Gabriel Fauré (1845-1924) was born in the village of Pamiers, Ariège, Midi-Pyrénées. At an early age, he was sent to study at the famous École Niedermeyer, a Parisian school that prepared church organists and choir directors. He studied with several prominent French musicians, including Charles Lefèvre and Camille Saint-Saëns. For most of his life, Fauré worked as a church organist and teacher. Among his students were Maurice Ravel and Nadia Boulanger. He was a founder of the Société Nationale de Musique and eventually became director of the Paris Conservatory. In retrospect, he has come to be regarded as a transitional and unique figure in French music. His lifetime and works spanned the period of the mid Romantic right up to the modern post-WWI developments of Stravinsky. He and his music were well-known during his lifetime, and several of his works are still popular today, such as his Requiem, the opera Pénélope, the music for Pelléas et Mélisande, and the Dolly Suite. He wrote a considerable amount of chamber music, including two piano quartets, two piano quintets, two cello sonatas, two violin sonatas, a string quartet, and a piano trio.
Fauré's Piano Quintet in d minor, Op. 89 was dedicated to the violinist Eugène Ysaÿe, with whom Fauré had a close friendship and collaboration. Fauré began work in 1887, but repeatedly set it aside, returning to it in 1890 and again in 1894 before finally completing it in 1905. The work is structured in three movements: Molto moderato, Adagio, and Allegretto moderato. The opening movement, Allegro moderato, radiates a singing beauty. It opens with a solo piano introduction featuring high arpeggios, followed by a modal theme from the strings, and features a recurring three-note motif. The long Adagio that follows is more subdued and melancholic, yet its climaxes are highly emotional, and its quiet moments are magical. The last movement, Allegretto moderato, is a scherzo and finale in one. It starts with a distant echo of the Eroica variations. The music is by turns ecstatic, stormy and sunny.
