Jef Le Penven

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Jef Le Penven conducting the Orchestre de Bretagne Jef Le Penven.jpg
Jef Le Penven conducting the Orchestre de Bretagne

Jef Le Penven (3 November 1919 - 30 April 1967) was a French composer, born in Pontivy, Morbihan, Brittany.

Le Penven was the twelfth child of a family of cabinet makers. He was brought up in an atmosphere of traditional vernacular music, learning to play the bombard (Breton oboe) as a child. He studied at the Schola Cantorum in Paris, working with Marcel Dupré. [1]

In 1940, he became the conductor for the Orchestre de Bretagne.

Le Penven's music expresses his attachment to Brittany and Celtic culture. He attempts to integrate traditional and symphonic music. His major works use conventional symphonic and choral forms but typically include bagpipe music.

Le Penven was also well known for his organ improvisations, of which he was a virtuoso. [1]

His setting of the poem Me zo ganet e kreiz ar mor by Yann-Ber Kalloc'h has been interpreted by a number of Breton musicians including Gilles Servat and Alan Stivell.

Compositions

Notes

  1. 1 2 Vefa de Bellaing, Jef Le Penven, Coop Breizh, 1999.

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"Me zo ganet e kreiz ar mor" is an autobiographical poem by the Breton-language writer Yann-Ber Kalloc'h which celebrates the island of Groix, where he was born, and describes his parents' struggles and his own. In a setting by Jef Le Penven it has become one of the most popular Breton-language songs, performed by Alan Stivell, Yann-Fañch Kemener, Julie Fowlis and others. The title has several variants, including Me zo ganet e kreiz er mor and Me zo gañnet é kreiz er mor.