Henri Dutilleux (1916–2013) was one of the most important French composers … Read Full Bio ↴Henri Dutilleux (1916–2013) was one of the most important French composers of the second half of the 20th century, producing work in the tradition of Maurice Ravel, Claude Debussy, and Albert Roussel, but in a style distinctly his own.
Born on the 22nd January 1916, as a young man Dutilleux studied harmony, counterpoint and piano with Victor Gallois at the Douai Conservatory before leaving for Paris. There from 1933 to 1938 he attended the classes of Jean and Noël Gallon (harmony and counterpoint), Henri-Paul Busser (composition) and Maurice Emmanuel (history of music) at the Paris Conservatoire.
Dutilleux won the Prix de Rome in 1938 for his cantata L'Anneau du Roi but did not complete the entire residency in Rome due to the outbreak of World War II. He worked for a year as a medical orderly in the army and then came back to Paris in 1940 where he worked as a pianist, arranger and music teacher and in 1942 conducted the choir of the Paris Opera.
Dutilleux worked as Head of Music Production for French Radio from 1943 to 1963. He served as Professor of Composition at the École Normale de Musique de Paris from 1961 to 1970. He was appointed to the staff of the Paris Conservatoire in 1970. His students include French composers Gérard Grisey and Francis Bayer and Canadian composer Jacques Hétu.
He died on the 22nd May 2013.
Born on the 22nd January 1916, as a young man Dutilleux studied harmony, counterpoint and piano with Victor Gallois at the Douai Conservatory before leaving for Paris. There from 1933 to 1938 he attended the classes of Jean and Noël Gallon (harmony and counterpoint), Henri-Paul Busser (composition) and Maurice Emmanuel (history of music) at the Paris Conservatoire.
Dutilleux won the Prix de Rome in 1938 for his cantata L'Anneau du Roi but did not complete the entire residency in Rome due to the outbreak of World War II. He worked for a year as a medical orderly in the army and then came back to Paris in 1940 where he worked as a pianist, arranger and music teacher and in 1942 conducted the choir of the Paris Opera.
Dutilleux worked as Head of Music Production for French Radio from 1943 to 1963. He served as Professor of Composition at the École Normale de Musique de Paris from 1961 to 1970. He was appointed to the staff of the Paris Conservatoire in 1970. His students include French composers Gérard Grisey and Francis Bayer and Canadian composer Jacques Hétu.
He died on the 22nd May 2013.
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Violin Concerto "L'arbre des songes" : III. Lent -
Henri Dutilleux Lyrics
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The lyrics are frequently found in the comments by searching or by filtering for lyric videos
The lyrics are frequently found in the comments by searching or by filtering for lyric videos
J F
Well, Dutilleux's own description suggests that the piece constantly comes back to its own material and renew/expand it.
But this is the problem with most contemporary pieces. It doesnt really matter how intricately the composer manipulates and shapes the material even in the most cohesive sense, most of the times audiences just don't hear it unless it is made incredibly obvious.
**academic snobs trigger warning**
This bit is where academic composers get incredibly defensive.
The truth is, in this musical language, it is extremely challenging for human ears to pick up all that material transformation. After all, we aim to HEAR all of that, but a lot of what composers do cant even be noticed by audiences unless we look at the score closely, which at that point, the listening experience isnt even relevant anymore. We are examining the score for the sake of it.
The way to go about this, in my opinion, is to really just enjoy the surface beauty of the music. I honestly cant care less about how he manipulates his material
This is because Dutilleux's music doesnt require note-to-note score analysis in order to appreciate(like most serialist music). His sense of harmony, melodic writing, instrumental color and orchestration already offers a lot to appreciate on the surface. Not a lot of composers offer that.
Tariq Khan
stunning concerto, one of my favourites!
Xingyi Betty Chen
Interlude III is just brilliant
Didier Schein
Thank you very much for the score.
John Massari
Sublime.
Giovanni Smartini
18:02 Amazing
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Cool
2906nico
The textures are extraordinary, and quite beautiful, but it doesn't make a lot of sense, even after listening several times and following the score. There's no shape or logic. Yes, I know, it's called the tree of dreams.
nicholas72611
@J F Thanks for explaining better than I could dream of 🤣. Dutilleux's music is an auditory narrative to me. His pieces tell a story and I find most of the time I'm not at all concerned with the form. The toccata in his first symphony is an exception.
I'm terms of contemporary form, I love the idea of "inhale and exhale." I read a paper analysing Grisey's Partials in that way, separating each section into inhales and exhales. It's a really unique way of looking at "form" in contemporary music.
J F
Well, Dutilleux's own description suggests that the piece constantly comes back to its own material and renew/expand it.
But this is the problem with most contemporary pieces. It doesnt really matter how intricately the composer manipulates and shapes the material even in the most cohesive sense, most of the times audiences just don't hear it unless it is made incredibly obvious.
**academic snobs trigger warning**
This bit is where academic composers get incredibly defensive.
The truth is, in this musical language, it is extremely challenging for human ears to pick up all that material transformation. After all, we aim to HEAR all of that, but a lot of what composers do cant even be noticed by audiences unless we look at the score closely, which at that point, the listening experience isnt even relevant anymore. We are examining the score for the sake of it.
The way to go about this, in my opinion, is to really just enjoy the surface beauty of the music. I honestly cant care less about how he manipulates his material
This is because Dutilleux's music doesnt require note-to-note score analysis in order to appreciate(like most serialist music). His sense of harmony, melodic writing, instrumental color and orchestration already offers a lot to appreciate on the surface. Not a lot of composers offer that.
nicholas72611
Did you read the description? Also if you're looking for proper form in Post Modern music I think you'll be very disappointed.