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Reviews

'La remarquable analyse de Bempechat nous devoile une oeuvre qui jongle avec les exotismes glanes par le compositeur lors de ses expeditions, le bretonisme qui lui etait inne, et l'exegese de son catholicisme fervent.' France Catholique '... an impressive undertaking... I consider that this book, more than simply a biography of a single composer and a military man, will shine even brighter once we have readjusted his position in the larger history of modern French music.' International Journal of Tourism Science 'Le Canadien Paul-Andre Bempechat, est parfaitement francophone mais c'est en anglais qu'il redige cette somme dediee a Jean Cras ... Tout y est, ...sa carriere marine, ... l'inventeur brilliant, l'esthete petri d'humanisme, le musician dans son /uvre. ... Le portrait est vivant, Jean Cras se tient devant vous et tous les secrets de son art subtil sont demontres.' Diapason 'Bempechat weaves lively excerpts from the composer's journals and correspondence into a descriptive narrative that ranges from heady to introspective, allowing glimpses of Cras's familial devotion, aesthetic musings, wry humor, and faith derived from philosophy and experience rather than blind piety. ... Bempechat's book is a welcome examination of a gifted but obscure composer that will prove useful for military historians and musicologists alike.' Journal of Military History '... a fluid accessible narrative for both historians and musicologists... This is the first major study of Cras and will stand as a good reference to all who are interested in approaching him, Bretagne composers, regionalism and nationalism, the legacy of Franck and Duparc, polymaths, and those interested in cultural activities in France.' Notes '... his absorption of nonmusical matters allows him to present an enormous amount of unexpected information without losing the reader's interest, and when he does get to the music, he examines it so attentively that this introductory book on Cras is likely to be the last word on him for a decade or two. Every composer should have a Paul-Andre Bempechat!' Fanfare Magazine 'With a chronological list of compositions, reviews, and encyclopedia entries on Cras, as well as bibliographies on Brittany, French military history, and musicology, this excellent study should serve as the catalyst for some exciting new research into French musico-poetics of the early twentieth century.' French Studies 'With this book, Mr. Bempechat confirms his reputation as the reigning expert on the composer. He makes clear on every page his thorough knowledge of and reverence for Cras and his music.' H-France Review 'L'ouvrage eveillera la curiosite du musicologue, du scientifique, du marin comme du chaland. ...Savant dosage de biographie, d'analyse et de mise en contexte historique, Jean Cras, Polymath of Music and Letters confere a Jean Cras une aura aristocratique, en meme temps qu'elle renforce son capital sympathie. ...Le nom et la connaissance de l'/uvre musicale de Jean Cras, 'un maitre-compositeur de la musique de chambre, de la sonate au quintette, en passant par la symphonie, par l'opera', ne prennent plus la poussiere...' [The book will arouse the curiosity of the musicologist, the scientist, the sailor as well as the barge driver. ... A scholarly mix of biography, analysis and historical context, Jean Cras, Polymath of Music and Letters confers to Jean Cras an aristocratic aura, while strengthening his sympathy capital... The name and the musical work of Jean Cras, 'a master composer of chamber music, from the sonata to the quintet, via the symphony and the opera' no longer gather dust...]' France-Amerique 'Bempechat [...] paints a compelling portrait of a Renaissance man who was successful in three distinct arenas...Th[is] volume will undoubtedly pique interest in this multifaceted person. [It] is highly recommended.' Journal of Singing 'There is no doubt that, in subsequent studies of Jean Cras's life and works, this book will be the first source to which the researcher turns. Bempechat's deft and skilful blending of a beautifully written and engaging biography with lucid and erudite musical analysis, interspersed with tales of military history and scientific discovery, has resulted in a book that is absolutely engaging on its own, as it tells the life story of a most extraordinary man.' Nineteenth-Century Music Review 'Pourquoi faut-il, encore une fois, que ce soit une maison d'edition anglo-saxonne qui prenne l'initiative de publier pareille somme sur un compositeur francais injustement relegue aux oubliettes - et cela, bien sur, sous la plume d'un chercheur etranger, ici d'un enseignant a Harvard...' L'Education musicale 'Il est bienheureux que Jean Cras sorte enfin du purgatoire oA' une injuste posterite l'avait exile. Et cela grace [...] a l'enorme 'pave' que vient de publier Paul-Andre Bempechat...' (appearing on a review of Henri Duparc: Lettres a Jean Cras in l'Education musicale) 'Cras's oeuvres, indeed, deserve re-examination by musicologists and historians, and by musicians as well. Bempechat has taken that first step in reawakening the world to this unique composer and man of many talents. His writing is of the highest scholarship and detail, and this reviewer feels that he has touched only the surface of the richness of Bempechat's work, and the unique transitional composer and Renaissance man that is Jean Cras.' The Choral Journal, Volume 52, Number 11, June-July 2012 From the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung's review of the 2012 Husum Festival Klavier Raritaten (Schleswig-Holstein) 'The actual discovery of this year's Festival was, rather, the French composer, inventor and Vice-Admiral Jean Cras. He lived between 1879 and 1932 and invented, for example, the gyrocompass which bears his name and which, until the emergence of satellite-assisted navigation technology, was [and still is] in use on board every ship. The life and works of Jean Cras were presented by Cras-researcher Paul-Andre Bempechat at a matinee concert. This music, clearly permeated by Impressionism as well as Breton folklore and exoticism, was stunning. To wit: it became immediately clear that music history had forgotten an excellent composer' Elisabeth Richter, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, 27 September 2012

