His pupils, including Vincent d’Indy, were full of praise about César Franck's gift for melody. To date, this remains the talent the Liège-born composer is best known for. But what about his songcraft? His songs may be limited in number, but they certainly deserve a closer look. As such, the celebrations surrounding his 200th birthday serve as the perfect occasion to browse through this oeuvre, soprano Tineke Van Ingelgem, baritone Werner Van Mechelen and pianist Sylvie Decramer thought. In their 'Homage to César Franck', Franck's songs and duets will converse with mélodies by his contemporaries — all in the spirit of the French salons of the late 19th century, in which topics such as love, melancholy and la mort séductrice were never far away: “Life is a sleep, / and love is its dream; / and you have lived / if you have loved.” (Ninon, César Franck/A. de Musset)

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• Programme and sung texts (6.2 MB)