Paul Marie Théodore Vincent d'Indy (; 27 March 18512 December 1931) was a French composer and teacher. His influence as a teacher, in particular, was considerable. He was a co-founder of the

Schola Cantorum de Paris The Schola Cantorum de Paris ( being ) is a private conservatory in Paris. It was founded in 1894 by Charles Bordes, Alexandre Guilmant and Vincent d'Indy as a counterbalance to the Paris Conservatoire's emphasis on opera. History The Schola ...

and also taught at the

Paris Conservatoire The Conservatoire de Paris (), or the Paris Conservatory, is a college of music and dance founded in 1795. Officially known as the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (; CNSMDP), it is situated in the avenue Jean Ja ...

. His students included

Albéric Magnard Lucien Denis Gabriel Albéric Magnard (; 9 June 1865 – 3 September 1914) was a French composer, somewhat influenced by César Franck and Vincent d'Indy. Magnard became a national hero in 1914 when he refused to surrender his property to German ...

Albert Roussel Albert Charles Paul Marie Roussel (; 5 April 1869 – 23 August 1937) was a French composer. He spent seven years as a midshipman, turned to music as an adult, and became one of the most prominent French composers of the interwar period. His ...

Arthur Honegger Arthur Honegger (; 10 March 1892 – 27 November 1955) was a Swiss-French composer who was born in France and lived a large part of his life in Paris. Honegger was a member of Les Six. For Halbreich, '' Jeanne d'Arc au bûcher'' is "more even ...

Darius Milhaud Darius Milhaud (, ; 4 September 1892 – 22 June 1974) was a French composer, conductor, and teacher. He was a member of Les Six—also known as ''The Group of Six''—and one of the most prolific composers of the 20th century. His composition ...

Yvonne Rokseth Yvonne Rokseth (, 17 July 1890 – 23 August 1948) was a French composer, musicologist, organist, violinist, and writer. She was active in the French resistance during World War II and is best known for her research on medieval music. Life and ca ...

, and

Erik Satie Eric Alfred Leslie Satie (born 17 May 18661 July 1925), better known as Erik Satie, was a French composer and pianist. The son of a French father and a British mother, he studied at the Conservatoire de Paris, Paris Conservatoire but was an undi ...

, as well as

Cole Porter Cole Albert Porter (June 9, 1891 – October 15, 1964) was an American composer and songwriter. Many of his songs became Standard (music), standards noted for their witty, urbane lyrics, and many of his scores found success on Broadway the ...

. D'Indy studied under composer

César Franck César Auguste Jean Guillaume Hubert Franck (; 10 December 1822 – 8 November 1890) was a French Romantic music, Romantic composer, pianist, organist, and music teacher born in present-day Belgium. He was born in Liège (which at the time of h ...

, and was strongly influenced by Franck's admiration for German music. At a time when nationalist feelings were high in both countries (circa the

Franco-Prussian War The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the War of 1870, was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the North German Confederation led by the Kingdom of Prussia. Lasting from 19 July 1870 to 28 Janua ...

of 1871), this brought Franck into conflict with other musicians who wished to separate French music from German influence.

Life

Paul Marie Théodore Vincent d'Indy was born in Paris into an aristocratic family of

royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of gove ...

and

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

persuasion. His great-grandfather was the politician . He had piano lessons from an early age from his paternal grandmother, who passed him on to

Antoine François Marmontel Antoine François Marmontel (; 18 July 1816 – 16 January 1898) was a French pianist, composer, teacher and musicographer. He is mainly known today as an influential teacher at the Paris Conservatory, where he taught many musicians who became l ...

and

Louis Diémer Louis Joseph Diémer (14 February 1843 – 21 December 1919) was a French pianist and composer. He was the founder of the Société des Instruments Anciens in the 1890s, and also gave recitals on the harpsichord. His output as a composer was exten ...

."Indy, Vincent d'",''

Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' is an encyclopedic dictionary of music and musicians. Along with the German-language '' Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart'', it is one of the largest reference works on the history and th ...

'', 5th edition, 1954, volume V,

Eric Blom Eric Walter Blom (20 August 188811 April 1959) was a Swiss-born British-naturalised music lexicographer, music critic and writer. He is best known as the editor of the 5th edition of ''Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' (1954). Earl ...

ed. From the age of 14 d'Indy studied harmony with

Albert Lavignac Alexandre Jean Albert Lavignac (21 January 1846 – 28 May 1916) was a French music scholar, known for his essays on theory, and a minor composer. Biography Lavignac was born in Paris and studied with Antoine François Marmontel, François Ben ...

