(b Łódź, 12 June 1897; d Paris, 15 Nov 1986). French composer and pianist of Polish birth. Following studies at the Łódź Conservatory (1908–14) with Wojciech Gawronski and others, he moved to Warsaw where he completed the doctorate in law at the University of Warsaw (1918). He continued his piano studies with Piotr Rytel and took composition lessons with Henryk Melcer-Szczawiński. Although he won three prizes in the Polish National Music Competition of 1919 (for Impression, Preludium in B Major and Romance), critics considered his distinctive chromaticism and polytonality too bold. Disappointed with his reception in Poland, he moved to Paris, giving a début recital in February 1920. Soon after his arrival, he became friendly with Stravinsky and Ravel, both of whom encouraged and advised him. Stravinsky's repetitive, rhythmic patterns and Ravel's chords of the 11th and 13th influenced much of his inter-war music. Acquainted with many leading musical figures in Paris during these years, Tansman was part of the circle of foreign musicians, known as the Ecole de Paris, that included Martinů, Alexander Tcherepnin, Conrad Beck and Marcel Mihalovici. While his music retained many distinctively Polish features, such as Mazurka rhythms and Polish folk melodies, and while he wrote collections of Polonaises, Nocturnes, Impromptus, Waltzes and other Chopinesque miniatures, neo-classical traits appear in works such as the Sonata rustica (1925), the Sonatine for flute and piano (1925), the Symphony no.2 (1926) and the Second Piano Concerto (1927). A more romantic approach to neo-classicism is evident in his fairy tale ballet Le jardin du paradis (1922) and the first of his seven operas, La nuit kurde (1927). Although he never completely abandoned a diatonic framework, critics of the 1920s and 30s described his harmony at times as Scriabinesque and atonal. His Hebraic background provided compositional stimulus for works including Rapsodie hébraïque (1933) and The Genesis (1944), although this influence became more prominent in his postwar music.
Tansman was quick to achieve international success. Vladimir Golschmann was an early champion of his music, conducting the orchestral Impressions in 1921; Koussevitzky conducted Scherzo sinfonico in 1923 and both piano concertos in Paris and Boston with the composer as soloist. Thereafter Tansman's music was performed under Toscanini, Mengelberg, Stokowski, Monteux, Wood and Boult. During his first American tour as a pianist with Koussevitzky and the Boston SO in 1927, Tansman became acquainted with Gershwin. Later, he toured extensively in Europe, Asia, Palestine and India, where he was a guest of Mahatma Gandhi in 1933. Although awarded French nationality in 1938, he and his family were soon forced to flee France. He settled in Los Angeles in 1941 where he became acquainted with Schoenberg, renewed friendships with other European émigrés, including Milhaud and Stravinsky, and composed a number of film scores. He returned to Paris in 1946. In addition to his many compositions, he completed a monograph on Stravinsky (Paris, 1948). His honours included the Coolidge Medal (1941), election to the Académie Royale of Belgium (1977) and the Polish Medal of Cultural Merit (1983).
