Quinet, Marcel

Quinet, Marcel , Belgian composer and teacher; b. Binche, July 6, 1915; d. Woluwé-St. Lambert, Brussels, Dec. 16, 1986. He studied at the conservatories of Mons and Brussels with Leon Jongen, Raymond Moulaert, and Marcel Maas (1934–43), and also took private composition lessons with Jean Absil (1940–45). In 1945 he won the Belgian Grand Prix de Rome with his cantata La Vague et le Sillon. He was on the staff of the Brussels Cons. (1943–79) and also taught at the Chapelle Musicale Reine Elisabeth (1956–59; 1968–71; 1973–74). In 1978 he was made a member of the Académie Royale de Belgique. His music is moderately modernistic in the amiable manner of the French school, with some euphoniously dissonant excrescences.

Works

DRAMATIC: Les 2 Bavards, chamber opera (1966); La Nef des fous, ballet (1969). ORCH.: 3 esquisses concertantes for Violin and Orch. (1946); Divertissement (1946); 3 pièces (1951; Salzburg, June 21, 1952); Sinfonietta (1953); Variations élégiaques sur un thème de Rolland de Lassus (1955); 3 piano concertos (1955, 1964, 1966); Variations (1956); Serenade for Strings (1956); Impressions symphoniques (1956); Allegro de concert (1958); Divertimento for Chamber Orch. (1958); Concertino for Flute, Celesta, Harp, and Strings (1959); Sym. (1960); Concertino for Oboe, Clarinet, Bassoon, and String Orch. (1960); Ballade for Clarinet and Strings (1961); Viola Concerto (1962–63); Concerto grosso for 4 Clarinets and Strings (1964); Overture for a Festival (1967); Music for Strings and Timpani (1971); Mouvements for Chamber Orch. (1973); Esquisses symphoniques (1973); Gorgone (1974); Séquence (1974); Dialogues for 2 Pianos and Orch. (1975); Diptyque for Chamber Orch. (1975); Climats for Chamber Orch. (1978); Caractères (1978; rev. 1983); Metamorphoses (1979); Préludes (1979); Chromatismes (1980); Concerto for Kettle Drums and Orch. (1981); Concerto grosso for 4 Saxophones and Orch. (1982); Concerto for 2 Pianos and Orch. (1983). CHAMBER: 8 petites pièces for Wind Quintet (1946); 2 string trios (1948, 1969); Wind Quintet (1949); Violin Sonatina (1952); Piano Quartet (1957); String Quartet (1958); Petite Suite for 4 Clarinets (1959); Sonate a 3 for Trumpet, Horn, and Trombone (1961); Ballade for Violin and Wind Quintet (1962); Wind Quartet (1964); Sonata for 2 Violins and Piano (1964); Ballatella for Trumpet or Horn or Trombone and Piano (1966); Pochades for 4 Saxophones (1967); Trio for Oboe, Clarinet, and Bassoon (1967); Flute Sonata (1968); Polyphonies for 3 Performers on 8 Wind Instruments (1971); Novelettes for 2 Pianos (1973); Sept tankas for Double or Triple Vocal Quartet and Piano (1978); Terzetto for Flute, Violin, and Harpsichord (1981); Ebauches for Saxophone Quartet (1984); solo piano pieces. VOCAL: 2 cantatas: La Vague et le Sillon (1945) and Lectio pro Feria Sexta (1973); Hommage à Ravel for Woman’s Voice, Piano, Flute, and Cello (1985); songs.

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire