Poulenc: Complete Chamber Works / London Conchord Ens.

This new disc from the acclaimed London Concord Ensemble presents Francis Poulenc's complete chamber music on 2 CDs. This flexible ensemble of internationally recognized young soloists and chamber musicians has excelled in bringing works for unusual instrument combinations to the fore. The ensemble clicks perfectly, the playing seemingly effortless and a regard for precision never stifling the musicians' natural feeling for life and breath. - BBC Music Magazine

The Observer
His work is no mere froth; there's a smoky, autumnal sadness to his harmonic writing, a lingering regret beneath the joie de vivre, particularly in the intimacy of his chamber music. The London Conchord Ensemble understand this completely, working their magic in the bittersweet sonatas...and romping through ensemble works large and small.

Sunday Times
No longueurs on these excellent discs: Poulenc's invention is always sprightly, and the performers are vivified by it; though an outstanding item is the ElTgie for Horn and Piano, in memory of Dennis Brain.

Gramophone Magazine
This is an excellent, spirited two-CD set...A facotr that comes across clearly here is that Poulenc had a more or less infallible ear for tapping into the timbre and personality of different instruments...The London Conchord Ensemble mainfestly relish what Poulenc has to offer, playing with panache, wit and discreet sensitivity in performance that are a constant joy.

American Record Guide, July / August 2012
Although I have a special fondness for Menuhin and Fournier's performances of the violin and the cello sonata, the Conchord musicians have much to offer in these sonatas as well as in the works for woodwinds and brass. Their ability to convey what one might call the multiple personalities of this music is evident in these performances. These players, all of them with acclaimed backgrounds in solo and chamber performance in the United Kingdom, demonstrate a clear understanding of how Poulenc's music deftly explores the rich area around the border between Gallic vulgarity and Gallic elegance, and between the rascality of Poulenc's humor and the profundity of the serious moments that become more frequent after his reconversion to Catholicism in 1936. Above all, these performances show a joyous and intimate involvement with this immensely rewarding music, and I think Poulenc would have approved.

Notes & Reviews:

Recording information: Music Room, Champs Hill, Wet Sussex, UK.

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Works Details

Poulenc, Francis : Sonata for Cello and Piano

Performers: Julian Milford (Piano); Thomas Carroll (Cello)
Ensemble: London Conchord Ensemble
Running Time: 22 min. 13 sec.
Period Time: Modern
Written: 1948

Poulenc, Francis : Sonata for violin & piano, FP 119

Performers: Maya Koch (Violin); Julian Milford (Piano)
Notes: Music Room, Champs Hill, Wet Sussex, UK (07/25/2005-07/26/2005)
Running Time: 17 min. 19 sec.
Period Time: Modern
Written: 1942-1943

Poulenc, Francis : Sonata for Flute and Piano

Performers: Julian Milford (Piano); Daniel Pailthorpe (Flute)
Notes: Music Room, Champs Hill, Wet Sussex, UK (09/28/2001-09/30/2001)
Running Time: 11 min. 30 sec.
Period Time: Modern
Written: 1956-1957

Poulenc, Francis : Sonata for oboe & piano, FP 185

Performers: Julian Milford (Piano); Emily Pailthorpe (Oboe)
Notes: Music Room, Champs Hill, Wet Sussex, UK (09/28/2001-09/30/2001)
Running Time: 13 min. 5 sec.
Period Time: Modern
Written: 1962

Poulenc, Francis : Sonata for Clarinet and Piano

Performers: Julian Milford (Piano); Richard Hosford (Clarinet)
Running Time: 13 min. 53 sec.
Period Time: Modern
Written: 1962

Poulenc, Francis : Sextet for wind quintet & piano in C major, FP 100

Ensemble: London Conchord Ensemble
Notes: Music Room, Champs Hill, Wet Sussex, UK (11/15/2002-11/16/2002)
Running Time: 17 min. 48 sec.
Period Time: Modern
Form: Chamber Music
Written: 1932-1939

Poulenc, Francis : Un Joueur de flûte berce les ruines (A flute player lullabies the ruins), for solo flute

Ensemble: London Conchord Ensemble
Notes: Music Room, Champs Hill, Wet Sussex, UK (11/15/2002-11/16/2002)
Running Time: 1 min. 7 sec.
Period Time: Modern
Written: 1942

Poulenc, Francis : Villanelle for pipe (or flute) & piano, FP 74

Performers: Julian Milford (Piano); Daniel Pailthorpe (Piccolo)
Running Time: 2 min. 4 sec.
Period Time: Modern
Written: 1934

Poulenc, Francis : Sonata for Horn, Trumpet and Trombone

Performers: Byron Fulcher (Trombone); Philippe Schartz (Trumpet); Nicholas Korth (Horn)
Running Time: 8 min. 6 sec.
Period Time: Modern
Written: 1922

Poulenc, Francis : Sarabande for guitar, FP 179

Performer: Tom Ellis (Guitar)
Running Time: 3 min. 30 sec.
Period Time: Modern
Written: 1960

Poulenc, Francis : Sonata for 2 clarinets, FP 7

Performers: Barnaby Robson (Clarinet); Maximiliano Martín (Clarinet)
Running Time: 5 min. 43 sec.
Period Time: Modern
Written: 1918

Poulenc, Francis : Sonata for clarinet & bassoon, FP 32

Performers: Richard Hosford (Clarinet); Andrea Flammineis (Bassoon)
Running Time: 7 min. 57 sec.
Period Time: Modern
Written: 1922

Poulenc, Francis : Élégie, for horn & piano, FP 168

Performers: Julian Milford (Piano); Nicholas Korth (Horn)
Running Time: 9 min. 7 sec.
Period Time: Modern
Written: 1957

Poulenc, Francis : Trio for oboe, bassoon & piano, FP 43

Performers: Andrea Flammineis (Bassoon); Emily Pailthorpe (Oboe); Julian Milford (Piano)
Running Time: 11 min. 33 sec.
Period Time: Modern
Form: Chamber Music
Written: 1926

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