(selective list)
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Ops: La nuit kurde (3, prol, after J.R. Bloch), 1927, French radio, 1927; La toison d'or (ob, 3, 4 tableaux, after S. de Madariaga), 1938, Paris, 13 April 1947; Le roi qui jouait le fou (2 parts, 13 tableaux, R. Laporte), 1948; Le serment (2 tableaux, D. Vincent, after H. de Balzac), 1953, Paris, 1954; Sabbataï Zévi, le faux messie (4, prol, N. Bistritzky), 1957–8, Paris, 3 March 1961; L'usignolo di Boboli (1, 3 tableaux, M. Labroca), 1963, Nice, 21 July 1965; Georges Dandin (3, after Molière), 1973–4, Sarlat-la-Canéda, 25 July 1974 |
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Ballets: Le jardin du paradis (4 tableaux, after H.C. Andersen), 1922 [arr. as Danse de la sorcière, wind qnt, pf, 1923]; Sextuor (1, after A. Arnoux, choreog. O. Preobrazenska), 1923; Lumières (4 scènes), 1927; Le cercle éternel (2 tableaux, choreog. J. Borlin), 1929; Bric à brac (3 tableaux, after Arnoux, choreog. W. Ignatow), 1935; La grande ville (3 tableaux, choreog. K. Jooss), 2 pf, 1935, orchd 1944; He, She and I, 1946; Le train de nuit (Jooss), 2 pf, 1951; Les habits neufs du roi (1, after Andersen), 1958–9; Résurrection (4 tableaux, P. Médecis, choreog. F. Adret, after L. Tolstoy), 1961–2 |
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9 syms: no.1, 1917; no.2, a, 1926; no.3 ‘Symphonie concertante’, pf qt, orch, 1931; no.4, 1939, no.5, D, 1942; no.6 ‘In memoriam’ (Tansman), SATB, orch, 1944; no.7 ‘Lyrique’, 1944; no.8 ‘Musique pour orchestre’, 1948; no.9, 1957–8 |
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Other orch: Impressions, 1920; Int sinfonico, 1920; Légende, 1923; 2 Scherzo sinfonico, 1923; Sinfonietta no.1, chbr orch, 1924; Pf Conc. no.1, 1925; Ouverture symphonique, 1926; Pf Conc. no.2, 1927; Suite, 2 pf, orch, 1928; Suite dans le style ancien, 1929; 5 pièces, vn, orch, 1930; Sonatine transatlantique, 1930; Concertino, pf, orch, 1931; 4 danses polonaises, 1931; 2 moments symphoniques, 1932; Rapsodie hébraïque, 1933; 2 intermezzi, 1934; 2 pièces, 1934; 2 images de la bible, 1935; Fantaisie, vc, orch, 1936; Va Conc., 1936–7; Fantaisie, pf, orch, 1937; Suite no.1, chbr orch, 1937; Variations sur un thème de Frescobaldi, 1937 |
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Vn Conc., 1937; Etudes symphoniques, 1940–42; Rapsodie polonaise, 1940; Ricercari, 1941–9; Carnival Suite, 1942; Sérénade no.3, 1943; Divertimento, 1944; Lied et toccata, 1944; Partita no.2, pf, orch, 1944; Short Suite, 1944; Concertino, gui, orch, 1945; Le cantique des cantiques, chbr orch, 1946; Introduction et danse gitane, 1946; Suite no.2, chbr orch, 1948; Musique de table, 1949; Suite dans le goût espagnol, 1949; Tombeau de Chopin, str orch, 1949 [arr. str qnt, 1949]; Sinfonia piccola, 1951–2; Concertino, ob, cl, orch, 1952; Capriccio, 1954; Conc. for Orch, 1954; Hommage à Manuel de Falla, gui, chbr orch, 1954; Suite légère, 1955; 4 mouvements symphoniques, 1956; |
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Cl Conc., 1957; Album d'Israël, chbr orch, 1958; Suite baroque, chbr orch, 1958; Chbr Sym., 1960; La lutte de Jacob avec l'ange, 1960 [after P. Gauguin]; Musique de cour, gui, chbr orch, 1960; 6 études, 1962; 6 mouvements, str orch, 1962–3; Vc Conc., 1963; Suite concertante, ob, orch, 1966; 4 mouvements, 1967–8; Concertino, fl, orch, 1968; Hommage à Erasme de Rotterdam, 1968–9; Diptyque, 1969; Stèle in memoriam Igor Stravinsky, 1972; Elégie à la mémoire de Darius Milhaud, 1975; Les dix Commandements, 1978–9; Sinfonietta no.2, chbr orch, 1978; Musique, hp, str orch, 1981 |
