Composer. Although he left only six major works, he is considered one of the outstanding French composers of the post-World War II era. His music, written in a rhapsodic, serialist style, expressed his bleak view of the world and the problematic role of the artist within it. Barraque was born in Puteaux, France. From 1948 to 1951 he studied at the Paris Conservatory with Jean Langlais and Olivier Messiaen; the latter introduced him to the music of Debussy and Webern. He first came to attention with his mammoth Piano Sonata (1952), his best known piece, and "Sequence" for soprano, piano and ensemble (1955). Both show his predilection for expansive sound-structures, alternating tightly organized sequences with outbursts of violence. In 1955 Barraque received a creative shock after reading Hermann Bloch's postmodern novel "The Death of Virgil", and vowed to devote his life to setting parts of it to music. He planned five vocal works on this subject but completed only three: "Le temps restitue" (1956, revised 1968), "...au-dela du hasard" (1959), and "Chant apres chant" (1966). The only other composition he acknowledged was his Clarinet Concerto (1968), which can be viewed as an instrumental commentary on the Bloch cycle. A 1964 car accident ruined Barraque's health and restricted his creative activity until his death at 45. Overall his music is probably too thorny to win popular appeal, but few have denied its profound originality and it has had a number of important champions, notably Pierre Boulez.
Composer. Although he left only six major works, he is considered one of the outstanding French composers of the post-World War II era. His music, written in a rhapsodic, serialist style, expressed his bleak view of the world and the problematic role of the artist within it. Barraque was born in Puteaux, France. From 1948 to 1951 he studied at the Paris Conservatory with Jean Langlais and Olivier Messiaen; the latter introduced him to the music of Debussy and Webern. He first came to attention with his mammoth Piano Sonata (1952), his best known piece, and "Sequence" for soprano, piano and ensemble (1955). Both show his predilection for expansive sound-structures, alternating tightly organized sequences with outbursts of violence. In 1955 Barraque received a creative shock after reading Hermann Bloch's postmodern novel "The Death of Virgil", and vowed to devote his life to setting parts of it to music. He planned five vocal works on this subject but completed only three: "Le temps restitue" (1956, revised 1968), "...au-dela du hasard" (1959), and "Chant apres chant" (1966). The only other composition he acknowledged was his Clarinet Concerto (1968), which can be viewed as an instrumental commentary on the Bloch cycle. A 1964 car accident ruined Barraque's health and restricted his creative activity until his death at 45. Overall his music is probably too thorny to win popular appeal, but few have denied its profound originality and it has had a number of important champions, notably Pierre Boulez.
Bio by: Bobb Edwards
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