Koechlin, Charles

Koechlin, Charles – Vers la voûte étoilée, Op. 129. Nocturne pour orchestre

(b. Paris, November 27, 1867 — d. Le Canadel, Var, France, December 31, 1950)

Preface
In his article “Immense Charles Koechlin,” Jean-Louis Lavallard remarked that in music there are revolutionaries who want to change everything – society, politics, and the way music is composed. While on the other hand, there are libertarians, those “who want to liberate society or music from the constraints of their time.” The former, such as Debussy and Wagner, become famous. However, the latter are “great forgotten figures of history,” and Lavallard believed that Koechlin was one of them (Lavallard, 131).

Born into a wealthy Protestant Alsatian family, Koechlin seemed destined to follow the career path of many of his forebearers who were prominent engineers. Therefore, he began studies at the École Polytechnique in 1885, but episodes of tuberculosis, which sent him to Algiers for recouperation, interfered with his training. Eventually he abandoned his scientific studies and devoted himself to music for which he had demonstrated a natural talent from an early age. He was 22 years old when he tried for admission into the Paris Conservatoire, which was considered quite old. However, his persistence paid off and he was admitted into the composition class of Jules Massenet (1842-1912). Later, he became a student of Gabriel Fauré (1845-1924), who also took him on as an assistant (Lavallard and Duchesneau). After his musical education, Koechlin “led an independent life as a composition teacher,” nurturing and guiding students such as Francis Poulenc (1899-1963) and Henri Sauguet (1901-1989). The only official teaching position he held was at the Schola Cantorum which he obtained in 1937 at the age of 70 (Lavallard, 128). A teaching position at the Conservatoire seemed to elude him, having applied for the position of professor of counterpoint and fugue in 1926. Perhaps his support of the young avant garde worked against him in the eyes of the administration in what was the bastion of distinctly more conservative music making (Orledge, 12). …

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