Editing Pierre Bernac (section)

====''Francis Poulenc: The Man and His Songs'' (1977)====

The second book was written in French, but first published in English translation. In 1977 [[Victor Gollancz Ltd|Gollancz]] in London and [[W. W. Norton & Company|Norton]] in New York published a translation by Winifred Radford.<ref>[https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/person/mp08554/winifred-radford "Winifred Radford"], National Portrait Gallery. Retrieved 18 May 2020</ref><ref name=wc>WorldCat {{oclc|3729779}} and {{oclc|906256451}}</ref> The original French text was published in Paris by Buchet-Chastel the following year as ''Francis Poulenc et ses mélodies''.<ref>WorldCat {{oclc|610487250}}</ref> Bernac used an approach similar to that in his earlier book: a short biographical study of Poulenc is followed by a discussion of the composer's style and the singer's approach to it, and the bulk of the book considers the songs individually, grouped by the various poets' names.<ref name=rb/> Reviewing the English edition, ''The Musical Times'' said "This is not just a book about Poulenc songs. With its fine literary style … it is an unselfconscious exposé of the spirit of being French, and an object lesson in how to approach any musical repertory with a high degree of rationale, but above all a warm heart".<ref name=rb>Bowman, Robin. [https://www.jstor.org/stable/959598 "Francis Poulenc, the Man and His Songs"], ''The Musical Times'', September 1978, p. 767 {{subscription required}}</ref> The English edition has a preface by Sir Lennox Berkeley and the French by Henri Sauguet.<ref name=wc/>