. When he was 16 an uncle introduced him to Berlioz's treatise on orchestration, which inspired him to become a composer."M. Vincent d'Indy", ''The Times'', 4 December 1931, p. 16 He wrote a piano quartet which he sent to

, who was the teacher of a friend. Franck recognised his talent and recommended that d'Indy pursue a career as a composer. At the age of 19, during the

, d'Indy enlisted in the National Guard, but returned to musical life as soon as the hostilities were over. He entered Franck's organ class at the

Conservatoire de Paris The Conservatoire de Paris (), or the Paris Conservatory, is a college of music and dance founded in 1795. Officially known as the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (; CNSMDP), it is situated in the avenue Jean Ja ...

in 1871 remaining there until 1875, when he joined the percussion section of the orchestra at the

Châtelet Theatre Châtelet or Chatelet may refer to: *Châtelet, a type of large gatehouse, a fortified entry point of a castle Places Belgium * Châtelet, Belgium, a municipality in the province of Hainaut France * Grand Châtelet, a former stronghold wit ...

to gain practical experience. He also served as chorus-master to the

Concerts Colonne The Colonne Orchestra is a French symphony orchestra, founded in 1873 by the violinist and conductor Édouard Colonne. History While leader of the Opéra de Paris orchestra, Édouard Colonne was engaged by the publisher Georges Hartmann to lead ...

. The first of his works he heard performed was a ''Symphonie italienne'', at an orchestral rehearsal under

Jules Pasdeloup Jules Étienne Pasdeloup (; 15 September 1819 – 13 August 1887) was a French conductor. Life Pasdeloup was born in Paris. His father was an assistant conductor at the Opéra Comique; he was educated in music at the Conservatoire de Paris, leav ...

; the work was admired by

Georges Bizet Georges Bizet (; 25 October 18383 June 1875) was a French composer of the Romantic music, Romantic era. Best known for his operas in a career cut short by his early death, Bizet achieved few successes before his final work, ''Carmen'', w ...

and

Jules Massenet Jules Émile Frédéric Massenet (; 12 May 1842 – 13 August 1912) was a French composer of the Romantic music, Romantic era best known for his operas, of which he wrote more than thirty. The two most frequently staged are ''Manon'' (1884 ...

, with whom he had already become acquainted. During the summer of 1873 he visited Germany, where he met

Franz Liszt Franz Liszt (22 October 1811 – 31 July 1886) was a Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist, conductor and teacher of the Romantic music, Romantic period. With a diverse List of compositions by Franz Liszt, body of work spanning more than six ...

and

Johannes Brahms Johannes Brahms (; ; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor of the mid-Romantic period (music), Romantic period. His music is noted for its rhythmic vitality and freer treatment of dissonance, oft ...

. On 25 January 1874, his overture ''Les Piccolomini'' was performed at a Pasdeloup concert, sandwiched between works by

Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (German: �joːhan zeˈbasti̯an baχ ( – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his prolific output across a variety of instruments and forms, including the or ...

and

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. He is one of the most revered figures in the history of Western music; his works rank among the most performed of the classical music repertoire ...

. Around this time he married Isabelle de Pampelonne, one of his cousins. In 1875 his symphony dedicated to

János Hunyadi John Hunyadi (; ; ; ; ; – 11 August 1456) was a leading Hungarian military and political figure during the 15th century, who served as regent of the Kingdom of Hungary from 1446 to 1453, under the minor Ladislaus V. According to most con ...

was performed. That same year he played a minor role – the prompter – at the premiere of Bizet's opera ''

Carmen ''Carmen'' () is an opera in four acts by the French composer Georges Bizet. The libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera was first performed by the O ...

''. In 1876 he was present at the first production of

Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, essayist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most o ...

's ''Ring'' cycle at

Bayreuth Bayreuth ( or ; High Franconian German, Upper Franconian: Bareid, ) is a Town#Germany, town in northern Bavaria, Germany, on the Red Main river in a valley between the Franconian Jura and the Fichtel Mountains. The town's roots date back to 11 ...

. This made a great impression on him and he became a fervent Wagnerian. In 1878 d'Indy's symphonic ballad ''La Forêt enchantée'' was performed. In 1882 he heard Wagner's ''

Parsifal ''Parsifal'' ( WWV 111) is a music drama in three acts by the German composer Richard Wagner and his last composition. Wagner's own libretto for the work is freely based on the 13th-century Middle High German chivalric romance ''Parzival'' of th ...

''. In 1883 his choral work ''Le Chant de la cloche'' appeared. In 1884 his symphonic poem ''Saugefleurie'' was premiered. His piano suite ("symphonic poem for piano") called ''Poème des montagnes'' came from around this time. In 1887 appeared his Suite in D for trumpet, 2 flutes and string quartet. That same year he was involved in Lamoureux's production of Wagner's ''

Lohengrin Lohengrin () is a character in German Arthurian literature. The son of Parzival (Percival), he is a knight of the Holy Grail sent in a boat pulled by swans to rescue a maiden who can never ask his identity. His story, which first appears in Wo ...

'' as choirmaster. His music drama ''

Fervaal ''Fervaal'', Op. 40, is an opera (''action musicale'' or lyric drama) in three acts with a prologue by the French composer Vincent d'Indy. The composer wrote his own libretto, based in part on the lyric poem ''Axel'' by the Swedish author Esaias ...

'' occupied him between 1889 and 1895. Inspired by his studies with Franck and yet dissatisfied with the standard of teaching at the Conservatoire, d'Indy, together with

Charles Bordes Anne-Marie Charles Bordes-Bonjean (12 May 1863 – 8 November 1909) was a French music teacher and composer. Timeline Bordes was born in La Roche-Corbon, Indre-et-Loire. He studied pianoforte with Antoine François Marmontel and composition wit ...

and

Alexandre Guilmant Félix-Alexandre Guilmant (; 12 March 1837 – 29 March 1911) was a French organist and composer. He was the organist of La Trinité from 1871 until 1901. A noted pedagogue, performer, and improviser, Guilmant helped found the Schola Canto ...

, founded the

in 1894. D'Indy taught there until his death, becoming principal in 1904. Of the teaching at the Schola Cantorum, ''The Oxford Companion to Music'' says, "A solid grounding in technique was encouraged, rather than originality", and comments that few graduates could stand comparison with the best Conservatoire students. D'Indy later taught at the Conservatoire and privately, while retaining his post at the Schola Cantorum. Among d'Indy's renowned pupils were

Joseph Canteloube Marie-Joseph Canteloube de Malaret (; 21 October 18794 November 1957) was a French composer, musicologist, and author best known for his collections of orchestrated folksongs from the Auvergne (province), Auvergne region, ''Chants d'Auvergne''. ...

(who later wrote d'Indy's biography), Celia Torra,

and

. Two atypical students were

, who signed up for a two-year course at the Schola, but left after a few months, and

, who studied there for three years and later wrote, "Why on earth had I gone to d'Indy? The things I had written before were so full of charm. And now? What nonsense! What dullness!" Nonetheless, according to ''

'', d'Indy's influence as a teacher was "enormous and wide-ranging, with benefits for French music far outweighing the charges of dogmatism and political intolerance". D'Indy played an important part in the history of the

Société nationale de musique Groupe Lactalis S.A. (doing business as Lactalis) is a French multinational dairy products corporation, owned by the Besnier family and based in Laval, Mayenne, France. The company's former name was Besnier S.A. Lactalis is the largest dairy pr ...

, of which his teacher, Franck, had been a founding member in 1871.Cochard, Alain
"150ème anniversaire de la naissance de la Société nationale de musique"
Concertclassic.com. Retrieved 13 May 2021 Like Franck, d'Indy revered German music, and he resented the society's exclusion of non-French music and composers. He became the society's joint secretary in 1885, and succeeded in overturning its French-only rule the following year. The founders of the society,

Romain Bussine Romain Bussine (4 November 1830 – 20 December 1899) was a French voice teacher, baritone singer, translator and poet active in the second half of the 19th century. Career He was born in Paris; and from the late 1860s until his death Bussi ...

and

Camille Saint-Saëns Charles-Camille Saint-Saëns (, , 9October 183516 December 1921) was a French composer, organist, conductor and pianist of the Romantic music, Romantic era. His best-known works include Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso (1863), the Piano ...

resigned in protest. Franck refused the formal title of president of the society, but when he died in 1890, d'Indy took the post. His regime, however, alienated a younger generation of French composers, who, led by

Maurice 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 ...

