Your Top 10 Favorite French Composers

Started by Christo, January 24, 2018, 10:27:43 PM

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some guy

Quote from: Christo on January 29, 2018, 11:38:36 PM
BTW: not sure who proposed a composer supposedly named "André" - if I don't know him, who does?  ::)
Not sure how you could be not sure. It's right there in my post. My post, with my handle on top and everything, just like this one.

And amw is correct, the accent apparently went when he changed from Marc to Mark. So not only not compulsory, compulsory to NOT have it.

Spineur

#81
So I succomb to GMG list mania - by order of preference

Claude Debussy for Pelleas et Melisande
Francis Poulenc for Le dialogue des Carmelites
Maurice Ravel for Daphnis et Cloe
J-P Rameau for les indes galantes
Georges Bizet for Carmen
Jules Massenet for Werther
Hector Berlioz for les nuits d'été
Henri Dutilleux for Tout un monde Lointain
Charles Koechlin for The jungle book
César Franck for Les sept dernières paroles du Christ

ComposerOfAvantGarde

Quote from: amw on January 30, 2018, 04:14:43 AM
I assume that's Mark Andre, who is pretty good at composing and being a nerd (maybe not in that order).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fKJAUyI4aww&app=desktop

Not sure if the accent aigu is compulsory.

I would have put him on my list if it weren't for the complexities of things like nationality..........also I am pretty sure he officially changed his name from Marc André to Mark Andre as a German.

some guy

It's true.

I knew about the Marc to Mark part of things, but I completely missed the whole German thing.

So yeah. Mark Andre is officially NOT one of my favorite French composers.

ComposerOfAvantGarde

But he is one of my favourite European composers at any rate. ;D

Josquin13

#85
That's a particularly difficult question for me, since apart from Bach, Handel & Mozart, the music that I listen to and enjoy most is by the 19th & early 20th Century French 'impressionist' composers (& their progeny), and the early Burgundian and Franco-Flemish schools.  I'd have trouble choosing a top ten for either of those two periods, let alone a combined list.

To make it easier, I won't include the Belgian or Netherlandish composers of the Franco-Flemish School--sometimes known as the "Dutch School", though it did include parts of northern France.  Which means that I won't be considering Ciconia (Belgian), Ockeghem (Netherlands or Belgium), La Rue (Tournai, so Belgian), Isaac (Brabant, Flanders, or poss. German), Pipelare (Antwerp), Obrecht (Ghent), Orto (Tournai), De Monte (Mechelen, Flanders or Belgium), or Lassus (Mons--Habsburg Netherlands, or Belgium), but will include the French & Burgundian schools.  (Though among the Burgundian School, I'll leave out Dunstable and Morton, since they were both English.)

My top ten (or at least, the composers that I've listened to most over the past several years):

Josquin Desprez
Claude Debussy
Maurice Ravel
Guillaume Dufay
Guillaume de Machaut
Philippe De Vitry
Loyset Compere
Guillaume Faugues
Eustache Du Caurroy
Gabriel Faure

A bit easier--here are my favorite 10 pre-Baroque French composers:

Josquin Desprez
Guillaume Dufay
Guillaume Machaut
Philippe De Vitry
Loyset Compere
Gilles Binchois
Perotin
Guillaume Faugues
Jean Mouton
Eustache Du Caurroy

Other worthy mentions: Antoine Busnois, Antoine Brumel, Firminus Caron, Pierre La Rue, Jean Richafort, Leonin or Leoninus, etc..

And, here are my top 10 post-Renaissance French composers:

Claude Debussy
Maurice Ravel
Gabriel Faure
Marc-Antoine Charpentier
François Couperin
Jean-Philippe Rameau
Jean-Baptiste Lully
Albert Roussel
Charles Koechlin
Erik Satie

Other worthy mentions: L. Couperin, Ropartz, Franck, Magnard, Pierne, Saint-Saens, Duparc, Milhaud, Rebel, Chausson, etc.



André

A very valid point, Josquin. Like other countries around it, particularly on its northern marches, France before the XVth century had shifting borders, vastly different musical/visual arts cultures (esp south of the Loire river) and also substantially different languages - nothing at all like today's French language. Northern France was much closer in all respects to what eventually became Belgium than it was to, say, Aquitaine, Touraine, Languedoc, Savoie and Provence.

French became the language of the royal administration in 1539 only. The Grandfather of modern french literature, Michel Montaigne (1533-1592) was the first to use it (modern French) in his writings. He mentioned that he was writing for « few men, and a few years only ». « If my work had been planned for the long term, I would not have chosen French »,  and: « Since I was born, half of it has changed. Who knows what it will be like in 50 years? ».

