Description

MADELEINE (MARTHE, MARIE) DE VALMALÈTE (JULY 28, 1899, MONTREUIL (SEINE-SAINT-DENIS, AT THE TIME SEINE), DIED AUGUST 2, 1999, MARSEILLE)

 

 

 

 

A pupil of Joseph Morpain and Isidor Philipp, Madeleine obtained a 1st prize from the National Conservatory of Music in Paris at the age of 14. She won another first prize at the Isidor Philipp competition the following year. Writing to the latter to congratulate him on having developed such a talent, Saint-Saëns will say of her, after a performance of his Danse macabre: “virtuosity completely achieved, only the music remains”. One could not better describe her playing, as poetic as it is vigorous. After the First World War, she began an international career as a concert performer and played under the direction of Gabriel Pierné, Wilhelm Furtwangler, Arturo Toscanini, while she rubbed shoulders with Gabriel Fauré, Ravel, Jacques Thibaud, Ninon Vallin, Lotte Lehmann and Yehudi Menuhin.

In love with the South of France, she moved to Marseille in 1926 and founded a piano school there. From 1949 to 1961, invited by Alfred Cortot, she taught at the Normal School of Music in Paris. At the same time, in 1955 she created a competition for piano lovers and traveled all over France to preside over sessions in many cities. In 1962, she moved to Grenoble where she taught until 1974 at the Regional Conservatory of Grenoble, directed at the time by Éric-Paul Stekel, then by André Lodéon. She then returned to her beloved city of Marseilles where she continued to teach privately while giving a few recitals (Liszt Salle Gaveau in 1986, Chopin’s 24 Studies…), because she retained an extraordinary dynamism and technique until a very advanced age. In 1992, she still wanted to “delight with Mozart” and played four of his Sonatas for a final recording (private edition).

The pianist Idil Biret, who met her in 1946 in Ankara, left a moving account of her elegant playing as well as the encouragement received during her musical training in Paris. She evokes her musical intelligence and her inspiration during recitals given each year in Paris at the Salle Gaveau.

 

 

TRACKLIST

 

Polydor, Berlin 1928 

Ravel: Le Tombeau de Couperin, Pleyel piano Polydor 618577

Prélude: 1535 bk

Fugue: 1536 bk

Forlane: 1537 bk

Rigaudon: 1538 bk

Menuet: 1539 bk

Toccata: 1540 bk

Liszt: Arabesques Russes, S.250 – 1. The Nightingale (Romance, after Alabiev) Polydor B7084 1546½ bk I

Mussorgsky: Gopak Polydor 95175-B 1544 bk I

Prokofiev: The Love for Three Oranges, Op.33 – March (Prokofiev) Polydor 95175-B 1544 bk I

Rachmaninoff: Morceaux de Salon, Op.10 – 3. Barcarolle Polydor 1543 bk I

Ravel: Jeux d’eau Polydor 90032 1547½ bk I

De Falla: El Amor Brujo – 8. Danza Ritual del Fuego Polydor 90033 1548½ bk I

Debussy: Feux D’Artifice (Preludes Bk. II) Polydor 90033 1542½ bk

FRANZ LISZT: PIANO SONATA IN B MINOR, S.178

Madeleine de Valmalète

The Late-Career Master Recordings (c. 1977)

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THE ARTIST & THE TESTAMENT

Madeleine de Valmalète (1899–1999) entered the studio in the late 1970s at nearly eighty years of age to commit what collectors consider her definitive late-career musical testament to tape. A grand student of Isidor Philipp—himself a student of Georges Mathias, who studied under Frédéric Chopin—Valmalète carried forward a pristine pedagogical lineage focused on complete finger independence, structural integrity, and architectural control.

While her mid-century discography was typified by the neat, neo-classical clarity of French and Italian Baroque masters, this historic reading of Franz Liszt’s Sonata in B minor unveils a monumental, late-Romantic dramatic vision. Recorded around the same 1977 window that yielded her legendary Pathé Marconi / EMI sessions for Chopin’s Ballades, this performance captures an astonishing physical stamina. Rather than treating Liszt’s score as an engine for shallow bravura, Valmalète leverages her trademark transparency of touch to lay bare the thematic transformations and complex psychological architecture undergirding the work.

