Posted by Michael Eastep on February 05, 2002 at 02:25:10:
In Reply to: Poulenc Concerto for Two Pianos posted by Ace on February 03, 2002 at 22:06:43:
I have always enjoyed playing this piece, which contains some beautiful melodies and jazz-influenced harmonies. The main concern in the tuba writing is Poulenc's tendency, like Stravinski, to ask the tubist for very short, tidy and timely attacks. It is very easy to sound late to the rest of the brass, especially in a hall with a high ceiling. It is certainly a piece that responds well to a smaller instrument, not because the range is high, but for the style. We just finished three performances of the same conposer's opera Dialogues of the Carmelites, which has some nice, if rather scattered tuba moments, and other places that are reminiscent of the 2 piano concerto and other works of Prokofiev and Gershwin. I enjoyed it more than I expected to! It also has a striking ending, as one can hear the sounds made by the guillotine as it decapitates 16 nuns! (I hear it was a recording of a paper cutter)