Louis Durey

Louis Durey was a French composer and a member of the Les Six. Initially influenced by Claude Debussy, he later discovered the music of Arnold Schoenberg, which opened the way to a more liberated musical language. Although associated with Les Six, Durey withdrew from the group in 1921 and continued to develop his own highly individual style. His diverse output includes piano, chamber, vocal, choral and orchestral music, as well as film music. From the 1940s onwards, his interest in the study of early French music and folk song strongly influenced his choral writing. Throughout his career, he resisted classification, instead seeking continual renewal and freedom of expression.