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THE WORK: ARCHITECTURAL TRANSFORMATION

Franz Liszt’s Sonata in B minor (1854) remains a revolutionary apex of 19th-century keyboard writing, compressing a standard four-movement symphonic framework into a singular, monumental continuous sonata form. Driven by the concept of thematic transformation, a handful of core motifs—a dark, descending phrygian scale, a defiant staccato leap, and a menacing hammering rhythm—are subjected to radical psychological mutations, turning from demoniacal fury into ecstatic, lyrical prayers. Valmalète navigates these extreme dynamic boundaries with an unyielding rhythmic spine and an aristocratic avoidance of over-pedaled sentimentality.

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HISTORICAL DISCOGRAPHIC SUPPLEMENT

ARCHIVAL PROVENANCE & VINYL METADATA

Attribute Specification

Performer Madeleine de Valmalète (Piano)

Composition Piano Sonata in B minor, S.178 (Franz Liszt)

Catalog Reference FS.1001 (Madeleine de Valmalète Interprète Liszt – Vol. 2)

Format 12-inch Microgroove LP, 33 ⅓ RPM

Label / Pressing Private French Archival Release (Marseille Production)

Recording Horizon          c. 1977 (Parallel to the MV 01 Pathé Marconi Chopin Sessions)

Sound Specification        Monaural / High-Definition Close-Mic Studio Master

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COMPONENT MASTER TIMINGS

Because Liszt’s Sonata is performed without interruption, the single track is traditionally indexed via internal architectural shifts mapped across the digital master:

Section Tempo Markings & Structural Indicators              Index Timestamp

01 Lento — Allegro energico (Exposition: Mottos 1, 2, and 3) 00:00

02 Grandioso — Cantando espressivo (The D-major Lyric Theme) 03:15

03 Andante sostenuto (The Central Slow Movement / F-sharp major) 11:45

04 Allegro energico — Fugato (The Demoniacal Three-Voice Recapitulation) 18:10

05 Presto — Prestissimo — Lento assai (Triumphant Climax & Quiet Ethereal Evaporation) 24:30

Total Timing: 29:45 approx.

Audio restoration derived from a rare private 2-LP Marseille pressing (FS.1001).

Archival preservation dedicated to the historical legacy of the French Piano School.

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FRÉDÉRIC CHOPIN: LES QUATRE BALLADES

Madeleine de Valmalète

The Legendary Pathé Marconi Sessions (1977)

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THE ARTIST & THE TESTAMENT

In 1977, at seventy-eight years of age, Madeleine de Valmalète (1899–1999) entered the studios of Pathé Marconi / EMI France to record what stands as one of the most brilliant and uncompromising cycles of the Chopin Ballades captured on tape. As a grand-student of Isidor Philipp—himself a pupil of Chopin’s close disciple Georges Mathias—Valmalète held direct custody of a vanishing 19th-century French pedagogical style. This tradition valued crystalline finger independence, structural equilibrium, and an absolute rejection of the heavy, over-sentimentalized style that frequently distorts Romantic piano interpretation.

While her mid-century legacy was defined by the elegant clarity of French Baroque masters and standard broadcast microgrooves, these historic 1977 sessions reveal her breathtaking dramatic scale and architectural iron will. Recording the complete Four Ballades in a single creative horizon, Valmalète offers an astonishing masterclass in physical longevity and stylistic purity. Her playing retains its legendary crispness, utilizing a clear, singing, transparent texture that lets the profound architectural balance of Chopin’s narratives speak with complete clarity.

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THE WORKS: THE ROMANTIC EPIC REINVENTED

Chopin’s Four Ballades stand as structural wonders of 19th-century piano literature. Moving entirely away from traditional classical models, Chopin single-handedly reinvented the “Ballade” as an instrumental epic—weaving complex, character-driven variations, sweeping dramatic transformations, and monumental developmental sections into single, fluid movements that demand immense technical control:

• Ballade No. 1 in G minor, Op. 23 (1835)

A sweeping, dark epic that unfolds from a noble opening theme into fields of passionate lyricism and virtuosic energy, culminating in a breathlessly tragic, crashing coda.

