Les Six
en composer
Definition
A loose association of six French composers — Poulenc, Honegger, Milhaud, Auric, Durey, and Tailleferre — grouped by the critic Henri Collet in 1920 under the influence of Erik Satie and Jean Cocteau. They shared a reaction against both Wagnerian heaviness and Impressionist vagueness, favouring wit, clarity, economy, and everyday subject matter.
Interpretive Guidance
In performance, Les Six aesthetics often translate to a certain deliberate dryness: avoid over-pedalling, keep textures clear, resist the urge to inflect every phrase romantically. Irony and understatement are as expressive as full emotional intensity.