Lili Boulanger Reading List
Lili Boulanger: Reading List
Introductions
Davidson, Justin. “It’s Time We All Heard the Music of Lili Boulanger.” Vulture, 2020.
Introduction to Boulanger’s life and place in music history from a music critic.
Goss, Thomas. “Lili Boulanger in Her Own Right.” Orchestration Online, 2013.
Thorough overview of Boulanger’s life, music and legacy from a professional composer’s viewpoint. Originally made for radio: audio version here.
Holland-Barry, Anya. “Lili Boulanger (21 August 1893–15 March 1918).” RISM, 2018.
Biographical sketch by an eminent scholar, whose thesis was devoted to Boulanger (see below, in §Academic surveys).
Macleod, Donald. “Composer of the Week: Lili Boulanger.” BBC Radio 3, 2015.
BBC broadcast offering a detailed overview of Boulanger, including musical excerpts.
Youtube Videos
Music's Greatest Loss: Why Listen to Lili Boulanger – Inside the Score.
Engaging overview that mixes biographical and musical commentary.
Great Composers: Lili Boulanger – Classical Nerd.
Brief but concise biography.
Lili Boulanger’s D’un vieux jardin: Analysis – Samuel Andreyev.
Detailed look into the complexities of D’un vieux jardin from an esteemed composer.
Academic Surveys
Holland-Barry, Anya B. Lili Boulanger (1893–1918) and World War I France: Mobilizing Motherhood and the Good Suffering. University of Wisconsin Madison (DMA Thesis), 2012.
Detailed survey of Boulanger’s life and music, with contextual analysis. Includes the most comprehensive bibliography to date.
Potter, Caroline. Nadia and Lili Boulanger. Taylor & Francis, 2016 [2006].
Thorough overview of both Boulanger sisters, covering all previous scholarship. Includes lengthy analyses of major musical works.
Smith-Gonzalez, April Renee. Lili Boulanger (1893–1918): Her Life and Works. Florida Atlantic University (DMA Thesis), 2001.
A concise biography followed by discussion of every composition by Boulanger.
Scholarly Articles
Palmer, Christopher. “Lili Boulanger 1893-1918.” The Musical Times, vol. 109, no. 1501, 1968, pp. 227–28.
Analytical and contextual overview of Boulanger’s major works; somewhat dated.
Potter, Caroline. “Nadia and Lili Boulanger: Sister Composers.” The Musical Quarterly, vol. 83, no. 4, 1999, pp. 536–56.
Detailed look at select works by both Boulanger sisters. Later expanded by the author into a book-length analysis (see above, in §Academic surveys).
Composition-Specific
Dopp, Bonnie Jo. “Numerology and Cryptography in the Music of Lili Boulanger: The Hidden Program in ‘Clairières Dans Le Ciel.’” The Musical Quarterly, vol. 78, no. 3, 1994, pp. 557–83.
An attempt to demystify the nuances of Boulanger’s specific style.
Fauser, Annegret. “Lili Boulanger’s ‘La Princesse Maleine’: A Composer and Her Heroine as Literary Icons.” Journal of the Royal Musical Association, vol. 122, no. 1, 1997, pp. 68–108.
Intriguing discussion of how a composer’s life and her work can be united.
Potter, Caroline. “Marche Gaie: A Rediscovered Work by Lili Boulanger.” Notes, vol. 68, no. 4, 2012, pp. 715–28.
Fascinating discussion of how a once lost composition can raise many questions.
Resources in French
Caron, Sylvain. Lili Boulanger, première femme Prix de Rome. Équipe Musique en France, 2020.
Discussion concerning the circumstances of Boulanger’s Prix de Rome award.
Spycket, Jérôme. À la recherche de Lili Boulanger. Fayard, 2004.
Research oriented overview that reproduces and analyzes contemporary documents.
Spotify Playlists
Playlist from Boulanger Initiative, for both Boulanger sisters; Youtube Version also available
Playlist from WFMT from a recent article surveying select Boulanger compositions
Playlist from the New York Times, for both Boulanger sisters