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8 mélodies japonaises, 1v, orch, 1918; 6 Songs (N. de Bragança), 1v, orch, 1934; The Genesis (collab. A. Schoenberg, D. Milhaud, I. Stravinsky, M. Castelnuovo-Tedesco, E. Toch, N. Shilkret, Bible: Genesis), nar, orch, 1944; Sym. no.6 ‘In Memoriam’ (Tansman), SATB, orch, 1944; Ponctuation française (C. Oulmont), 1v, orch, 1946; Isaïe le prophète (orat, Tansman, Bible), SATB, orch, 1950; 6 Sonnets (W. Shakespeare), 1v, chbr orch, 1955; Prologue et cantate (Bible: Ecclesiastes), female chorus, orch, 1957; Psaumes (Pss cxviii, cxix, cxx), T, SATB, orch, 1960–61; Apostrophe à Zion (cant., ancient text), SATB, orch, 1976–7; 8 stèles de Victor Segalen (V. Segalen), 1v, chbr orch, 1979; many songs, choral works and vocal music for children |
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8 str qts: 1917, 1922, 1925, 1935, 1940, 1944, 1947, 1956 |
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Pf Trio [no.1], 1915; Sonata [no.1], vn, pf, 1916; Romance, vn, pf, 1918; Sonata [no.1], vc, pf, 1918; Sonata [no.2], vn, pf, 1919; 3 esquisses, str qt, pf, 1922; Sonata [no.3], vn, pf, 1924; Sonatine, fl, pf, 1925; Sonatine, vn, pf, 1925; Pf Trio [no.2], 1928; Suite-divertissement, pf qt, 1929; Sonata [no.2], vc, pf, 1930; Septet, fl, ob, cl, bn, tpt, va, vc, 1932; 2 mouvements, 4 vc, 1935; Str Trio [no.1], 1937; Str Trio [no.2], 1938; Str Sextet, 1940; Suite, vn, pf, 1943; Divertimento, ob, cl, tpt, vc, pf, 1944; Fugue, str qnt, 1945; Wind Octet [no.1], 1945; Str Trio [no.3], 1946; Wind Octet [no.2], 1947; Wind Trio, 1949; Cavatine, gui, 1950; Sonata, 2 vn, 1950; Sonatina da camera, fl, vn, va, vc, hp, 1952; Sonatine, bn, pf, 1952; Partita, vc, pf, 1955; Musique à 5, str qnt, 1955; Suite, bn, pf 1960; Fantaisie, vn, pf, 1963; Hommage à Chopin, gui, 1966; Studio ostinato, 6 perc, 1970; Variations sur un thème de Scriabine, gui, 1972; Miniatures, hn, tpt, trbn, 1976; Suite in modo polonico, hp, pf, 1976; Musique à six, cl, str qt, pf, 1977; Hommage à Lech Walesa, gui, 1982; Musique, cl, str qt, 1982 |
solo pf, unless otherwise stated
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Sonata no.1, 1915; Album polski, 1916; Impression, 1918; Preludium in B major, 1918; 3 études transcendantes, 1922; Sonatine, 1923; Sonata rustica, 1925; Sonata no.2, 1928; Sonatine transatlantique, 2 pf, 1930; Sonata no.3, 1932; Le tour du monde en miniature, 1933; Rapsodie hébraïque, 1933; 3 préludes en forme de blues, 1937; Rapsodie polonaise, 2 pf, 1940; Sonata, 2 pf, 1941; Sonata no.4, 1941; Sonata no.5, 1955; Visit to Israël, 1958; Fantaisie sur des valses de Johann Strauss, 2 pf, 1961; Hommage à Artur Rubinstein, 1973; Album d'amis, 1980; many other solo pf works, incl. collections of Etudes, Preludes, Impromptus, Mazurkas, Nocturnes, Ballades, etc |
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MSS in Association des amis d'Alexandre Tansman, Paris |
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Principal publishers: Billaudot, Editions Françaises de Musique, Eschig, Ricordi, Technisonor, Universal |
A. Carpentier: ‘Alexandre Tansman y su obra luminosa’, Social, xiv/9 (1929); repr. in Obras completas de Alejo Carpentier, ix (Mexico City, 1986), 193–8
R. Petit: ‘Alexandre Tansman’, ReM, x/4–5 (1929) 46–54
I. Schwerké: Alexandre Tansman, compositeur polonais (Paris, 1931)
C. Otero: Alexandre Tansman su vida y su obra para guitara (Mexico, 1993)
A. Granat-Janki: Forma w twórczości instrumentalnej Aleksandra Tansmana [Form in the instrumental works of Alexandre Tansman] (Wrocław, 1995)
G. Hugon: Alexandre Tansman, catalogue de l’oeuvre (Paris, 1995)
J. Cegiella: Dziecko Szczęścia Aleksander Tansman i jego czasy [Child of fortune: Alexandre Tansman and his life and times] i, ii (Łódź, 1996)
CAROLINE RAE