Pierne Piano Concerto, Divertissements sur un Thème Pastoral, Suites from Ramuntcho & Marche des petits soldats de plomb Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, BBC Philharmonic Orchestra & Juanjo Mena

• Gabriel Pierné (1863 - 1937): Album pour mes petits amis, Op. 14:
• 1 Pierné: Album pour mes petits amis, Op. 14: VI. Marche des petits soldats de plomb (Version for Piano) 03:06
• Piano Concerto in C Minor, Op. 12:
• 2 Pierné: Piano Concerto in C Minor, Op. 12: I. Allegro 07:58
• 3 Pierné: Piano Concerto in C Minor, Op. 12: II. Scherzando. Allegro scherzando 04:11
• 4 Pierné: Piano Concerto in C Minor, Op. 12: III. Finale. Allegro un poco agitato 06:33
• Divertissements sur un Theme Pastoral, Op. 49:
• 5 Pierné: Divertissements sur un Theme Pastoral, Op. 49 11:55
• Ramuntcho Suite No. 1:
• 6 Pierné: Ramuntcho Suite No. 1: I. Overture 08:18
• 7 Pierné: Ramuntcho Suite No. 1: II. Le Jardin de Gracieuse 04:04
• 8 Pierné: Ramuntcho Suite No. 1: III. La chambre de Franchita 04:31
• 9 Pierné: Ramuntcho Suite No. 1: IV. Fandango 01:55
• Ramuntcho Suite No. 2:
• 10 Pierné: Ramuntcho Suite No. 2: I. La Cidrerie 01:35
• 11 Pierné: Ramuntcho Suite No. 2: II. Le Couvent 03:51
• 12 Pierné: Ramuntcho Suite No. 2: III. Rapsodie Basque 09:18
• Total Runtime 01:07:15

Info for Pierne Piano Concerto, Divertissements sur un Thème Pastoral, Suites from Ramuntcho & Marche des petits soldats de plomb

Whilst not now a household name, Pierné was a highly respected and very active composer / conductor in his day as well as a key figure in the French musical establishment (he even has a square named after him in Paris). He received the French Légion d’honneur in 1900 and in 1910 conducted the premiere of Stravinsky’s The Firebird. A pupil of Franck and Massenet, he wrote music with tremendous fluency and all his works were written with a characteristically light, French touch. Developing a style that combined the seriousness of Franck with the sensuality of Massenet, Pierné absorbed the essence of both teachers to produce a string of very attractive and tuneful orchestral pieces.

The composer’s perhaps most famous work is the Marche des petits soldats de plomb (March of the Little Lead Soldiers) which enjoyed a great vogue up until recent years. This new recording reveals its catchy charms to new generations.

“Orchestral charm and craftsmanship revealed in a fine Philharmonic recital …For all those who delight in a wholly French grace and magic, this disc is a winner, and it is superbly recorded.” (Bryce Morrison, Gramophone)

"... Aiding the performers, the BBC Phil and Juanjo Mena a partnership to watch it seems, co-producers Brian Pidgeon and Mike George, together with Steven Rinker’s dynamic and gorgeous sound, have come up with a 2011 Winner long before such Awards have been nominated, let alone chosen. There’s enough Pierné, including some more piano-and-orchestra pieces, for a second volume. Hopefully." (Colin Anderson, theclassicalsource.com)

“…Although this music is all about ear-pleasing charm, it comes across as far from lightweight when played with such flair and character. Juanjo Mena’s handling of pace and mood, though never obtrusive, is beautifully skilled.” (Malcolm Hayes, Classic FM)

Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, piano
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra
Juanjo Mena, conductor

Jean-Efflam Bavouzet
He makes you listen to music as if you are discovering it Eureka!-style: yes, that’s what the composer must have meant.” (Financial Times).

Award-winning pianist Jean-Efflam Bavouzet enjoys a prolific recording and international concert career. He regularly works with orchestras such as The Cleveland Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony, London Philharmonic, BBC Symphony and NHK Symphony orchestras, and collaborates with conductors including Vladimir Ashkenazy, Vladimir Jurowski, Gianandrea Noseda, François- Xavier Roth, Nicholas Collon, Gábor Takács-Nagy and Sir Andrew Davis amongst others.

Highlights during the 2018/19 season include the Lincoln Center in New York with the London Philharmonic under Edward Gardner, Orchestre national de Lyon, Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo, Swedish Chamber Orchestra, a Debussy focus with the Antwerp Symphony, his continuing collaboration with Manchester Camerata including an extensive tour of China as well as performances with Sapporo Symphony, Seoul and Taiwan philharmonic orchestras. Following his highly successful extended Debussy recital at the Barbican’s Milton Court and the 2018 Perth International Arts Festival, Jean-Efflam will present this programme at the Muziekgebouw in Amsterdam. Other recitals include a return to the Louvre, Wigmore Hall – both in solo recital and in collaboration with Kristóf Baráti and István Várdai, as well as a number of recitals in the U.K., Germany and Belgium. He will also return to the Verbier Festival in 2019.

Recent performances include the San Francisco Symphony, Aspen Festival, and Seattle, NHK and BBC symphony orchestras. He also appeared at the Philharmonie de Paris with Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo and Kazuki Yamada, BBC Proms performing Ravel’s Piano Concerto in G Major with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra and Nicholas Collon, Carnegie Hall, as part of a major North American tour together with the London Philharmonic under Vladimir Jurowski, as well as hr-Sinfonieorchester under Juraj Valčuha, Les Siécles and François-Xavier Roth which included concerts at London’s Royal Festival Hall and the Granada Festival.

Bavouzet records exclusively for Chandos and his recording of Grieg’s Piano Concerto with Bergen Philharmonic under Edward Gardner has been nominated for the Concerto category of the 2018 Gramophone Awards. Together with Manchester Camerata and Gábor Takács-Nagy, Bavouzet has recorded several of Haydn’s Piano Concertos and embarked on a series of Mozart concertos, which have been critically acclaimed. His complete Prokofiev Piano Concertos with BBC Philharmonic and Gianandrea Noseda won the Concerto category of the 2014 Gramophone Awards. Other recordings include the complete Beethoven Sonatas, Bartók’s Piano Concerto’s with the BBC Philharmonic and Noseda, and Stravinsky’s Complete Works for Piano and Orchestra with Orquestra Sinfônica do Estado de São Paulo under Yan-Pascal Tortelier. Also with Tortelier, Bavouzet’s recording of the Ravel Piano concertos with the BBC Symphony Orchestra won both a Gramophone and BBC magazine award. Bavouzet’s recordings have garnered other Gramophone Awards and BBC Music Magazine Awards, a Diapason d’Or and Choc de l’année. Ongoing recording projects include the Haydn Piano Sonata cycles.

Bavouzet has worked closely with Pierre Boulez, Karlheinz Stockhausen, György Kurtág, Maurice Ohana and Bruno Mantovani and is also a champion of lesser-known French music, notably that of Gabriel Pierné and Albéric Magnard. He is the International Chair in Piano at the Royal Northern College of Music.

This album contains no booklet.