Songs by Poulenc and Chabrier
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Introduction
Three vast lands make up the marvelous world of singing: Opera, Oratorio and Recital. Yet the recital is the least visited, and access to it the most demanding. This is where the saying prima le parole, dopo la musica takes on its full meaning. Great composers, most of them outstanding pianists, fall under the spell of a poem well before setting it to music. And the word is not that of a librettist, however proficient he may be, but of a poet, often one among the greatest. It is not the singing that lets the text speak, but rather always the text that brings forth the singing! The recitalist is no longer “One”: one Papageno, one Pelléas, one Suzanne. He/she should be able to take on multiple visages, for each lied, each song is a new character within a given situation. Hence the recital requires of the artist at its service an infinite variety of colors and the entire palette of human emotions. The pianist ought to be the unmitigated equal of the singer. Often the keys to entering into the work are to be foun in the accompaniment. Everything demanded of the singer will be demanded of the pianist as well: he sets up the lighting, as the indispensible illuminator of the singer. Poulenc is one of the last great French song composers and one of the most telling interpreters of the poems: not only does he set them to music, but – an unusual trait – he helps us better to understand them. Poulenc, like Ravel in fact (who had fallen under the spell of La chanson pour Jeanne), adored Chabrier. He said, “Chabrier, he’s my grandfather.” It is Chabrier who first succeeded in bringing French song out of the sometimes rarified atmosphere of the salons, renewing with the outdoors, the freshness of popular song, humor and sometimes even parody, all of these being elements Poulenc was fond of.
Calendar
Audition
February 2009 (to be specified)
Sessions
for Cycle 1 (age limit 33 years)
Monday 6 through Friday 10 July 2009
for a total of 5 days of instruction
for Cycle 2 (participants who have already
attended Cycle 1)
Friday 1 through Sunday 3 May 2009
Friday 12 through Sunday 14 June 2009
Friday 18 through Sunday 20 December 2009
for a total of 9 days of instruction
Public Presentation
Fenêtre sur cour[s] Friday 10 July 2009
Faculty
Ruben Lifschitz, pianist
Places available for
3 pianist/singer duos for each cycle. At the conclusion of Cycle 1 certain participants will be able to follow up with a second year of instruction.
Session Curiculum
Theoretical Instruction
In-depth study of the meaning of the texts (poems), making possible an enhanced approach to the relationship between text and music, and the rapport between singer and pianist.
Practical Instruction
Work on diction, style, phrasing, colors, and voice/piano interactions; an approach to stylistic evolution within a song, as well as that of the song within a cycle or other set.
Method
The course consists mainly of individual lessons (1h30 to 2 hours per duo and per day) alternating with time set aside for individual practice (1 rehearsal room per duo)
Fee information
The cost-sharing fee is made up of a compulsory registration fee (which includes membership in the Association des amis de Royaumont), tuition, and boarding expenses.
For this session a scholarship arrangement with the AFDAS is pending (cycle 1).
Financial aid for tuition
› available for casual workers in entertainment (intermittents du spectacle): through the AFDAS under the following conditions:
2 years in activity, 48 fee units (days) within France, as attested by payslips and Congés Spectacles certificates.
› for salaried employees (full or part time): via their employers’continuing education programs.
› for the unemployed: instructions available from the local ANPE and/or ASSEDIC offices.
› for RMI beneficiaries: via authorities in each département (Conseil Général) – contact the appropriate services for further information.
If you are eligible for financial assistance, a total amount of 150 € remains at your expense.
Scholarships
Every year the Association des amis de Royaumont grants scholarships
to artists under 29 years of age who do not yet have a regular professional activity. This grant is made by a commission on the basis of a portfolio
(resume, letter of motivation).
If you are eligible for this financial assistance from the Association des amis de Royaumont, a total amount of 150 € remains at your expense.
For participants who do not qualify for any other financial aid, the Foundation grants scholarship stipends on request and based
on a portfolio.
If you are eligible for this this scholarship, a total amount of 250 € for Cycle 1 and 330 € for Cycle 2 remains at your expense.
Information and enrolment
Mélanie Guichard
Fondation Royaumont
F-95270 Asnières-sur-Oise
tel + 33 1 30 35 59 84
fax + 33 1 30 35 39 45
formation(at)royaumont.com
How do I enroll ?
In all cases it is mandatory to send an application form containing:
› motivation letter
› detailed curriculum vitae
› hand-written biography
› photo
After examination of the dossiers, the selected candidates will be convened to an audition.
All sessions, except where indicated to the contrary, are to take place at Royaumont, in residency.
Prepare your audition!
If you were selected for the audition, you have to prepare:
- 2 mélodies d' Emmanuel Chabrier parmi:
Chanson pour Jeanne
L'ile joyeuse
Lied
Les cigales
Toutes les fleurs
- 2 mélodies de Francis Poulenc au choix
A connaitre par coeur pour le jour d'audition.