Francis Poulenc was the youngest and most rebellious member of the Parisian composers' group Les Six, which emerged as a counter-movement to the sentimental music of earlier generations. His early compositions incorporated influences from the café-concert, the revue, and the circus. Despite his often concise style, Poulenc, much like his friend Erik Satie, also revealed a profoundly human side. Like Stravinsky, who collaborated with his first publisher, Poulenc preferred to compose at the piano, which shaped the pianistic character of his chamber music. Although he had a particular affinity for wind music, he successfully ventured into larger works, which, like his piano pieces and songs, found a wide audience.
Poulenc's chamber music output comprises thirteen works, released on two CDs, which impress with their diversity and accessibility. The arrangement is not chronological. The works composed between 1918 and 1962 reflect the life of a wealthy musician who always earned his living through music and was esteemed by numerous friends.
Among his earliest surviving works are three sonatas for various wind ensembles, each structured in three short movements: two rhythmically lively and one lyrical Andante. The first sonata, for two clarinets, was composed in 1918, followed by works for clarinet and bassoon, and for horn, trumpet, and trombone from 1922.
Poulenc dedicated his Trio for Oboe, Bassoon, and Piano to the Spaniard Manuel de Falla in 1924. Completed in Cannes in 1926, the piece brought him his first chamber music success; its premiere took place on May 2, 1926, in Paris.
A particularly noteworthy example is the Villanelle for piccolo and piano from 1934. Also worth mentioning is the Sextet for piano and winds, completed in 1939. During the war, he composed his string sonatas, including those for violin and piano, as well as for cello and piano. In 1962, he also composed a clarinet sonata as part of a wind trilogy.
The flute sonata, composed between 1956 and 1957, is dedicated to Emma Sprague Coolidge, while the oboe sonata, completed in 1962, is a tribute to Sergei Prokofiev. The Élégie for horn and piano from 1957 reveals Poulenc as a composer who only briefly explored twelve-tone technique.