FRANCIS POULENC (1899-1963): Ballet Suites - Les Animaux modèles (arr. Grant Johannesen [1921-2005]), Les Biches, Aubade.

Description: World Premiere Recordings of Poulenc's original piano versions of his 1923 and 1929 ballets which exist only because of the need to have something for the dancers to rehearse to while the scores were being orchestrated and copied. Les Animaux (1940-41), which the pianist Johannesen prepared a couple of different versions of (1951; rev.1975), is another thing altogether since it was arranged for the purpose of concert performance and it is by far the most interesting of the three scores here (and, at half an hour, the longest too). Jean-Pierre Armengaud (piano).