Psaume 62 - Klavier Reduktion - Sheet Music for Baritone and Piano Leguerney, Jacques

Jacques Leguerney's vocal music was greatly inspired by his admiration for the singing of Gérard Souzay. The Psaume LXII de David, commissioned by Souzay for the Festival de Menton, was completed on July 7, 1954. Souzay gave its premiere on August 17 of the same year on the Parvis Saint-Michel in Menton. Fernand Oubradous conducted the Orchestre de la Société des instruments à vent. The work was recorded on tape and broadcast by Chaîne Nationale on July 13, 1954 under the title Gala de musique française. Leguerney later dedicated this work to French contralto Nathalie Stutzmann. The premiere received highly positive reviews.

A further performance took place on July 17, 1956. Roland-Manuel programmed it for his radio broadcast Plaisir de la musique on Chaîne Nationale with baritone Pierre Mollet and the Orchestre de Radio-Strasbourg conducted by Fritz Münch (brother of conductor Charles Münch). According to the I.N.A., the recording was not preserved in their archives.

This edition was taken directly from Leguerney's manuscript of the score, which was apparently also used for a performance. We suspect that this source was used by the conductor at the premiere in Menton, if not at this performance and the subsequent radio recording. There are several pages with corrections, also in Leguerney's handwriting, which are pasted into this conducting score manuscript. Our edition is faithful to the work as it was performed under the composer's supervision, and we are confident that these corrections and/or revisions reflect his wishes.

Musik Fabrik will also publish a piano/vocal score excerpt of the Psaume, which can be used as a study or rehearsal score. Leguerney never expressed a wish that this work be performed in its piano reduction, which we found in his papers after his death in 1997. The orchestral score (for 1(pic)221/2100/timp/perc/strings) is available for purchase. Parts are available from the publisher on rental terms.