Philip Lane

Badinages for Piano Duet

In four movements: 1. Mouvement perpetuel, 2. Nocturne, 3. Valse excentrique, 4. Promenade en fiacre
Badinages is the earliest piece the composer still acknowledges. An impromptu play-through with Professor Ivor Keys formed the major part of his interview at Birmingham University in 1969. The work is an affectionate tribute to his heroes of the French school - Debussy, Ravel, Poulenc and Milhaud - although there are echoes of the dedicatee, Lord Berners, and Walton here and there also. The individual titles are largely self-explanatory - suffice to add that the composer had a cobbled boulevard after rain in mind for the Nocturne and the frenetic ride in a horse-drawn 'fiacre' was suggested by an old newsreel.
A commercial recording by Peter Lawson and Alan Maclean is available on Albany TROY142.
The originally published version was reproduced from the composer's manuscript. This has now been replaced by this typeset edition published in 2012.
Each movement lasts around 2 1/2 minutes - Total duration c.11 minutes