hi there,

i've heard so much of the 3rd of the 3 pieces (the toccata) on youtube & everywhere else, i'm really interested in the other 2! I've tried the other 2, pastorale & hymne, which i think are lovely too. i was deciding between this set of pieces & the novelettes no. 1 & 2 for my ATCL, took the latter, but want to learn the former now. does anyone have a recording of this i could listen to to gauge how these pieces should be played? or better yet, could anyone make a video of themselves playing them & upload it to youtube? i won't be needing really polished recordings, just ones that help me to learn the pieces.

thanks.

They are on volume 3 of Naxos's 3 volume set of all Poulenc's piano music. It costa less than 5 pounds from Amazon and from most record shops. It is not ata ll bad (That is to say - I'd be overjoyed to play half so well). The pianist is Olivier Cazal.

I have what I think is a much better version of the "Trois pieces" on a (much more expensive!) album of Poulenc's piano music by Gabriel Tacchino, which I think is currently unavailable.

. . . or for free (and legally) you could listen to the Naxos / Cazal CD on Spotify, as well as a recording by Eric Le Sage.

The Naxos CD also has the 15 improvisations, some of which are simply wonderful!

I play much of Poulencs music ,including Hymne, 3 novelettes, 3 mouvenents perpetuelles, 15 Improvisations, Nocturnes . These also Les Soirees de Nazelles. Some of the pieces are straightforward, some more difficult. Hymne has been set for Grade 8 by all the Boards in the past. The Toccata has too but for me it's quite difficult and harder than Gr8 standard. The Improvisations have some good and bad. I love the ones dedicated to Schubert and Edith Piaf. Also the ones in B flat an D flat . To me the best recording of all this is by Pascal Roge on a double CD