Samson Pascal François (18 May 192422 October 1970) was a French pianist and composer.

Biography

François was born in

Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

where his father worked at the French consulate. His mother, Rose, named him

Samson Samson (; , '' he, Šīmšōn, label= none'', "man of the sun") was the last of the judges of the ancient Israelites mentioned in the Book of Judges (chapters 13 to 16) and one of the last leaders who "judged" Israel before the institution o ...

, for strength, and

Pascal Pascal, Pascal's or PASCAL may refer to: People and fictional characters * Pascal (given name), including a list of people with the name * Pascal (surname), including a list of people and fictional characters with the name ** Blaise Pascal, Fren ...

, for mind. François discovered the piano early – at the age of two – and his first studies were in Italy, with

Pietro Mascagni Pietro Mascagni (7 December 1863 – 2 August 1945) was an Italian composer primarily known for his operas. His 1890 masterpiece ''Cavalleria rusticana'' caused one of the greatest sensations in opera history and single-handedly ushered in the ' ...

, who encouraged him to give his first concert at the age of six. Having studied in the

Conservatoire A music school is an educational institution specialized in the study, training, and research of music. Such an institution can also be known as a school of music, music academy, music faculty, college of music, music department (of a larger ins ...

Nice Nice ( , ; Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative c ...

from 1932 to 1935, where he again won first prize, François came to the attention of

Alfred Cortot Alfred Denis Cortot (; 26 September 187715 June 1962) was a French pianist, conductor, and teacher who was one of the most renowned classical musicians of the 20th century. A pianist of massive repertory, he was especially valued for his poeti ...

, who encouraged him to move to Paris and study with

Yvonne Lefébure Yvonne Lefébure (29 June 1898, Ermont – 23 January 1986, Paris) was a French pianist and teacher. Born in Ermont, she studied with Alfred Cortot at the Conservatoire de Paris, taking a ''premier prix'' in piano and numerous other subjects. She ...

at the

École Normale de Musique École may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * École, Sav ...

. He also studied piano with Cortot (who reportedly found him almost impossible to teach), and harmony with

Nadia Boulanger Juliette Nadia Boulanger (; 16 September 188722 October 1979) was a French music teacher and conductor. She taught many of the leading composers and musicians of the 20th century, and also performed occasionally as a pianist and organist. From a ...

. In 1938, he moved to the Paris Conservatoire to study with

Marguerite Long Marguerite Marie-Charlotte Long (13 November 1874 – 13 February 1966) was a French pianist, pedagogue, lecturer, and an ambassador of French music. Life Early life: 1874–1900 Marguerite Long was born to Pierre Long and Anne Marie Antoin ...

, the doyenne of French teachers of the age. He won the piano section of the inaugural (1943) Marguerite Long-Jacques Thibaud Competition. He was particularly admired for his performances of Chopin,

Schumann Robert Schumann (; 8 June 181029 July 1856) was a German composer, pianist, and influential music critic. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest composers of the Romantic era. Schumann left the study of law, intending to pursue a career a ...

Debussy (Achille) Claude Debussy (; 22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as the first Impressionist composer, although he vigorously rejected the term. He was among the most influential composers of the ...

, and

Ravel Joseph Maurice Ravel (7 March 1875 – 28 December 1937) was a French composer, pianist and conductor. He is often associated with Impressionism in music, Impressionism along with his elder contemporary Claude Debussy, although both composer ...

. In 2012 his Debussy recordings were awarded the "Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik". His entire studio discography was reissued on

compact disc The compact disc (CD) is a Digital media, digital optical disc data storage format that was co-developed by Philips and Sony to store and play digital audio recordings. In August 1982, the first compact disc was manufactured. It was then rele ...

in 2020 by

Warner Classics Warner Classics is the classical music arm of Warner Music Group. The label began issuing new recordings under the Warner Classics banner in 1991. The company also includes the Erato Records, Teldec Records and NVC Arts labels. Based in France, W ...

. François was a keen

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

fanparticularly of the pianist

Bud Powell Earl Rudolph "Bud" Powell (September 27, 1924 – July 31, 1966) was an American jazz pianist and composer. Along with Charlie Parker, Thelonious Monk, Kenny Clarke and Dizzy Gillespie, Powell was a leading figure in the development of modern ...

, * who lived and performed in Parisand claimed that jazz influenced his playing. He composed, among other works,"Magies Noires" for solo piano, a

concerto A concerto (; plural ''concertos'', or ''concerti'' from the Italian plural) is, from the late Baroque era, mostly understood as an instrumental composition, written for one or more soloists accompanied by an orchestra or other ensemble. The typi ...

for piano and orchestra, and incidental music for film. He married Josette Bahvsar, and their son Maximilien was born in 1955. Maximilien, who published a biography of his father in 2002 (see bibliography below), died in New Mexico on October 11, 2013. Samson François's extravagant lifestyle, good looks, and passionate but highly disciplined playing, gave him a cult status as a pianist. He had a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

on the concert stage in 1968. His early death followed only two years later. François himself said "never play simply to play well" and, in a remark clearly inspired by his jazz influences, "It must be that there is never the impression of being obliged to play the next note."

Bibliography

* Roy, Jean: ''Samson François, le poète du piano'',''Samson François, le poète du piano'' on World Cat
/ref> éditions Josette Lyon, . * Spycket, Jérôme, ''Scarbo'', 1985 (in French – a biography of François) * François, Maximilien-Samson, ''Samson François, histoire de… mille vies (1924-1970)''. Editions Bleu Nuit (2002). (in French)

References

External links

from which the quotations in this article were translated. * 20th-century French male classical pianists French male composers 1924 births 1970 deaths École Normale de Musique de Paris alumni Long-Thibaud-Crespin Competition prize-winners 20th-century French composers French expatriates in Germany {{classical-pianist-stub