'La remarquable analyse de Bempechat nous devoile une oeuvre qui jongle avec les exotismes glanes par le compositeur lors de ses expeditions, le bretonisme qui lui etait inne, et l'exegese de son catholicisme fervent.' France Catholique '... an impressive undertaking... I consider that this book, more than simply a biography of a single composer and a military man, will shine even brighter once we have readjusted his position in the larger history of modern French music.' International Journal of Tourism Science 'Le Canadien Paul-Andre Bempechat, est parfaitement francophone mais c'est en anglais qu'il redige cette somme dediee a Jean Cras ... Tout y est, ...sa carriere marine, ... l'inventeur brilliant, l'esthete petri d'humanisme, le musician dans son /uvre. ... Le portrait est vivant, Jean Cras se tient devant vous et tous les secrets de son art subtil sont demontres.' Diapason 'Bempechat weaves lively excerpts from the composer's journals and correspondence into a descriptive narrative that ranges from heady to introspective, allowing glimpses of Cras's familial devotion, aesthetic musings, wry humor, and faith derived from philosophy and experience rather than blind piety. ... Bempechat's book is a welcome examination of a gifted but obscure composer that will prove useful for military historians and musicologists alike.' Journal of Military History '... a fluid accessible narrative for both historians and musicologists... This is the first major study of Cras and will stand as a good reference to all who are interested in approaching him, Bretagne composers, regionalism and nationalism, the legacy of Franck and Duparc, polymaths, and those interested in cultural activities in France.' Notes '... his absorption of nonmusical matters allows him to present an enormous amount of unexpected information without losing the reader's interest, and when he does get to the music, he examines it so attentively that this introductory book on Cras is likely to be the last word on him for a decade or two. Every composer should have a Paul-Andre Bempechat!' Fanfare Magazine 'With a chronological list of compositions, reviews, and encyclopedia entries on Cras, as well as bibliographies on Brittany, French military history, and musicology, this excellent study should serve as the catalyst for some exciting new research into French musico-poetics of the early twentieth century.' French Studies 'With this book, Mr. Bempechat confirms his reputation as the reigning expert on the composer. He makes clear on every page his thorough knowledge of and reverence for Cras and his music.' H-France Review 'L'ouvrage eveillera la curiosite du musicologue, du scientifique, du marin comme du chaland. ...Savant dosage de biographie, d'analyse et de mise en contexte historique, Jean Cras, Polymath of Music and Letters confere a Jean Cras une aura aristocratique, en meme temps qu'elle renforce son capital sympathie. ...Le nom et la connaissance de l'/uvre musicale de Jean Cras, 'un maitre-compositeur de la musique de chambre, de la sonate au quintette, en passant par la symphonie, par l'opera', ne prennent plus la poussiere...' [The book will arouse the curiosity of the musicologist, the scientist, the sailor as well as the barge driver. ... A scholarly mix of biography, analysis and historical context, Jean Cras, Polymath of Music and Letters confers to Jean Cras an aristocratic aura, while strengthening his sympathy capital... The name and the musical work of Jean Cras, 'a master composer of chamber music, from the sonata to the quintet, via the symphony and the opera' no longer gather dust...]' France-Amerique 'Bempechat [...] paints a compelling portrait of a Renaissance man who was successful in three distinct arenas...Th[is] volume will undoubtedly pique interest in this multifaceted person. [It] is highly recommended.' Journal of Singing 'There is no doubt that, in subsequent studies of Jean Cras's life and works, this book will be the first source to which the researcher turns. Bempechat's deft and skilful blending of a beautifully written and engaging biography with lucid and erudite musical analysis, interspersed with tales of military history and scientific discovery, has resulted in a book that is absolutely engaging on its own, as it tells the life story of a most extraordinary man.' Nineteenth-Century Music Review 'Pourquoi faut-il, encore une fois, que ce soit une maison d'edition anglo-saxonne qui prenne l'initiative de publier pareille somme sur un compositeur francais injustement relegue aux oubliettes - et cela, bien sur, sous la plume d'un chercheur etranger, ici d'un enseignant a Harvard...' L'Education musicale 'Il est bienheureux que Jean Cras sorte enfin du purgatoire ou une injuste posterite l'avait exile. Et cela grace [...] a l'enorme 'pave' que vient de publier Paul-Andre Bempechat...' (appearing on a review of Henri Duparc: Lettres a Jean Cras in l'Education musicale) 'Cras's oeuvres, indeed, deserve re-examination by musicologists and historians, and by musicians as well. Bempechat has taken that first step in reawakening the world to this unique composer and man of many talents. His writing is of the highest scholarship and detail, and this reviewer feels that he has touched only the surface of the richness of Bempechat's work, and the unique transitional composer and Renaissance man that is Jean Cras.' The Choral Journal, Volume 52, Number 11, June-July 2012 From the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung's review of the 2012 Husum Festival Klavier Raritaten (Schleswig-Holstein) 'The actual discovery of this year's Festival was, rather, the French composer, inventor and Vice-Admiral Jean Cras. He lived between 1879 and 1932 and invented, for example, the gyrocompass which bears his name and which, until the emergence of satellite-assisted navigation technology, was [and still is] in use on board every ship. The life and works of Jean Cras were presented by Cras-researcher Paul-Andre Bempechat at a matinee concert. This music, clearly permeated by Impressionism as well as Breton folklore and exoticism, was stunning. To wit: it became immediately clear that music history had forgotten an excellent composer' Elisabeth Richter, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, 27 September 2012

Author Information

Paul-André Bempéchat studied at the Manhattan and Juilliard Schools of Music and the Sorbonne, where his mentors in piano and chamber music were Artur Balsam, Felix Galimir and Nadia Reisenberg; in musicology and comparative literature, Marie-Claire Beltrando-Patier, Pierre Brunel and Isabelle Cazeaux. A contributor to The Revised New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicans, Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart, and to numerous academic and performing arts journals, Dr Bempéchat has enjoyed research and lecturing appointments at Harvard University, where he remains an Affiliate at its Center for European Studies, and at the Westminster College of the Arts of Rider University. Based in Boston and Paris, Paul-André Bempéchat sustains the career that has brought him to the Wiener Festwochen, the Caramoor Festival, Boston’s Jordan Hall, and Berlin’s Konzerthaus.

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