Les Six

Auckland Chamber Orchestra Musical Director Peter Scholes presents: Les Six Featuring the superb playing of Auckland's top instrumentalists: Luca Manghi flute, Bede Hanley oboe, Peter Scholes clarinet, Ben Hoadley bassoon, Gaby Pho horn, Ingrid Bauer harp, Monique Lapins violin, Ashley Brown cello This concert programme celebrates "Les Six," a famous group of French composers who shook up the Parisian music scene in the early 20th century. Rejecting heavy German romanticism, their works offer a refreshing blend of clarity, wit, and vibrant modernism. The evening begins with Georges Auric’s Les Trios d'anches de L'Oiseau Lyre, showcasing playful, bright woodwind textures. It moves into Arthur Honegger’s Sonatine for Violin and Cello, a piece that highlights intricate counterpoint and rhythmic drive between just two stringed instruments. Closing the first half, Louis Durey’s Les Soirées De Valfère, Op. 96 delivers rich, evocative ensemble colors that capture the warmth of French evenings. Following the interval, the atmosphere shifts to the elegant, cascading textures of Germaine Tailleferre’s Sonate pour Harpe, a work full of neoclassical grace. The performance concludes with Darius Milhaud’s beloved La Cheminée du Roi René. This suite transports the audience to medieval Provence with lyrical woodwind melodies, warmth, and pastoral charm. Georges Auric (1899–1983) Les Trios d'anches de L'Oiseau Lyre Arthur Honegger (1892–1955) Sonatine for Violin and Cello Louis Durey (1888–1979) Les Soirees De Valfere Op. 96 Interval Germaine Tailleferre (1892–1983) Sonate pour Harpe Francis Poulenc (1899–1963) Trio Darius Milhaud (1892–1974) La Cheminée du Roi René