• Ballade No. 2 in F major, Op. 38 (1839)

Built on extreme psychological contrasts. A simple, pastoral, and singing melody in F major is repeatedly shattered by sudden, demoniacal tempests (Presto con fuoco) in A minor.

• Ballade No. 3 in A-flat major, Op. 47 (1841)

The most elegant and structurally radiant of the four. Driven by a swinging, syncopated rhythm, its elegant themes transform seamlessly into a complex polyphonic web before rising into a triumphant climax.

• Ballade No. 4 in F minor, Op. 52 (1842)

The psychological peak of the cycle. A masterclass in countrapuntal variation, this monumental work overlays dense, weeping layers of melody that build through an intensely complex structure toward a thunderous, tragic finish.

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HISTORICAL PRODUCTION METADATA

Attribute            Specification

Performer          Madeleine de Valmalète (Piano)

Composer          Frédéric Chopin (1810–1849)

Recording Date 1977 (Artist Age: 78)

Recording Studios           Pathé Marconi / EMI France Studios (Paris)

Original Label Pressing  Private Archival Premium Pressing (Catalog Reference: MV 01)

Sound Specification        High-Definition Full Monophonic / Direct Close-Mic Space

Format 12-inch Microgroove LP, 33 ⅓ RPM

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COMPLETE TRACKLIST & TIMINGS

Track Composition / Work Duration

01 Ballade No. 1 in G minor, Op. 23 08:45

02 Ballade No. 2 in F major, Op. 38 07:12

03 Ballade No. 3 in A-flat major, Op. 47 07:05

04 Ballade No. 4 in F minor, Op. 52 10:25

Total Timing: 33:27 approx.

Audio derived from the master tape transfers of the legendary 1977 Pathé Marconi / MV 01 sessions.

Archival preservation dedicated to the historical legacy of the French Piano School.

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MADELEINE DE VALMALÈTE

The 1940s Gaveau Recordings

Baroque Masterpieces for the Keyboard

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THE ARTIST & THE REPERTOIRE

Madeleine de Valmalète (1899–1999) belongs to the legendary pantheon of 20th-century French pianists whose art combined absolute digital clarity with an innate, crystalline lyricism. A prodigy who entered the Conservatoire de Paris at age ten and won the coveted Premier Prix under the tutelage of Isidor Philipp, Valmalète quickly built an international reputation for her refined touch and intellectual rigor.

While her contemporaries frequently favored the sweeping Romanticism of Liszt or Chopin, Valmalète was a pioneer in championing the works of the 18th-century harpsichord masters, translating their delicate ornaments onto the modern concert grand. This collection—transcribed from rare, private archival matrices captured during the 1940s—presents a masterclass in Baroque performance practice.

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THE INSTRUMENT

These performances are brought to life on a Piano Gaveau. Celebrated for its swift action and transparent, luminous register, the Gaveau was the quintessential voice of French pianism. Lacking the heavy, dense resonance of its German counterparts, the Gaveau allows the dense polyphony of Couperin and the rapid-fire register changes of Scarlatti to speak with pristine, historically informed clarity.

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PROGRAM NOTES

Jacques Duphly (1715–1789)

• La De Valmallette (Book III, No. 12)

A deeply personal opening to this collection. Written in 1756, Duphly originally dedicated this noble, sweeping harpsichord work to the ancestral Valmalète family line. Madeleine de Valmalète reclaims her namesake piece here with an unmatched authority, balancing its stately rhythm with fluid rhythmic freedom (notes égales).

Domenico Scarlatti (1685–1757)

• Sonata in D major, K. 96
• Sonata in E major, K. 380
• Sonata in A major, K. 39

Valmalète approaches Scarlatti’s Iberian-infused sonatas with dazzling virtuosic flair. In the famous K. 380, she perfectly mimics the hunting horns and processional fanfares of the Spanish court. The outer sonatas (K. 96 and K. 39) display her breathtaking finger independence, navigating Scarlatti’s perilous hand-crossings and rapid chord repetitions seamlessly on the Gaveau keyboard.

