he conceived the idea of a piece for violin and orchestra that would be not so much heroic as poetic. As he told Ysaÿe at the time, “it would be very free in form with several passages where the violinist plays alone.” That was the origin of the Poème which he completed in 1896 and which Ysaÿe first performed at Nancy and then at the Concerts Colonne in Paris in April 1897.

Chausson’s own chamber version of the work, which came to light only three years ago, was presumably made as a programme companion to the Concert, Op.21, which was also written for Ysaÿe and which is scored for the same combination of solo violin, string quartet and piano. While it is clearly not intended as a serious alternative to the orchestral version, it is particularly interesting in that it puts the purely musical content of the score to a severe test. During the course of working on the Poème, Chausson had found that the music was developing its own logic, independently of the Turgenev story, and felt that he could in all honesty announce that “there is no description, no story, nothing but sensation.” The chamber version, in its much reduced range of colour and with nothing much in the piano part to compensate, confirms the truth of his statement.

Constructed in a single movement, the Poème is based on two main themes, one for the three slow sections and one for the two quick ones that alternate with them. In the Lento e misterioso introduction the piano quartet tentatively outlines a useful melodic idea but it is the unaccompanied violin that expands on it and introduces the contemplative first theme in its definitive form in E flat minor. After a solo cadenza, which is surely intended as a tribute to Ysaÿe’s skill in performing unaccompanied Bach, the tempo changes to animato. In this case too it takes time for the new theme to take a definitive shape but, when it does, it is developed to a climax with the melodic line in double-stopped octaves on the solo instrument.

The turning point of the piece occurs in the second Allegro section which, though devoted mainly to its own lyrical material, is invaded from below by the cello’s reminders of the main theme. The first violin and viola emphasize the demand and provokes a crisis that resolves into a full-scale return of the Lento theme - triumphant in a sense but still harmonised in E flat minor. It is not until the end of a poetic coda, radiant with violin trills, that the harmonies resolve onto E flat major.

Gerald Larner©