For those of you not in the know, French composer Fernande Breilh-Decruck showed signs of a promising career from an early age, when she won several prizes at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Paris (harmony, fugue, piano).

As an assistant professor of harmony, she trained many students, including one who became very famous and later dedicated her a score: “To Fernande Decruck, with all the gratitude and fond memories of the author – Olivier Messiaen”.

From 1926, the year of his appointment as organ teacher, Marcel Dupré introduced her to improvisation. This talent earned her an organ concert tour in the United States at the end of 1928. She later gave solo recitals in New York City’s grand auditoriums.

Decruck’s trajectory as a composer can be traced through her early works, which give prominence to the organ (her instrument), saxophone and double bass (her husband’s instruments). The Decrucks lived in New York City for several years. Her husband Maurice played double bass and saxophone in the New York Philharmonic under Arturo Toscanini.

Decruck’s American period saw the birth of numerous compositions for piano, organ, orchestra, a concerto for cello and orchestra, and many works for a wide range of wind instruments, notably for saxophone.

In 1937, Fernande Decruck moved to Toulouse alone with her three children. She worked as a professor at the Toulouse Conservatory. From 1942 onwards, she devoted herself entirely to composition, notably writing a harp concerto, Poème héroïque, and the Sonata in C-sharp for saxophone.

She officially divorced Maurice in 1950, which led to financial difficulties. She ended her career as a professor of harmony at the Fontainebleau Conservatory. A series of health problems led to her untimely death at the age of 57.

An impressive testament to Decruck and her incredible, groundbreaking in many ways, musical enterprise, Jackson Symphony Orchestra have just released an album of Concertante Works for Saxophone, Trumpet, Horn and Harp by the late French composer on Swiss Label Claves (June 10th, 2022).

The album marks the inaugural recording in the Jackson Symphony Orchestra’s newly launched Equal Billing Project that aims to record and support the music of a composer not adequately recognized during their lifetime.

Decrück: Sonata for Saxophone & Orchestra
I. Très modéré
II. Noël
III. Fileuse
IV. Nocturne et Rondel

Decrück: Poème Héroïque:
I. Moderato
II. Andante espressivo
III. Final

Decrück: Harp Concerto:
I. Modéré, sans lenteur
II. Andante
III. Très vif et léger
IV. Final. Allegro molto

Sonate en ut dièse pour saxophone (ou alto) et orchestre opens on the languishing beauty of Très modéré and the playfully perky Noël they are both followed by the layered ambiances found within the quietly joyous Fileuse, the work rounding out on the dutiful Nocturne et Rondel.

Poème Héroïque pour trompette solo en ut, cor solo en fa et orchestre opens on the stern affair of Moderato and then brings us the sweeping, Disney-esque Andante espressivo, before itself coming to a close on the triumphant embodiment of the aptly-named Final.

The final work, Concerto pour harpe et orchestre opens on the precocious gossamer of Modéré, sans lenteur and the delicate musings within Andante, before we are treated to the sentimental embrace of Très vif et léger, the whole recording coming to a rather triumphant close on the resoundingly euphoric Allegro molto.

Carrie Koffman, saxophone
Amy McCabe, trumpet
Leelanee Sterrett, horn
Chen-Yu Huang, harp
Jackson Symphony Orchestra
Matthew Aubin, conductor