Stèle pour le tombeau de Paul Dukas, Florent Schmitt’s heartfelt tribute to his fellow composer, gets a first-ever recording of its orchestral version (1936/38).

Of the composers of France’s “Golden Age” covering a seven-decade period of music beginning in the 1880s, among the most important and influential were five composers born during the 1860s and 1870s – in order of birth Claude Debussy, Paul Dukas, Albert Roussel, Florent Schmitt and Maurice Ravel. Schmitt was the longest-lived of the five, […]

The making of Yan Pascal Tortelier’s newest Florent Schmitt recording: An eyewitness report from Manchester (October 2025).

November 6, 2025 · by Phillip Nones | in Classical Music, French Composers, Piano Music | tagged BBC Philharmonic, Cancunik, Chaine brisee, Chandos Records, Charles Munch, Concerts Poulet, Fleisher Collection, Gaston Poulet, Jonathan Cooper, Manuel Rosenthal, Paul Paray, Peter Donohoe, Serge Koussevitzky, Stele pour le Tombeau de Paul Dukas, Symphonie Concertante, Trois danses, Yan-Pascal Tortelier | 1 Comment

“It is one of the most important recordings of my entire career.” — Yan Pascal Tortelier, French conductor In late October 2025, I had the privilege of being invited to Manchester, UK to observe the recording of a program of mid-career orchestral works by Florent Schmitt (composed between 1929 and 1938), featuring the BBC Philharmonic […]

“Fresh daydreams, where worries are absent”: Florent Schmitt’s early-career Cinq pièces (1899-1909).

February 1, 2023 · by Phillip Nones | in Classical Music, Instrumental Music | tagged Albert Gleizes, Andre Tourret, Arthur Loesser, Aurelienne Brauner, Bacewicz, Berceuse pour la chatte, Boris Roubakine, Camille Chevillard, Capet Quartet, Chanson a bercer, Charles Vildrac, Cinq pieces, Cyril Scott, Eunice Prosser, Fabien Gabel, Fleisher Collection, Florent Schmitt, Genevieve Ibanez, Godfroy Andolfi, Henri Le Fauconnier, Henri Tomasi, Hortense de Sampigny, Jean Barthe, JoAnn Falletta, Jouro Tkaltchitch, Julian Schwarz, Juro Tkalcic, Lorene de Ratuld, Louis Siegel, Maud Powell, Natalia Goncharova, Nicolas Altstaedt, Otto R. Stahl, Paul Castiaux, Philip Hale, Pierre Wissmer, Pierre-Octave Ferroud, Reve au bord de l'eau, Schmitt, Thomas de Hartmann, Yvonne Curti | 4 Comments

These charmers, written for violin or cello soloist, make for perfect recital pieces. Music-lovers who are familiar with Florent Schmitt’s catalogue know that he composed a number of works featuring the violin and cello as solo instruments. Most of the composer’s violin pieces have been gathered together in a fine collection of works including the […]