Francis Poulenc
07.01.1899, Paris - 30.01.1963, Paris

A composer with a vast œuvre for piano — Poulenc wrote approximately 40 works for solo piano, 4 piano concertos, several works for 2 pianos/piano four hands, a dozen chamber music works and over 100 songs. Among the most important poets he set to music are Guillaume Apollinaire, Paul Éluard, Louise de Vilmorin, García de Lorca, Robert Desnos and Jean Anouilh.

All further details about Poulenc's works for piano can be found in the PIANOVERSALRegister.

PIANOVERSAL listening tips with Francis Poulenc:

Poulenc himself possessed an extraordinary ease at the piano!

Poulenc plays Poulenc: 2 Novelettes (1928)
youtube.com_Poulenc_Novelettes

Excerpts from Poulenc's opera "Les mamelles de Tirésias" (1947) after Apollinaire. Here Poulenc even sings a few bars from the piano! In the title role the wonderful Denise Duval, a long-time friend and important Poulenc interpreter. The live concert recording from 1959 is introduced with a short, witty conversation, hosted by the French musicologist and critic Bernard Gavoty aka Clarendon
youtube.com_Poulenc_Nivel_Live_1959

Poulenc speaks at the piano and performs with Denise Duval from "La courte paille" (1960) the two chansons "Les Anges Musiciens" and "Quelle Aventure":
youtube.com_la_courte_paille


Poulenc talks about le groupe des Six.
youtube.com_Poulenc_parle_des_six

And here is a recording by the Costa Rican pianist Manuel Matarita
Improvisation en la mineur (1959)
Manuel Matarita, piano
soundcloud.com_matarrita_improvisacion_poulenc

More information about Francis Poulenc can be found here:

Association des amis de Francis Poulenc
www.poulenc.fr

Francis Poulenc: PIANOVERSAL Composer of the Week No. 1 / January 2018