Poulenc's Piano Concertos
A terrific bargain - Poulenc's two piano concertos
The Gramophone Choice
Piano Concerto. Concerto for Two Pianos*. Aubade
François-René Duchâble, *Jean-Philippe Collard pfs Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra / James Conlon
Warner Apex 2564 62552-2 (55’ · DDD). Buy from Amazon
An appealing bargain collection of Poulenc’s concertante piano music. Duchâble is a stylish player in the Piano Concerto and is joined by Collard for the sparkling Double Piano Concerto – and they find a glorious sense of poise in the languid slow movement. Conlon and his Rotterdam orchestra accompany with panache.
The stylistic inconsistency of the various sections of the Aubade (appreciation of which really depends on a knowledge of the story of the ballet for which it was intended) is perhaps the reason for its comparative lack of popularity – it includes Poulenc’s characteristic pianistic helter-skelter, ingenuous wistful lyricism, gamin pertness and Stravinskian angularity.
