LE SAGE PLAYS POULENC

The enchanting piano music of Francis Poulenc deserves to be better known. Perhaps the finest exponent it has enjoyed on record is the French artist Eric Le Sage. ClassicsToday.com called his recording of the concertos the finest single disc available, “better even than the composer’s recordings, and that’s saying a lot. They have everything: style, spirit, a vivid sense of fun, a touch of sentiment that never turns maudlin, and that ability to change moods every few bars that Poulenc always requires. Beautifully clean, well-balanced sonics round out this enticing picture.” BBC Music Magazine declared: “Eric Le Sage is an outstanding Poulenc pianist.” All his recordings of the composer are now brought together in this 6-CD box.

REVIEW:

As well as the piano music 0 which he plays with an ideal balance of insouciance and intensity - there are the two piano concertos and the Aubade, and all the sonatas, with a superb lineup of soloists. Buckets of charm here, in very good sound.

– Gramophone (12/2016)