SKU: A0.553784

The Dolly Suite, Op. 56, is a collection of pieces for piano four-hands by Gabriel Fauré. It consists of short pieces written or revised between 1893 and 1896, to mark the birthdays and other events in the life of the daughter of the composer's mistress.

An orchestral version of the suite was scored in 1906 by Henri Rabaud, and has, like the original piano duet version, received several recordings. The best-known section of the suite, the Berceuse, has been arranged for several combinations of instruments. In Britain it became famous as the play-out tune to Listen with Mother.

The suite, consisting of six short pieces, each with its own title: Berceuse, Mi-a-ou, Le jardin de Dolly, Kitty-valse, Tendresse and Le pas espagnol. The complete suite takes about fifteen minutes to perform.

Allegro vivo. Mi-a-ou was written for Dolly's second birthday in June 1894. The title does not refer to a pet cat, as has often been supposed, but to Dolly's attempts to pronounce the name of her elder brother Raoul, who later became one of Fauré's favourite pupils.The young Dolly called her brother Messieu Aoul, which Fauré took as the original title for the piece. In his finished manuscript the title is shortened to Miaou (without hyphens).The Fauré scholar Robert Orledge writes that the title Mi-a-ou, like that of the Kitty-valse later in the suite, is the responsibility of Fauré's publisher, Julien Hamelle.[

SKU: A0.818162

Faure’s piano duet entitled Dolly Suite is here arranged by Philip Le Bas for a wind sextet, consisting of a standard wind quintet (flute, oboe, clarinet, horn and bassoon) plus bass clarinet. The bass clarinet gives the music more sonority and it allows the arranger more opportunity to bring out Faure’s sumptuous harmonies. Dolly was the nickname of the baby daughter of Emma Bardac, with whom Faure had a long-running affair, and each of the pieces has a slightly different association with childhood.

1)   The Berceuse (lullaby) is best remembered as the theme tune to the BBC’s Listen with Mother, and its tune is indelibly marked into the memories of generations of radio listeners between 1950 and 1982. It was written for Dolly’s first birthday. (An alternative part for clarinet in A is available for this movement, to avoid the otherwise slightly tricky key signature of F sharp major!)

2)   Mi-a-ou has nothing to do with cats, but is a version of Dolly’s first attempts to pronounce the name of her brother Raoul. Written for her second birthday, it is a delicate and playful scherzo with lots of cross-rhythms for the instruments.

3)   Le Jardin de Dolly is regarded by some as the best piece in the collection, with its gorgeous tune and unexpected harmonies, creating an impressionistic picture of a beautiful, peaceful French garden.

4)   Kitty-Valse again has nothing to do with cats but with the family dog Ketty, who whirls round and round, in unrelenting cheerfulness.

5)   In Tendresse Faure introduces more chromatic harmonies, used in his later works. As its name and its key of D flat suggests, the music here seems to express deep and shifting emotions associated with intimate relationships, while retaining a sense of calm and comfort throughout.

6)   The last piece, Le Pas Espagnole is a thrilling journey across the border into the exotic Spanish world of dance. There is much in common with Chabrier’s Espana, and here the wind players can enjoy playing at full tilt in an exciting and tuneful end to the suite.