Gustave Doret (1866-1943) was born in the Swiss town of Aigle. He initially studied violin at the Berlin Academy of Music with Joseph Joachim. Subsequently, he entered the Paris Conservatory, where he studied composition with Theodore Dubois and Jules Massenet and violin with Martin Marsick. Afterwards, he pursued a career both as a composer, mainly of opera, and as a conductor of orchestras in Paris and Geneva. At the outbreak of the First World War, he returned to Switzerland for good and continued conducting the Orchestra of Geneva and teaching at the Geneva Conservatory. Besides his operas, most of his works were for voice, although he did compose a string quartet and some instrumental works with piano in addition to this piano quintet.
Doret's Piano Quintet in c minor dates from 1925 and was dedicated to the famous pianist Ignacy Paderewski, who commissioned it. Whereas Doret's earlier works showed the influence of French Impressionism, his later oeuvre, of which the Quintet is a part, shows the influence of late Faure in which one hears a darker quality but also the use of Swiss folk melody. The Quintet is four movements and opens with an explosive Allegro risoluto e con calore. The piano gives forth a short, powerful introduction, with the music sounding almost like a piano concerto. This quickly gives way to a riveting main subject, a melody of destiny. The music is full of power and forward motion, almost breaking the bounds of chamber music, at times sounding orchestral. The second movement, Intermezzo, andante commodo, is rather surprising, not at all what one expects an intermezzo to sound like. Despite the tempo marking, it is leisurely, very lyrical and romantic, exhibiting a vocal quality. Third comes a Lento e espressivo, which begins in ominous fashion but slowly gives way to a calmer, more melancholic mood. The music is elegiac but not funereal. The finale, Allegro con fuoco, bursts forth, upbeat, but also very powerful and orchestral-sounding.
This is a first-rate work which absolutely deserves a concert performance where it is sure to make a very strong impression upon its listeners.
