April-September 2021

The Piano Quartets of Mel Bonis

Saint Saëns, after hearing the first piano quartet of Mel Bonis in concert, remarked to its dedicatee Jean Gounod, "I never thought a woman could write something such as this. She knows all the clever tricks of the composer's trade," This was both a compliment and a sad commentary on the fact that women composers were basically ignored and regarded as second rate.

Mel Bonis (Melanie Helene Bonis 1858-1937) was born in Paris. a gifted but long underrated composer. She used the pseudonym Mel Bonis because she rightly felt women composers of her time weren't taken seriously as artists. Her music represents a link between the Romantic and Impressionist movements in France. Her parents discouraged her early interest in music and she taught herself to play piano until age 12, when she was finally given private lessons. A friend introduced her to Cesar Franck, who was so impressed with her abilities he made special arrangements for her to be admitted to the then all-male Paris Conservatory in 1876. She won prizes in harmony and accompaniment and showed great promise in composition, but a romance with a fellow student, Amedee Hettich, caused her parents to withdraw her from the institution in 1881. Two years later she married and raised a family. Then in 1893 she again encountered Hettich, now a famous critic; he urged her to continue composing and helped launch her career in fashionable Parisian salons, where her music made a considerable stir. Saint Saens highly praised her chamber music and could not believe that it had not been composed by a man.

Although her music was much played and praised she never entered the first rank of her contemporaries as she probably would have because she lacked the necessary vanity for self-promotion. It did not help that she was a woman. As a result, by the time of her death, she and her music had fallen into obscurity. She composed over 300 works in most genres. Finally, in the 1960s, historians began to re-examine the contributions of women composers and this set the stage for Bonis's posthumous reputation.

Piano Quartet No.1 in B flat Major was completed in 1905. Its premiere took place at a concert in Bonis' home with her at the piano. Three then famous string players (Louis Duttenhofer on violin, Pierre Monteux on viola and Louis Feuillard on cello) took part and the concert was a great success. Nonetheless the work was forgotten shortly after the First World War, like so many other fine works from this period. The opening movement, Moderato, begins gently but its main theme also shows a marked intensity of feeling. The music has a certain diffidence. The second theme is used to slowly build tension. The second movement, Intermezzo, allegretto tranquillo, also begins quietly but momentum picks up almost immediately, while still keeping the laid back mood of an intermezzo. The lovely Andante which follows is the work's center of gravity. The first part of the main theme has a sad, searching quality while the second half is surprisingly optimistic. From this she branches out, building beautiful tonal episodes. In the finale, Allegro ma non troppo, the relaxed geniality is substituted for passion, drama and excitement.

Piano Quartet No.2 in D Major was completed in 1927. Bonis published the work at her own expense the following year. It was never publicly performed in her lifetime and although she considered it her musical testament, sadly it has never gained any traction, even in France. The opening movement, Moderato begins in a quiet and reflective fashion and remains so for several minutes. The main theme consists of a long, slowly rising scale passage. At brief moments, Bonis tries to expand the limits of tonality. The second theme is more traditional and easily discernable. In the  Allegretto which follows, we hear the definite influence of the Impressionists, but it is worth remembering that Bonis was a generation older than the impressionists and only adopted their style partially. The mood of the movement barely changes, but sparklingly exotic touches create good interest. The slow movement, Lent, has a lovely long-lined, lazy melody for its main theme. The piano part, not only here, but throughout the quartet creates great interest. While the music up until this point has been mostly calm and reflective, the finale, Allegro, pushes forth with power and a real sense of drama, echoing Gabriel Fauré.

We highly recommend these works to professionals and amateurs. You can hear soundbites from both piano quartets by clicking on the links above. And all are available from Edition Silvertrust.