Discovering Honegger’s “Symphonic Psalm”

This past Friday, the theme of the latest newsletter I received from Naxos was entitled Les Six: Celebrate the Iconic French Composer Group. These were six composers that “set the bar,” so to speak, for inventiveness in the early twentieth century. In alphabetical order (which is how they appear on their Wikipedia Web page), these composers were Georges Auric (1899–1983), Louis Durey (1888–1979), Arthur Honegger (1892–1955), Darius Milhaud (1892–1974), Francis Poulenc (1899–1963), and Germaine Tailleferre (1892–1983).

I first became aware of them in secondary school, due in some part of Poulenc’s relationship with the Philadelphia Orchestra but also through albums released by Columbia Records. Sadly, by the time my vinyl collection gave way to compact discs, both the composers and their works seldom made appearances in either symphonic performances or chamber music. As a result, my reaction to the new Naxos newsletter was one of irresistible nostalgia.

Nevertheless, I do not feel a strong need to take a “deep dive” into all of the music that emerged from this period in the twentieth century. Instead, I plan to limit myself to only two compositions, both with “roots” in Judaism. Mind you, the composers’ “roots” to the religion were not particularly deep. Honegger’s feelings seem to be, at best, tenuous, while Milhaud’s interests were more inclined to Brazilian popular music than in his Jewish ancestry.

Cover design for the album begin discussed (from its Amazon.com Web page)

That said, the Naxos album I selected was Honneger’s Le Roi David with the subtitled “Psaume symphonique en trois parties” (symphonic psalm in three parts) based on a play by René Morax. The unfolding of the narrative of that play is framed by a narrator (Jacques Martin on the Naxos album). There is also a spoken role for “La pythonisse” (better known in this country as the Witch of Endor). The Wikipedia page accounts for the narrative framework as follows:

The plot, based on biblical narration, tells the story of King David, first a shepherd boy, his victories in battle, relationship to Saul, rise to power, adultery, mourning of his son's death, and finally his own death.

Listening to this recording felt like a journey into my distant past. Unless I am mistaken, I have not listened to Honneger’s music since I wrote about his third symphony in 2022, when it was included in the French Music album in the Hans Rosbaud Edition collection. The Naxos album, on the other hand, dates back to a recording session in 1997. Nevertheless, I have to confess that, these days, I feel as if I am being bombarded with novelty; so I find it almost refreshing to “turn back the clock” for more than a couple of decades!