Hi! I’m currently working on the gorgeous masterpiece Élégie by Fauré and I was wondering if there’s any etudes to help me work through the piece and perform it better. Thanks!
I’m in love with that piece and it’s another obsession of mine, any pieces similar to it you know of?
So, I'm not really a fan of classical solo vocal music (or opera), but I've been trying to expand my horizons. I recently got into a conversation with a music history professor about Gabriel Fauré (whose piano and cello music I love), and he suggested that to branch into vocal music, I listen to recordings of the French baritone Gérard Souzay singing Fauré's art songs.
Reader(s), I have now listened to these recordings, and I...I think my life has been changed. If you too are unfamiliar or leery of classical solo vocal music, please give these a try. Fauré had truly an extraordinary gift for composing gorgeous melodies, and Souzay's voice is simply exquisite -- so expressive and sensitive, especially when he sings softly.
Souzay singing "Après un Rêve" (youtube link) is one of the most knee-buckling pieces of music I ever did hear. Even just the way he lands that fourth opening note ("Dans un sommeil...") -- I've since listened to a variety of singers perform this song and so many of them hit that note square on, instead of the way Souzay hangs back on the beat and seems to sing it with a little swoon. That little swoon is everything!
Also incredible:
Le secret -- such a simple song with simple accompaniment, but a wonderful example of how both Fauré and Souzay could create an emotionally poignant masterpiece with a limited palette.
