Le Piano d'Ulysse - de Haendel à Debussy

The family name de Brunhoff is known around the world from the stories of Babar the Elephant, which first achieved fame in the 1930s. The creators of Babar were Jean and Cécile de Brunhoff, and the creators of the musical story Le piano d’Ulysse were their sons Laurent (1925-2024) and Thierry (b.1934). Laurent was a writer and illustrator – he continued producing the Babar books for seven decades after his father died. Thierry, who has been a Benedictine monk since 1974, previously enjoyed a career as a pianist, having been a pupil of Alfred Cortot and Edwin Fischer.

Recorded in the early 1960s and newly remastered, Le piano d’Ulysse is now available in digital format. Listeners can download the digital storybook, complete with Laurent de Brunhoff’s drawings, and read the narrative (in French) while listening to the music that punctuates and illustrates the story. The composers who feature include Handel, Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Chopin, Ravel, Bartók or Debussy.