Michel Rateau

Michel Rateau
Period: 1968-1971
Profession: Composer Born in 1938 in Paris (15th arrondissement). He began studying music theory and piano with Sister Marie-Laurent at the age of 5 at the Notre-Dame de France school in Vanves (92). She noticed in this child an aptitude and a taste for music that she wanted to develop. It was at the same age that he composed his first work in his parents’ kitchen, using the objects and appliances around him. Despite changing schools, he continued to follow the teaching of Sister Marie-Laurent until the age of 11. He then took private piano lessons with Jean Boguet (organist in Dijon) until he was 15. He then studied with Jacques Février and Jean Doyen. Attracted more by composition, Michel Rateau began to study composition with Maurice Duruflé, entering his class at the Paris Conservatoire in 1959. This was followed by classes with André Jolivet and Jean Rivier. While continuing his studies at the CNSM de Paris, he passed his CAPES d’Education Musicale in 1960 and did his military service with the 93rd Infantry Regiment at Mont Valérien (1962-1964). He was awarded First Prize in harmony in 1963 and First Prize in composition in 1966 at the Paris Conservatoire Michel Rateau went on to win the First Grand Prix de Rome in 1967. He stayed at the Villa Médicis from 1968 to 1971. During his stay, he designed a percussion instrument consisting of a 2m x 2m portico on which bells (campana) of different sizes and materials (wood, metal) and cymbals are fixed, to be struck with mallets. Returning to Paris in 1971, he became interested in the sound made by ” choses ” (a birdcage, tubing, vats, etc.), which he recorded on magnetic tape. This gave rise to the music for the ballet La Course at the Théâtre National Populaire (TNP) in Paris, danced by Joseph Russillo’s company, and a concert at the Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris as part of the A.R.C. (Animation Recherche Confrontation) commissioned by Maurice Fleuret. Throughout these years, he continued to compose works for orchestra. In 1976, Michel Rateau moved to Rouen and resumed his teaching career as Professor at the Rouen IUFM. He also taught at the Institut de Musicologie de Rouen from 1980 to 1989, and harmony and analysis at the Ecole Normale de Musique de Paris from 1983 to 1990. In 1982, he began work on
Chants du temps for orchestra, which he completed in 1988, giving rise to an interview on the work with Pierre Boulez. While teaching full-time, in 1984 he gave a concert at the Salle Gaveau in Paris,
Offrande lyrique for violin and orchestra, performed by the Ensemble Orchestral de Paris under the direction of Jean-Pierre Wallez, with Gaëtane Prouvost as soloist. The concert was attended, to his great delight, by the ” maîtres ” Olivier Messiaen and Henri Dutilleux. This work was revived by the Orchestre de Chambre de Rouen in 1984, conducted by Jean-Pierre Berlingen. For the 25th anniversary of the University of Rouen in 1991, he composed for the Nouvel Ensemble Contemporain :
A quatre for flute, clarinet, violin and piano, premiered in concert in 1991. In 1992, Michel Rateau began
Les Chants du temps for piano,  his Journal Musical, ” a work in progress “.
Les Chants du temps marks a return to a rather pared-down, very simple, strongly melodic and contrapuntal form of writing, in stark contrast to the more avant-garde pieces he wrote in the 1960s and 70s. This is a modular composition in 15 volumes to date, each volume comprising twelve collections, and each collection containing twelve or thirteen pages of music. As with a collection of poems, the reader-performer chooses the pieces to be read or played, according to his or her mood and preferences. Part of
Chants du Temps (approx. 45 minutes) was performed in concert at the Université de Strasbourg II in April 2005, on the occasion of the Journées de l’Action Culturelle on the theme of l’Oeuvre ultime.  Excerpts from this work are also played by Israeli pianist Gilead Mishory during these concerts, notably in Germany and Japan.
Les Chants du temps has become a unique work, the work that Michel Rateau pursues and to which he devotes himself entirely today. Catalog of works : →
Copeaux de Lune for two pianos – Biennale de Paris, Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris – 1966 – duration: 11 minutes. →
Divertimento for two pianos, 1er prix de composition du CNSM de Paris – 1966 – duration: 13 minutes 30 seconds. →
Voyageur où t’en vas-tu? cantata on a poem by Rabîndranâth Tagore, for soprano, tenor, baritone, bass and orchestra – Orchestre de l’Opéra de Paris, Institut de France – 1967 – duration: 25 minutes. →
Divertimento Breve for orchestra – RAI Symphony Orchestra (television), Rome – 1968 – duration: 5 minutes 30 seconds. →
Seuil for percussion ensemble – Les Percussions de la RAI (television), Rome -1969 – duration: 10 minutes 30 seconds – Work broadcast on France Musique. →
Concerto for orchestra – RAI Orchestra (television), Rome – 1970 – duration: 12 minutes. →
Sonnant for orchestra – Commissioned by Radio France –1971 – duration: 12 minutes. →
Trois Musiques pour un citoyen for orchestra – Commissioned by Radio France – Editions Billaudot – 1972 – duration: 18 minutes – Transcription for two pianos. → Music on magnetic tape : –
La Course , ballet music performed at the Théâtre National Populaire de Paris (TNP) by the Joseph Russillo company. Televised – 1970 – duration: 26 minutes – for two pianos.
Cage,
Tiles ,
Garden tools ,
Tubing ,
Mécaniques: music performed in concert at the Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris as part of the A.R.C. program directed by Maurice Fleuret – 1975 – duration: 45 minutes
Childhood (15′),
Flutes (7’20),
Bells (5’40),
Tintamarresque and Farce (12′),
Concerto for guitar (25′),
Covers (4’30),
Car parts (5’30),
Kitchen elements with piano (6’30),
La Bête (2’40),
Temps-Monde (15′) – 1973-1976 →
Matinale (3’30) for flute and piano,
Sonnant (3’10) for trumpet and piano – Instrumental pieces commissioned by Editions A. Leduc – 1972 → Competition pieces for the CNSM de Paris: –
Fiction for horn and piano – éditions M. Eschig – 1974 – duration: 5 minutes. –
Dialogue avec l’oiseau La for flute and piano – éditions M. Eschig – 1975 – duration : 5 minutes. –
Nature morte à la Contrebasse – éditions Salabert – 1981 – duration: 5 minutes. →
Comme Union for brass quintet – Commissioned by Ensemble Ars Nova, conducted by Marius Constant – 1979 – duration: 5 minutes. →
Lumen for strings – Orchestre de Chambre de Rouen, conducted by Jean-Claude Bernède  – 1980  – duration: 20 minutes. →
Offrande lyrique for violin and orchestra – Commissioned by the Ensemble Orchestral de Paris – 1981 – duration: 18 minutes. →
Chants du Temps , in four books for orchestra – 1982-1988 – duration: 1 hour 50 minutes. →
Audite for orchestra – 1989 – duration: 11 minutes. →
Interval for strings – 1990 – duration: 5 minutes 30 seconds. →
Ephphata for orchestra – 1990 – duration 7 minutes. →
Musique Geste Mouvement for two pianos – 1990 – duration: 13 minutes 30 seconds. →
A quatre for flute, clarinet, violin and piano – Created in concert by the Nouvel Ensemble Contemporain during the 25th anniversary of the University of Rouen – 1991 – duration: 8 minutes, 30 seconds. →
Chants du Temps for strings and wind instruments – 2007 – duration: 40 minutes. →
Les Chants du Temps for piano, “Work in progress of incompletion ” – begun in 1992 – total duration in 2010: approx. 20 hours – 16th volume in progress.