, founded the breakaway Société musicale indépendante in 1910, which attracted leading young composers from France and other countries.Duchesneau, Michel
"Maurice Ravel et la Société Musicale Indépendante: 'Projet Mirifique de Concerts Scandaleux'"
''Revue de Musicologie'', vol. 80, no. 2, 1994, pp. 251–281 ; an
"La musique française pendant la Guerre 1914–1918: Autour de la tentative de fusion de la Société Nationale de Musique et de la Société Musicale Indépendante"
''Revue de Musicologie'', 1996, T. 82, No. 1, p. 148 In an attempt to further a proposed merger of the two organisations during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

d'Indy stepped down as president of the Société nationale to make way for the more "progressive"

Gabriel Fauré Gabriel Urbain Fauré (12 May 1845 – 4 November 1924) was a French composer, organist, pianist and teacher. He was one of the foremost French composers of his generation, and his musical style influenced many 20th-century composers. ...

, but the plan came to nothing. According to the biographer

Robert Orledge Robert Orledge (born 5 January 1948) is a British musicologist who specialises in French music from the late 19th to early 20th centuries. A Professor Emeritus at the University of Liverpool, Orledge has published book-length studies on the comp ...

, the death of d'Indy's first wife in 1905 removed the stabilising influence in the composer's life, and he became "increasingly vulnerable to politically motivated attacks on the Schola Cantorum and apprehensive of dangerously decadent trends in contemporary music in both France and Germany". His aesthetic ideas, Orledge argues, became "increasingly reactionary and dogmatic" and his political views right-wing and

anti-Semitic Antisemitism or Jew-hatred is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who harbours it is called an antisemite. Whether antisemitism is considered a form of racism depends on the school of thought. Antisemi ...

. He joined the

Ligue de la patrie française The Catholic League of France (), sometimes referred to by contemporary (and modern) Catholics as the Holy League (), was a major participant in the French Wars of Religion. The League, founded and led by Henry I, Duke of Guise, intended the eradi ...

(League of the French Fatherland) during the Dreyfus affair. During the

d'Indy served on cultural missions to allied countries, and completed his third music drama, ''La Légende de Saint-Christophe'', in Orledge's view "a celebration of traditional Catholic regionalism as opposed to modern liberal democracy and capitalist values". After the war he increased his activities as a conductor, giving concert tours throughout Europe and the US. 1920 he married the much younger Caroline Janson; Orledge writes that this "brought a true creative rebirth, witnessed in the serene Mediterranean-inspired compositions of his final decade". D'Indy died on 2 December 1931 in his native Paris, aged 80, and was buried in the

Montparnasse Cemetery Montparnasse Cemetery () is a cemetery in the Montparnasse quarter of Paris, in the city's 14th arrondissement of Paris, 14th arrondissement. The cemetery is roughly 47 acres and is the second largest cemetery in Paris. The cemetery has over 35,00 ...

Works

Few of d'Indy's works are performed regularly in concert halls today. ''Grove'' comments that his famed veneration for Beethoven and Franck "has unfortunately obscured the individual character of his own compositions, particularly his fine orchestral pieces descriptive of southern France". Among his best known pieces are the '' Symphony on a French Mountain Air'' for piano and orchestra (1886), and ''Istar'' (1896), a

symphonic poem A symphonic poem or tone poem is a piece of orchestral music, usually in a single continuous movement, which illustrates or evokes the content of a poem, short story, novel, painting, landscape, or other (non-musical) source. The German term ( ...

in the form of a set of

variations Variation or Variations may refer to: Science and mathematics * Variation (astronomy), any perturbation of the mean motion or orbit of a planet or satellite, particularly of the moon * Genetic variation, the difference in DNA among individual ...

in which the theme appears only at the end. Among d'Indy's other works are more orchestral pieces, including a Symphony in B, a vast symphonic poem, ''Jour d'été à la montagne'', and another, ''Souvenirs'', written on the death of his first wife. ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'' said of his music that the influence of Berlioz, Franck, and Wagner is strong in almost all his work, "that of Franck showing itself chiefly in the shapes of his tunes, that of Wagner in their development, and that of Berlioz in their orchestration". ''Grove'' says of his chamber works: "D'Indy's somewhat academic corpus of chamber music (including three completed string quartets) is generally less interesting than his orchestral works". He also wrote piano music (including a Sonata in E minor), songs and a number of operas, including ''

'' (1897) and ''L'Étranger'' (1902). His music drama ''Le Légende de Saint Christophe'', based on themes from

Gregorian chant Gregorian chant is the central tradition of Western plainsong, plainchant, a form of monophony, monophonic, unaccompanied sacred song in Latin (and occasionally Greek language, Greek) of the Roman Catholic Church. Gregorian chant developed main ...