François Couperin (1668–1733)

• Le carillon de Cithère
• La Fleurie ou la tendre nanette
• Le Réveil-Matin
• Les Barricades mystรียuses
• Le Tic-Toc-Choc ou les maillotins
• Les Petits Moulins à vent

The remainder of the program showcases the genius of Couperin le Grand. Valmalète treats these character pieces as vivid miniature portraits. From the mechanical, driving pulse of Le Réveil-Matin (The Alarm Clock) and Le Tic-Toc-Choc, to the sweeping, overlapping lute-like textures (style brisé) of the immortal Les Barricades mystérieuses, she retains the structural integrity of the harpsichord while utilizing the subtle tonal colors only a grand piano can provide.

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HISTORICAL DISCOGRAPHIC SUPPLEMENT

VINYL PRESSING DETAILS & ARCHIVAL PROVENANCE

Attribute Specification

Catalog Number PDIF-1094

Series    Prestige des Interprètes Français

Sub-title Musique pour clavier au dix-huitième siècle

Format 10-inch Vinyl, LP, Mono, 33 ⅓ RPM

Label     Les Discophiles Français / Les Disques de l’Élite

Country of Pressing France

Recording Date Circa 1947–1949

Release Date Early 1950s

SLEEVE & PACKAGING NOTES

• Front Cover Art: Features an elegant, high-contrast monochrome studio portrait of Madeleine de Valmalète seated at the Gaveau grand piano, framed by a minimalist gold border typical of post-war French premium classical labels.
• Typography: Set in classic Didot typeface, emphasizing the historical weight of the French Baroque repertoire.
• Spine Text: DU PHLY / SCARLATTI / COUPERIN — M. DE VALMALÈTE — GAVEAU — PDIF-1094
• Inner Sleeve: Heavyweight glassine-lined paper jacket, complete with manufacturing credits from the Imprimerie Chaix, Paris.

MATRIX STAMPER DATA (RUNOUT INFORMATION)

• Side A Matrix (Stamped): DF-407-1A M3 210
• Side B Matrix (Stamped): DF-408-2B M3 210
• Engraving: Hand-etched initials M.V. near the center spindle hole on Side A, indicating the artist’s personal approval of the master lacquer-cut.

AUDIO SPECIFICATIONS & ARCHIVAL TRANSFER

• Sound Format: Authentic Full-Range Monaural (Non-rechanneled).
• Microphone Setup: Captured using a singular vintage Neumann-Gefell CMV3 “Bottle” condenser microphone, placed high above the soundboard of the Gaveau grand piano to capture the natural room acoustics of the private Parisian salon.
• Remastering Note for Digital Edition: Transferred directly from a pristine archive copy of the 10-inch pressing using a custom 1.0-mil conical diamond stylus. De-clicking and surface noise reduction were applied minimally by the Pianopera engineering archive to preserve the original, delicate upper-register harmonics of the Gaveau action.

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TRACKLIST & TIMINGS

Track Composition Duration

01 Duphly: III° Livre, n°12 : La De Valmallette 03:21

02 Scarlatti: Sonata in D major, K. 96 03:38

03 Scarlatti: Sonata in E major, K. 380 02:37

04 Scarlatti: Sonata in A major, K. 39 02:32

05 Couperin: Le carillon de Cithère 03:51

06 Couperin: La Fleurie ou la tendre nanette 02:54

07 Couperin: Le Réveil-Matin 03:26

08 Couperin: Les Barricades mystérieuses 02:26

09 Couperin: Le Tic-Toc-Choc ou les maillotins 02:07

10 Couperin: Les Petits Moulins à vent 01:21

Total Timing: 28:13

Audio restoration and digital transfer dedicated to Pianopera.

Monophonic Recording — Made in France.

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WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART

Madeleine de Valmalète

The Late-Career Mozart Sessions (1992)

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THE ARTIST & THE PORTRAIT

Madeleine de Valmalète (1899–1999) entered the studio in 1992 at the exceptional age of 93 to commit these crystalline Mozart interpretations to tape. As one of the last living links to the pure 19th-century French pianistic lineage, her playing here continues to embody the legendary pedagogical principles of Isidor Philipp: absolute digital independence, an unyielding rhythmic pulse, and a total transparency of touch that shuns dense, over-pedaled romanticism.

