Castillon Alexis de Castillon

Marie-Alexis de Castillon de Saint-Victor (13 December 1838 – 5 March 1873) was a French composer.

Life and career

Son of an old family of the Languedoc nobility, he was born in Chartres and was initially intended by his parents for a military career. But Castillon gave up plans for professional soldiering in favour of music, which he learned first in his birthplace and then in Paris, studying piano and composition, initially with Charles Delioux. In this second capacity he went to the Paris Conservatoire where he attended the classes of Victor Massé and, from 1869, of César Franck. Before his studies with Franck, he had completed his Opus 1, a piano quintet, probably inspired by the earlier example of his friend Camille Saint-Saëns. Both the quintet and the later piano quartet Op. 7 follow Schumann's model. He disavowed earlier efforts, including a symphony in F major, which he had written in 1865.

In fragile health at the best of times (volunteering during the War of 1870, he fell ill and was demobilized in 1871), he died of complications from fever in 1873, before reaching the age of 35. He nevertheless composed several impressively Romantic works. These include pieces for piano, chamber music, mélodies, a piano concerto, and other orchestral music. He was also active in Parisian musical life, in particular helping to create, in 1871, the Société Nationale de Musique, of which he was the first secretary.

List of compositions

Piano solo

• Fugue in G minor
• Fugues dans le style libre, Op. 2 (1869)
• Suite No. 1, Op. 5 (1867?-69)

I. Canon

II. Scherzo

III. Thème et Variations

IV. Gavotte

V. Marche

• 5 Pièces dans le style ancien, Op. 9 (1870)

I. Prélude

II. Sicilienne

III. Sarabande

IV. Air (D major)

V. Fughette

• Suite No. 2, Op. 10 (1870)

I. Ballade

II. Ronde

III. Adagietto (F major)

IV. Fantaisie (D minor)

V. Saltarelle

• 6 Valses humoristiques, Op. 11 (1871) (orchestrated by Charles Koechlin)

I. (Liberamente) (E major)

II. (Non troppo vivo) (A major)

III. (Con fantasia) (C♯ minor)

IV. (Comodo) (F♯ major)

V. (Energico) (B major)

VI. (Vivo assai) (E major)

• 24 Pensées fugitives (1873)

I. Aveu

II. Minuetto

III. Au bois

IV. Carillon

V. Compliment

VI. Première Mazurka

VII. Causerie

VIII. Fanfare

IX. Scherzo-Valse

X. Regrets

XI. Deuxième Mazurka

XII. Toccata

XIII. Marche des Français

XIV. Au revoir

XV. Feu follet

XVI. Bayadère

XVII. Chanson du cavalier

XVIII. Extase

XIX. Colombine

XX. Les Dragons

XXI. Scherzettino

XXII. Appel du soir

XXIII. Troisième Mazurka

XXIV. Aubade

Chamber

• Piano Quintet, Op. 1 (1863–64)

I. Allegro

II. Scherzo

III. Adagio et final

• String Quartet No. 1, Op. 3, No. 1 (1867) (ded. to Henri Poencet)

I. (Allegro)

II. (Adagio molto lento - Allegro scherzando)

III. (Molto grave - Molto allegro)

• String Quartet No. 2, Op. 3, No. 2 (1867) (unfinished, only Cavatina published)
• Piano Trio No. 1, Op. 4 (1865)

I. Prélude et Andante

II. Scherzo

III. Romance

IV. Finale

• Sonata for violin and piano, Op. 6 (1868) (ded. to Elie-Miriam Delaborde)

I. (Allegro moderato)

II. (Allegro scherzando)

III. (Andante)

IV. (Allegro molto)

• Piano Quartet, Op. 7 (1869) (ded. to Anton Rubinstein)

I. (Larghetto - Allegro deciso - Allegro)

II. (Scherzando)

III. (Larghetto, quasi marcia religiosa)

IV. Finale (Allegro)

• Piano Trio No. 2, Op. 17 (1870-73?)

I. (Allegro moderato)

II. (Allegretto non vivo) (B♭ major)

III. (Scherzando vivace) (G minor)

IV. (Adagio - Allegro con fuoco - Molto expressivo senza rigore)

Concertante

• Piano Concerto, Op. 12 (1871) (ded. to and first performed (in 1872) by Camille Saint-Saëns piano) (also arr. for 2 pianos by Vincent d'Indy)

I. (Allegro moderato)

II. (Molto lento)

III. (Allegro con fuoco)

Orchestra

• Robert Schumann: Trois morceaux, arr. for orchestra (unpublished)
• Marche Scandinave (ded. to Georges Bizet) (unpublished)
• Symphony No. 1 (1865) (unpublished)
• 5 Airs de Danse, suite for orchestra (1870) (unpublished)

I. Introduction et Ronde

II. Tempo di Walzer

III. Sicilienne

IV. Menuet

V. Danse guerrière

• Esquisses symphoniques, Op. 15 (1872)

I. Prélude

II. Gavotte

III. Allegretto

IV. Retour du Prélude et Finale

• Symphony No. 2 (1872) (unfinished)
• Franz Schubert: Impromptu, Op. 90, No. 1, arr. for orchestra (1872) (unpublished)
• 3 Pièces dans le style ancien (1873) (orchestration of Nos. 3, 4, and 5 of Op. 9) (unpublished)

I. Sarabande

II. Air

III. Fughette

• Torquato Tasso, Ouverture (unfinished)

Songs

• 6 Poésies d'Armand Silvestre, Op. 8 (1868–73) (orchestrated 1920 by Charles Koechlin)

I. Le Bûcher

II. Le Semeur

III. Sonnet mélancolique

IV. La Mer

V. Renouveau

VI. Vendange

Choral

• Paraphrase du Psaume 84, for soloists, choir, and orchestra, on a text by Louis Gallet, Op. 16 (1872)
• Mass (1872) (unfinished)