, was premiered at the

Paris Opéra The Paris Opera ( ) is the primary opera and ballet company of France. It was founded in 1669 by Louis XIV as the , and shortly thereafter was placed under the leadership of Jean-Baptiste Lully and officially renamed the , but continued to be kn ...

on 6 June 1920. D'Indy helped revive a number of then largely forgotten Baroque works, for example making his own edition of

Monteverdi Claudio Giovanni Antonio Monteverdi (baptized 15 May 1567 – 29 November 1643) was an Italian composer, choirmaster and string player. A composer of both secular and sacred music, and a pioneer in the development of opera, he is considere ...

's opera ''

L'incoronazione di Poppea ''L'incoronazione di Poppea'' (Stattkus-Verzeichnis, SV 308, ''The Coronation of Poppaea'') is an Italian List of operas by Claudio Monteverdi, opera by Claudio Monteverdi. It was Monteverdi's last opera, with a libretto by Giovanni Francesco Buse ...

''.Orledge, Robert, and Andrew Thomson
(Paul Marie Théodore) Vincent d'"
''Grove Music Online'', Oxford University Press, 2001 D'Indy also contributed to the incipient revival of the works of

Antonio Vivaldi Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (4 March 1678 – 28 July 1741) was an Italian composer, virtuoso violinist, impresario of Baroque music and Roman Catholic priest. Regarded as one of the greatest Baroque composers, Vivaldi's influence during his lif ...

, whose sonatas for cello and basso continuo ( op. 14) were edited by d'Indy as cello concerti and published by

Maurice Senart Maurice may refer to: *Maurice (name), a given name and surname, including a list of people with the name Places * or Mauritius, an island country in the Indian Ocean *Maurice, Iowa, a city *Maurice, Louisiana, a village *Maurice River, a trib ...

in 1922. His musical writings include the three-volume ''Cours de composition musicale'' as well as studies of Franck and

. ''The Times'' commented that his study of the former was "one of the most vivid and individual of modern French biographies", and the latter, published in 1912, showed "the closeness of the lifelong study which he devoted to that master".

Commemorations

The private music college

École de musique Vincent-d'Indy The école de musique Vincent-d'Indy is a subsidized private music college situated in Montreal, Quebec, Canada in the Outremont, Quebec, Outremont district, that specializes in music education. The school was named after the French composer, Vin ...

in Montreal, Canada, is named after the composer, as is the asteroid 11530 d'Indy, discovered in 1992."(11530) d'Indy"
International Astronomical Union Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 15 May 2021

Notes, references and sources

Notes

References

Sources

* * * *

External links

*
D'Indy Trio for Clarinet, Cello & Piano, Op. 29, Piano Quartet Op. 7, String Quartet No. 1 and String Sextet, Op. 92 soundbites and discussion of works
* * * by

Julian Lloyd Webber Julian Lloyd Webber (born 14 April 1951) is a British solo cellist, conductor and broadcaster, a former principal of Royal Birmingham Conservatoire and the founder of the In Harmony music education programme. Early years and education Julia ...

and the

English Chamber Orchestra The English Chamber Orchestra (ECO) is a British chamber orchestra based in London. The full orchestra regularly plays concerts at Cadogan Hall, and their ensemble performs at Wigmore Hall. With a limited performance size, the orchestra spe ...

conducted by

Yan Pascal Tortelier Yan Pascal Tortelier (born 19 April 1947) is a French conductor and violinist. Biography Born in Paris, Tortelier is the son of the cellist Paul Tortelier, and the brother of Maria de la Pau. Tortelier began piano and violin studies at age 4. A ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Indy, Vincent D 1851 births 1931 deaths 19th-century French classical composers 19th-century French male musicians 20th-century French classical composers 20th-century French male musicians Academic staff of the Conservatoire de Paris Burials at Montparnasse Cemetery Conservatoire de Paris alumni French male classical composers French male non-fiction writers French Roman Catholics French Romantic composers Composers for piano Members of the Ligue de la patrie française Musicians from Paris Pupils of Antoine François Marmontel Pupils of César Franck Academic staff of the Schola Cantorum de Paris