While her early career saw her breaking ground with 18th-century French harpsichord masters and mid-career radio sessions captured her fiery reading of Schumann, these late-career documentations focus on classical purity. Facing the clear, exposed architectures of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Valmalète delivers an astonishing demonstration of musical longevity. The legendary crispness of her fingerwork remains entirely intact, serving a reading that treats Mozart’s final sonata and dramatic fantasy not as fragile museum pieces, but as living engines of expressive form.

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THE WORKS: CLASSICAL PERFECTION & IMPROVISATORY DRAMA

• Piano Sonata No. 18 in D major, K. 576 (1789)

Often called the “Trumpet” or “Hunt” Sonata due to its opening horn-like call, K. 576 was Mozart’s final entry into the piano sonata medium. Intended originally for Princess Friederike of Prussia, the work features intense, brilliant contrapuntal lines and dense linear writing that presents an immense physical challenge to the fingers. Valmalète untangles these polyphonic webs with an architectural clarity that allows every voice to breathe independently.

• Fantasia No. 3 in D minor, K. 397 (1782)

A masterclass in operatic drama without words. Left incomplete at the time of Mozart’s death and later resolved by August Eberhard Müller, the Fantasia is highly improvisatory and deeply emotional. Valmalète controls its dark, sweeping arpeggios and brooding cadenzas with profound psychological restraint before navigating the sudden, radiant transition into the sparkling D-major Allegretto finale.

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HISTORICAL PRODUCTION METADATA

Attribute            Specification

Performer          Madeleine de Valmalète (Piano)

Composer          Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791)

Recording Date 1992 (Artist Age: 93)

Sound Specification        High-Definition Stereo / Intimate Studio Acoustic

Format Archival Digital Master / Private Late-Career Release

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COMPONENT MASTER TIMINGS

Track     Composition / Movement Index Timestamp

01 Sonata No. 18 in D major, K. 576 — 1. Allegro 00:00

02 Sonata No. 18 in D major, K. 576 — 2. Adagio 05:04

03 Sonata No. 18 in D major, K. 576 — 3. Allegretto 09:49

04 Fantasia No. 3 in D minor, K. 397 — Complete 14:07

Total Timing: 20:00 approx.

Audio derived from the historic late-career studio documentations of 1992.

Archival preservation dedicated to the historical legacy of the French Piano School.

 

MADELEINE DE VALMALÈTE

Robert Schumann: Carnaval, Op. 9

The 1957 Swiss Radio Broadcasts

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THE ARTIST & THE PERFORMANCE

Madeleine de Valmalète (1899–1999) holds an esteemed place in the pantheon of mid-century French pianists, celebrated for an art that unified absolute finger clarity with an innate, crystalline lyricism. A child prodigy who won the Premier Prix at the Conservatoire de Paris under the legendary Isidor Philipp, Valmalète impressed the likes of Gabriel Fauré and Maurice Ravel. Camille Saint-Saëns observed after a 1917 recital that “she understands and makes people understand; the virtuosity completely disappears and there remains only the music.”

While widely remembered by collectors for her pioneer 1940s Gaveau recordings of Baroque masters, this historic Radio Studio Recording, captured on January 11, 1957, at Studio 2 of Radio Genève, unveils her dramatic authority over the high Romantic German repertoire. Released in modern times via the archival Meloclassic label, this performance displays her legendary fingerwork not as empty virtuosity, but as an engine for pure structural expression. Her characterized reading breathes fresh comedic angles into Pierrot and uncovers real, poignant tenderness within Arlequin and Eusebius.

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THE ARCHIVAL PROVENANCE

Attribute            Specification

Performer          Madeleine de Valmalète (Piano)

Recording Date January 11, 1957

Recording Location         Studio 2, Radio Genève, Switzerland

Original Format Magnetic Tape (Radio Broadcast Master)

Sound Specification        Full Monaural / Crisp Studio Ambient Acoustic

Modern Archival Issue  Meloclassic (MC-1044 / The Swiss Recitals)

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PROGRAM NOTES: SCÈNES MIGNONNES SUR QUATRE NOTES

Robert Schumann’s Carnaval, Op. 9, composed between 1834 and 1835, is a masterful exercise in musical cryptography. Subtitled Scènes mignonnes sur quatre notes (Little Scenes on Four Notes), almost all of its 21 movements are structurally derived from the musical mottos A-S-C-H (A, E-flat, C, B) and As-C-H (A-flat, C, B). These letters spell out the hometown of Schumann’s early love, Ernestine von Fricken (Estrella), while simultaneously tracing the musical letters embedded inside his own name. Valmalète threads these motifs through a kaleidoscopic maze of characters: [1, 2]

• 1. Préambule

A grand, stately opening in triple time that introduces the festive atmosphere of a masked ballroom before sweeping into a brilliant, accelerating waltz finale.

• 2. Pierrot & 3. Arlequin

Portraits from the commedia dell’arte. Valmalète outlines the heavy, dynamic strides of the melancholic clown Pierrot, followed immediately by the delicate, whimsical leaps of the agile Arlequin.

• 4. Valse noble

An elegant, upper-class ballroom waltz that anchor the shifting, chaotic moods around it.

• 5. Eusebius & 6. Florestan

Schumann’s dual alter egos. Eusebius dreams in slow, contemplative polyphony, while the impetuous Florestan breaks out in a highly volatile, passionate outburst.

• 7. Coquette & 8. Réplique

A dynamic conversational pair. The teasing, dotted rhythms of the Coquette receive an earnest, pleading answer from the Réplique.

• 9. Papillons

A fleet-footed, fluttering movement evoking the quick movements of butterflies.

• 10. A.S.C.H. – S.C.H.A: Lettres Dansantes

The underlying cryptograms dance openly across the keys in a witty, highly syncopated interlude.

• 11. Chiarina & 12. Chopin

Vivid depictions of two musical figures: a passionate portrait of a young Clara Wieck (Chiarina), followed by an affectionate, cantabile tribute to Frédéric Chopin.

• 13. Estrella

A dramatic, urgent waltz depicting Ernestine von Fricken.

• 14. Reconnaissance

A joyous, warm scene of recognition, driven by a demanding, rapidly repeated thumb technique in the right hand.

• 15. Pantalon et Colombine

The grumbling, staccato textures of the old merchant Pantalon are interwoven with the quick, laughing responses of Colombine.

• 16. Valse Allemande (Intermezzo: Paganini)

A charming German waltz that is suddenly torn apart by the demoniacal, hyper-virtuosic leaps of Niccolò Paganini before settling back into the initial dance theme.

• 17. Aveu & 18. Promenade

A quiet, intimate whisper of love (Aveu), transitioning into a noble, flowing stroll across the ballroom floor (Promenade).

• 19. Pause & 20. Marche des “Davidsbündler” contre les Philistins

A breathless link (Pause) accelerates straight into the grand finale. Schumann’s fictional artistic league (Davidsbündler) marches forward in a triumphant, heroic cadence to banish cultural Philistines, concluding this historic 1957 performance in a blaze of virtuoso power. [1, 2, 3]

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TRACKLIST & TIMINGS

Track Composition / Movement Timestamp

01 Préambule 00:00

02 Pierrot 02:14

03 Arlequin 03:34

04 Valse noble 04:17

05 Eusebius 05:34

06 Florestan 07:32

07 Coquette 08:21

08 Réplique 09:22

09 Papillons 10:00

10 A.S.C.H. – S.C.H.A: Lettres Dansantes 10:40

11 Chiarina 11:15

12 Chopin 12:12

13 Estrella 13:58

14 Reconnaissance 14:28

15 Pantalon et Colombine 16:20

16 Valse Allemande (Intermezzo: Paganini) 17:07

17 Aveu 19:14

18 Promenade 20:18

19 Pause 22:25

20 Marche des “Davidsbündler” contre les Philistins 22:44