AUTHORITATIVE | CURATED | First 500 words Free

• Personalities
• Classical
• Composer
• Modern Era

(Pol Dü-ka’) 1865–1935 French composer Acutely self-critical, Dukas allowed only a handful of his compositions to be performed and published and wrote nothing of importance after the age of 47. He admired and was admired by Debussy, but his Symphony in C and his Piano Sonata are in a line traceable to Beethoven, and Debussy’s influence is joined ...

• Personalities
• Modern Era
• Opera

1865–1935, French A contemporary of Debussy and Ravel who joined the French Wagnerian movement, Dukas is primarily known for his orchestral fantasy L’apprenti sorcier (‘The Sorcerer’s Apprentice’, 1897), memorably featured in Disney’s animated feature Fantasia. He was a perfectionist who spent years rewriting his partially written works. Two of Dukas’ operas remained unfinished: the Wagner-inspired Horn et Riemenhild (1892) ...

• Personalities
• Classical
• Composer
• Modern Era

Recommended Recording: Variations on a Nursery Theme, op. 25, Julius Katchen, London PO (cond) Sir Adrian Boult (Decca) Introduction | Modern Era | Classical Personalities | Paul Dukas | Modern Era | Classical ...

• Personalities
• Classical
• Composer
• Instrumentalist
• Late Romantic

works of Spanish character. Among the most popular are the suites España, Tango, Navarra and Iberia (1906–09), composed in Paris, where Albéniz studied from 1903 with Paul Dukas (1865–1935) and D’Indy. In his masterpiece Iberia, the pyro­technics of Liszt and the exotic impressionism of Debussy are combined with Spanish dance rhythms, ingenious pianistic imitations of guitar ...

• Personalities
• Opera
• Turn of the Century

1862–1949, Belgian Maeterlinck is best known for his play Pelléas et Mélisande set verbatim but with cuts by Debussy. It has become one of the pinnacles of French opera. Maeterlinck was one of the main founders of symbolist theatre. Thoroughly Belgian in his dark mysticism, he took Paris by storm in the early 1890s and was suddenly proclaimed the ...

• Personalities
• Modern Era
• Opera

France’s greatest twentieth-century composers, Messiaen began writing at the age of seven, and studied at the Paris Conservatoire from the age of 11 under the tutelage of Paul Dukas, Maurice Emmanuel and Marcel Dupré. In 1931 he became the organist at L’Eglise de la Trinité, where he remained until his death. As a music professor at L’École Normale ...

• Personalities
• Modern Era
• Opera

run opera companies in Los Angeles and Washington while continuing to sing leading roles, more recently from the baritone repertoire. Introduction | Modern Era | Opera Personalities | Paul Dukas | Modern Era | Opera ...

• Personalities
• Classical
• Composer
• Modern Era

1894–1976 American composer Piston studied in Paris with Nadia Boulanger and Dukas, then taught at Harvard University (Leonard Bernstein and Elliott Carter, 1908–2012, were among his pupils), publishing several composition textbooks. His music, including eight symphonies, is neo-classical, athletically energetic and graceful. Recommended Recording: The Incredible Flutist, New York PO (cond) Leonard Bernstein (Sony) ...