Jacques Ibert
Ibert's scores favour clarity, colour and a light touch. His chamber miniatures, including the well-loved Entr'acte, bring French wit and classical poise to flute, harp, guitar and solo cello.
He never tied himself to one fashion. Divertissement is festive and almost frivolous; Escales is ripe Mediterranean romance for large orchestra. Operas, ballets, incidental music and film scores show the same range, from pastiche farce to epic gesture. Ghirlarzana gives the unaccompanied cello a brief, singing turn. What holds the work together is craft rooted in the classical tradition, often tinged with gentle humour, always ready to entertain without apology.
Compositions by Jacques Ibert appear on
Miscellany for Flute and Harp
Throughout history composers have been drawn to the flute and harp pairing, from the shepherd’s pan-pipes and Orphean lyre of ancient Arcadia to the French court of Marie-Antoinette and Mozart’s duo concerto for the two instruments.