Poulenc, Francis : 5 Impromptus FP.21
Work Overview
Publication Year:1922
First Publisher:Chester
Instrumentation:Piano Solo
Genre:inpromptu
Total Playing Time:8 min 00 sec
Copyright:Under Copyright Protection
Commentary (1)
Author : Nagai, Tamamo
Last Updated: March 12, 2018
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Author : Nagai, Tamamo
The Improvisations were composed between September 1920 and March of the following year, 1921. However, the work underwent two revisions, significantly altering its content.
At the time of its premiere and in the first edition published by Chester in England in 1922, the work consisted of six movements: "Vite con fuoco," "Lent," "Allegro vivace," "Violon," "Andante," and "Brusque." The autograph manuscript of the 1922 version has been missing since it was auctioned at Sotheby's in 1993.
Two years after the premiere, in 1924, Poulenc undertook the first revision of the work. Through this process, "Lent" and "Brusque" were removed, and "Très modéré" was added as a new third movement between "Allegro vivace" and "Violon," resulting in a five-movement structure. This revision was directly inscribed onto a copy of the 1922 version's autograph manuscript. This document is currently held in the Music Department of the Bibliothèque nationale de France. Poulenc made the final revision to this 1924 version in 1939. Currently, this 1939 revised edition is widely performed.
Compared to works from the 1930s onwards, although not entirely departing from the framework of functional harmony, the Improvisations frequently feature non-harmonic tones and rapid, bar-by-bar modulations, which are often heard among Poulenc's piano works. On the other hand, there are also elements common to later works, such as the light accompaniment patterns in the left hand and tonal melodies, which frequently appear in Poulenc's compositions, as seen at the beginning of "Allegro vivace." Furthermore, the melody of the new third movement, "Très modéré," added later, characterized by its dotted rhythms, is also distinctive within the work.
The work is dedicated to Marcelle Meyer, a pianist whom Poulenc particularly trusted. According to Carl B. Schmidt's complete catalog of Poulenc's works, the premiere of the Improvisations took place at a concert given by Meyer in Paris on February 22, 1922. However, Hervé Lacombe's 2013 biography of Poulenc states that the premiere was given by Ricardo Viñes, Poulenc's piano teacher.