Sept haï-kaïs
| Sept haï-kaïs | |
|---|---|
| Song cycle by Maurice Delage | |
| Text | Japanese tanka and haiku poems |
| Language | French |
| Composed | 1924 |
| Scoring |
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Sept haï-kaïs (French: [sɛt aikai], "Seven haikais") is a song cycle of mélodies by the French composer Maurice Delage for soprano and chamber ensemble of flute, oboe, B♭ clarinet, piano, and string quartet. Delage composed the work in 1924 based on classical Japanese tanka and haiku poems he translated into French.
The work was first performed on 16 February 1925 by the mezzo-soprano Jane Bathori at a concert conducted by Darius Milhaud at the Société Musicale Indépendante (SMI). The SMI was a concert society founded in 1909 by Maurice Ravel and other friends of Delage's to free themselves of the restrictions of the program music of the Société Nationale de Musique (SNM).
Sept haï-kaïs is shorter and more complex than Delage's Quatre poèmes hindous ("Four Hindu Poems", 1914), and less known than Stravinsky's Trois poésies de la lyrique japonaise ("Three Japanese Lyrics", 1913), whose lyrics were also translated by Delage. Sept haï-kaïs bridges the music of Japan and modern French music, and is considered the masterwork of Delage's mature period.
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