Brilliance, Brevity and Wit: The genius of Germaine Tailleferre

Either music happens naturally or it should not happen at all.

Germaine Tailleferre in an interview with the New York Times at the age of 90, May 23, 1982

Germaine Tailleferre was born Marcelle Germaine Taillefesse on April 19, 1892, in the outskirts of Paris. She showed an early affinity for music, particularly the piano. With the support of her mother, but against the will of her authoritarian father, she entered the Paris Conservatory in 1904, devoting herself to composition, winning awards and honors. It was this tumultuous relationship with her father that would drive her to change her name from Taillefesse to Tailleferre. In 1918, along with Francis Poulenc, Darius Milhaud, Arthur Honegger, Georges Auric, and Louis Durey, she became a member of a group of young avant-garde musicians in Paris known collectively as Les Six. The music of Les Six took its influences from everyday life: the café, the fairground, the circus. It was innovative, neoclassical music with a focus on simplicity. It was the antidote to post-romanticism. And it was here that she found her individual compositional voice, shaping the resurging sound of French music post-World War I. She became close friends with Maurice Ravel, who enthusiastically promoted her music. Erik Satie called her his musical daughter and Igor Stravinsky described her works as sincere. Even with this encouragement and support, she would spend her life struggling to be taken seriously due to misogynistic stereotypes and gender inequality. Tailleferre did not like being quantified as a female composer. She just wanted to be called a composer. After the premiere of her Piano Concerto No. 1 at Carnegie Hall in 1925, a New York World critic wrote, “One thing is certain, after beholding Mlle. (Germaine) Tailleferre last night and remembering portraits of the Six, whatever the talents of the others, she is decidedly the best looking.” Marginalization by gender-based statements rather than engaging with her work was sadly all too common for Tailleferre.

Composing over seven decades up until a few weeks before her death in 1983 at age 91, she wrote hundreds of works with precision and care in numerous musical genres including chamber music, solo instrumental, choral, orchestral, concerto, opera, operetta, ballet, film, and arrangements for radio and television, all of which helped her support herself during a life of extraordinary challenges: two abusive and unsupportive marriages, displacement during World War II due to the Nazi invasion of France, health ailments, financial difficulties, and the loss of many of her manuscripts. A kind and gentle soul, she was known for being modest and humble and not promoting herself or her work.

In her music, Tailleferre generally favored classical models and styles while never entirely abandoning the idea of impressionism. Her compositions include a variety of colors and expressive dynamics, resulting in ravishingly beautiful music that is playful, witty, optimistic, elegant, and with a touch of jazz. She once said that Pablo Picasso gave her the “best lesson in composition” she ever received, when he encouraged her to “constantly renew yourself and avoid using the recipes that you have already found.” Her unique mixture of sounds and styles are a testament to her compositional genius. Much of her music remained unpublished until recent years.

My favorite works are her Piano Trio, Concertino for Harp, Piano Concerto No. 1 (oh, the breathtaking Adagio!), and Violin Sonata No. 1. Listen for them and more on KCME! You’ll be glad you did and probably ask yourself where this music has been your whole life!