Henri Dutilleux

Introduction
Henri Dutilleux was a French composer active in the second half of the 20th century. He was born January 22nd, 1916 in Angers, France. His work followed traditional composers such as Ravel and Debussy however, he applied a more idiosyncratic style to his pieces. He is known for creating extremely flexible music for his time.

Work Analysis
The work I will be analyzing is Duttilleux Op.1 Piano Sonata. This piece is his only piano sonata and was composed over the span of a year from 1947 to 1948. This sonata was written and performed by his wife Genevieve Joy on April 30th, 1948. The piece consists of 3 movements all played differently with different characteristics. The first movement Allegro con moto varies in meter and has obvious tri-tone usage. Each theme is different but the second is based off of the first. The second and shortest movement Lied is in a standard A-B-A form and also changes meter frequently beginning in 4/8. The last movement Choral et variations, opens up with 4 voice polyphony and includes 4 different variations. Each variation is structured like its own small sonata and at the end, we hear a recapitulation of the 4 voice polyphony. This piece is obviously not tonal and has a very angry and melancholy feel. Dutilleux uses formal rigor which is harsh or aggressive sound throughout his work.

Comparisons
Henri Dutilleux was heavily influenced by composers such as Debussy and Ravel as I mentioned before but he also was influenced by the jazz music of his time. Most of his work can be compared to other composers who wrote with a modernist style like Schoenberg, Stravinsky and, Webern. Dutilleux also had a thing for variations which is similar to that of Joseph Haydn who became well-known for examples of ensemble variations.

Observations
Henri Dutilleux was very similar to composers we have been studying in class which made his music easier to understand and follow. He used very basic techniques and standard skills to create unstructured a-- tonal music. I enjoyed this Piano Sonata especially because of the constant meter changes and his dedication to his wife.