Though he's not talked about much today, the music of Alexandre Tansman (1897-1986) was once very popular, as he was one of the most prolific and high-profile figures in French Neo-Classicism in the years between the World Wars (and beyond). The Neo-Classical style utterly dominated French music at the time, and it's all to easy to write off its authors as riding trends (much like the American populist style of the 40's and 50's), but when they were good they were good, and Tansman had a consistently excellent grasp of the language that bespoke a personal identity. Though he lived and worked in France for the majority of his life, he was Polish by birth and maintained a strong sense of his heritage in his works. His Quatre Danses Polonaises from 1932 are an excellent synthesis of Polish folk music and Neo-Classical techniques, and as I perused it a leaf blew my way that resonated very well with the Holiday conurbation.
(Click for larger view)
One of Tansman's prettiest pieces, the Dumka keeps a deep emotional resonance so treasured in Eastern European music, at once yearning and dolorous. Much like Debussy's The Girl with the Flaxen Hair, Tansman is able to use modern harmonic and textural techniques in a way that doesn't distract from the tune, or its recognizably Polish harmonic structure. Americans are trained to think of snow whenever we hear Slavic music, so the Dumka may spark those warm Christmas feelings in US listeners. I personally think that Lutoslawski's 20 Polish Christmas Carols is the definitive document of Eastern European Christmas music, but I can't fit that into a leaf article (but perhaps Re-Composing). The Danses Polonaises also exist in an orchestral version, and that's the version I've got a recording of. The Dumka is the third movement, and shows off Tansman's creativity in orchestration - with a haunting treat in the last five measures. The other dances are pretty boss, too.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WERhS1jnVXY (embedding disabled, sorry)
~PNK
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