With that in mind I hesitate to consider composers from the Middle Ages or Early Renaissance in the same light as those who came after Kings Charle VII up to François Ier had unified the kingdom in the 15th-16th centuries. France underwent dramatic changes during and following the 100 Years War (1337-1453). It is quite safe to say that it was not the same country before and after.

Spineur

Quote from: André on January 31, 2018, 05:36:37 PM
The Grandfather of modern french literature, Michel Montaigne (1533-1592) was the first to use it (modern French) in his writings.
Michel Eyquem de Montaigne.  His Essais are in fact closer to a philosophy treatise.  I keep returning to this extraordinary book.

Quote
  France underwent dramatic changes during and following the 100 Years War (1337-1453). It is quite safe to say that it was not the same country before and after.
Certainly true of northern France.  Not really true of southern France which was affected by the 100 y war only through the food shortages.

mjmosca

Saint-Saens, Berlioz, Faure, Ravel, Rameau, Roussel, Schmitt, Poulenc, M-A Charpentier, Debussy.

There are others of course, but these are the French composers that I listen to most often. Indeed, I would say that Saint-Saens, along with Bruckner and Beethoven are among my top favorite composers. thanks! 

Symphonic Addict

I haven't participated here yet! Time to remedy that. In order of preference I guess:

Saint-Saëns
Roussel
Poulenc
Ravel
Magnard
Gouvy
Alkan
Dubois
Schmitt
Pierné

Honorable mentions: d'Indy, Fauré, Cras, Berlioz
Part of the tragedy of the Palestinians is that they have essentially no international support for a good reason: they've no wealth, they've no power, so they've no rights.

Noam Chomsky

vandermolen

I've just ordered a CD of music by Jean-Roger Ducasse - maybe that will join my list in due course!

Let's have another think:

Sauguet
Damase
Magnard
Debussy
Tournemire
Koechlin
Durufle
Alain
Cras
Poulenc (for the Organ Concerto)
"Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm" (Churchill).

'The test of a work of art is, in the end, our affection for it, not our ability to explain why it is good' (Stanley Kubrick).

Brian

Berlioz
Debussy
Escaich
Faure
Ibert
Pierne
Poulenc
Ravel
Roussel
Widor

Tough to eliminate: Francaix, F. Couperin, Rameau, Saint-Saens

Symphonic Addict

I forgot Koechlin and Ropartz. Two composers who deserve to be mentioned.
Part of the tragedy of the Palestinians is that they have essentially no international support for a good reason: they've no wealth, they've no power, so they've no rights.

Noam Chomsky

kyjo

#93
Poulenc
Saint-Saëns
Damase
Ravel
Roussel
Fauré
Magnard
Cras
Dutilleux
Schmitt

Honorable mentions: Canteloube, Berlioz, Chausson

I'm woefully under-familiar with Koechlin's music for some odd reason. I need to rectify that...
"Music is enough for a lifetime, but a lifetime is not enough for music" - Sergei Rachmaninoff

Biffo

Here's my 10, aprt from the first two, in no particular order -

Berlioz
Ravel
Roussel
Debussy
Faure
Koechlin
Alkan
Saint-Saens
Cras
Scratching around for a 10th - several one-hit wonders. Also left out Baroque and Early Music where I have no clear-cut favourites

vandermolen

#95
Quote from: kyjo on August 27, 2020, 07:16:52 AM
Poulenc
Saint-Saëns
Damase
Ravel
Roussel
Fauré
Magnard
Cras
Dutilleux
Schmitt

Honorable mentions: Canteloube, Berlioz, Chausson

I'm woefully under-familiar with Koechlin's music for some odd reason. I need to rectify that...
No surprise to see Damase there  ;D

For Koechlin I'd recommend 'Le buisson ardent' Kyle:
"Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm" (Churchill).

'The test of a work of art is, in the end, our affection for it, not our ability to explain why it is good' (Stanley Kubrick).

Total Rafa

Loosely organised into tiers:

Messiaen
Poulenc
Fauré

Saint-Saëns
Berlioz
Ravel
Debussy
Satie

Duruflé
Franck or Bizet

MusicTurner

Debussy
Ravel
Messiaen
S-Saens
Faure
Rameau
Poulenc
Franck

and probably

Murail
Dutilleux,

so pretty familiar names; I might exchange one with Schmitt though.



Maestro267

Messiaen
Ravel
Poulenc
Roussel
Saint-Saens
Dutilleux
Berlioz
Franck
Duruflé
Debussy


Symphonic Addict

Another go:

Saint-Saëns
Poulenc
Ravel
Roussel
Magnard
Milhaud
Schmitt
Fauré
Ropartz
Pierné

I think it sums up my tastes quite well.

Runner-ups: Cras, d'Indy, Gouvy, Dubois, Berlioz.
Part of the tragedy of the Palestinians is that they have essentially no international support for a good reason: they've no wealth, they've no power, so they've no rights.

Noam Chomsky