Darius Milhaud
One of the more prolific composers of the twentieth century, Darius Milhaud was born to a Jewish family in southern France during the last decade of the nineteenth century. He learned the violin as a youth. Studies at the Paris Conservatoire from age 17 on gave the young composer opportunity to work with some of the most prominent French composers and theorists of the day, including Charles Marie Widor, Vincent d'Indy and André Gedalge, and allowed him to focus on developing his skills as a pianist.
While serving as an attaché at the French delegation in Rio de Janeiro during the First World War, Milhaud began a long and fruitful association with poet Paul Claudel (who was at that time a Minister at the delegation), several of whose plays Milhaud would go on to provide with incidental music (Proteé, 1919; L'annonce fait à Marie, 1934) and who, in turn, would supply libretti for many of Milhaud's compositions (e.g. the opera Christophe Colomb of 1928).
After returning to Paris in 1919 Milhaud was adopted into the circle of "Les Six," a group of progressive French composers brought together under the guidance of Jean Cocteau. However, like any such artificial collection, Les Six was quick to dissolve, and during the 1920s Milhaud adopted an assortment of new musical influences (notably jazz, which the composer first discovered during a trip to the U.S. in 1922, and which features prominently in much of his subsequent music).
Milhaud composed, performed, and taught ceaselessly during the 1920s and 1930s, only abandoning his homeland in late 1939 after all hope of resisting the German advance vanished. Settling in the United States, Milhaud accepted a teaching position with Mills College in Oakland, California, and continued to compose prolifically. From 1947 he combined his American teaching duties with a similar position at the Paris Conservatoire, remaining at both institutions until 1971, when his poor health forced him into retirement (Milhaud had suffered from a serious, paralyzing rheumatic condition since the 1920s; in later years he was only mobile through the use of a wheelchair). He died in Switzerland three years later.
Milhaud's musical output is impressive, both in terms of quantity and quality. The numbers alone are staggering for a twentieth century composer: nine operas, 12 ballets, 12 symphonies (in addition to six chamber symphonies), six piano concertos (one of them a double concerto), 18 string quartets, and about 400 other compositions in almost every conceivable form and instrumentation. The most frequently discussed feature of his musical language is polytonality (the simultaneous use of multiple tonal centers), though Milhaud was familiar with and fluent in any number of twentieth century "techniques." A skillful contrapuntist, Milhaud composed two string quartets (Nos. 14 and 15, both from 1949) which may also be performed simultaneously as an octet.
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Discography
16 album(s) • Sorted by Bestseller
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Marguerite Long, Vol. 2
Marguerite Long, Pedro De Freitas Branco, Darius Milhaud, Georges Tzipine, Philippe Gaubert, Orchestre de la Société des Concerts du Conservatoire
Classical - Released by APR on Nov 4, 2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Chabrier, Stravinsky, Milhaud & De Falla: Piano Works
Marcelle Meyer, Darius Milhaud, Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della RAI di Roma, Mario Rossi
Classical - Released by Urania Records on Mar 16, 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Milhaud: La Création Du Monde & Stravinsky: L'Histoire Du Soldat
The London Symphony Orchestra Chamber Group
Classical - Released by Everest Records on Aug 2, 1959
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Milhaud: 5 Suites for Piano, Op. 8, Ibert: Escales (Ports of Call), Turina: Danses Gitanes, Op. 55 & Op. 84
Classical - Released by VDE-GALLO on Jul 8, 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Honegger: Symphony No. 3 & Milhaud: Suite Provencale, Symphony No. 8 (Studio)
Classical - Released by Phoenix USA on Sep 1, 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Milhaud: Choral Works
Classical - Released by Globe on Jan 1, 2004
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Darius Milhaud 1892-1974
Classical - Released by Saphir Productions on Feb 21, 2006
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Milhaud: Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 1, Op. 3 (Digitally Remastered)
Oliver Colbentson, Erich Appel
Classical - Released by EMG Classical on Jul 15, 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Darius Milhaud: Symphony No. 3, Op. 271; The Bells, Op. 259 & Saudades do Brasil, Op. 67
Russian State Symphony Cappella, Gennady Rozhdestvensky
Classical - Released by Mezhdunarodnaya Kniga Musica on Oct 10, 1996
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Milhaud: Suite provençale, Op. 152 (Digitally Remastered)
Classical - Released by EMG Classical on Jul 15, 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Milhaud: String Quartets Nos. 1 & 2
Classical - Released by Reader's Digest on Sep 25, 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Milhaud: La création du monde, Op. 81a (Digitally Remastered)
Classical - Released by EMG Classical on Jul 15, 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Darius Milhaud & Vittorio Rieti: Violin Sonatas
Roger Elmiger, Micheline Mitrani
Chamber Music - Released by VDE-GALLO on May 24, 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Milhaud: Suite Provence 5-8
Classical - Released by Best Buy Classical on Mar 24, 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Milhaud: Suite Provence 1-4
Classical - Released by Best Buy Classical on Mar 24, 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Jewish Roots - Music for Wind Quintet
Chamber Music - Released by Soliton Distribution on Aug 26, 2016
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo