Francis Poulenc was a member of the collection of French composers known as ?Les Six,? a group whose music is seen as a rejection of the overly emotional Romantic period. Poulenc?s music is for the most part tonal and diatonic, but maintains the bright colors and strong rhythms of many of his predecessors like Satie and Stravinsky.
?Banalites? is a song cycle of 5 pieces written in 1940, at the height of the second World War. The cycle is set to texts by Guillaume Apollinaire, as was his first set of songs ?Le Bestiaire,? also found on Virtually Vocal. A long time fan of the poet, Poulenc had been waiting until the time was right to set "Sanglots" and "Fagnes de Wallonie? and after rereading "Hôtel" and "Voyage à Paris" in old literary journals he decided the time was right.
Despite the fact that the title Banalites is translated to ?platitudes? or ?trifle things? in English, some of the poems are in fact deeply moving and heavy like ?Sanglots,? while others are indeed light-hearted and trivial like ?Voyages a Paris? and ?Hotel.?
Par les portes d?Orkenise
Through the gates of Orkenise
Veut entrer un charretier.
Wants to enter a carter.
Par les portes d?Orkenise
Through the gates of Orkenise
Veut sortir un va-nu-pieds.
Wants to leave a ?tramp?
Et les gardes de la ville
and the guards of the city
Courant sus au va-nu-pieds:
running towards the tramp
"Qu'emportes-tu de la ville??
What carry-you from the city?
"J'y laisse mon coeur entier.?
?I?m leaving my heart entirely.?
Et les gardes de la ville
and the guards of the city
Courant sus au charretier:
running towards the carter:
"Qu'apportes-tu dans la ville??
?What carry you to the city??
"Mon coeur pour me marier.?
?My heart for my marriage.?
Que de coeurs dans Orkenise!
What of hearts in Orkenise!
Les gardes riaient, riaient,
the guards laugh, laugh,
Va-nu-pieds, la route est grise,
Tramp, the road is gray,
L'amour grise, ô charretier.
Love dull, O Carter.
Les beaux gardes de la ville
The handsome guards of the city
Tricotaient superbement;
Knitted superbly;
Puis les portes de la ville
Then the gates of the city
Se fermèrent lentement.
Were closed slowly.