Couraud studied organ with
André Marchal in Paris where he attended the
Ecole Normale de Musique. He also took courses in composition with
Nadia Boulanger and conducting with
Charles Munch. In 1944 he founded the
Ensemble Vocal Marcel-Couraud, with whom he performed chansons and madrigals of the Renaissance period (including
Orlando di Lasso and
Claudio Monteverdi) as well as works by contemporary composers such as
Trois Petites Liturgies de la présence divine by
Olivier Messiaen. He led the ensemble and also served as the choral director of the
Maîtrise de Radio France until 1954 and then conducted the
Bach Choir and
Bach Orchestra Stuttgart. He also commissioned
Epithalame in 1953, a vocal chamber piece by
André Jolivet. From 1967, he was director of the choir of the broadcaster
ORTF of Paris, with whom he revived forgotten master works by Schubert and Brahms and baroque composers. From its members, he formed in 1976 the
Groupe Vocal de France which he directed until 1978. He directed the premieres o works such as
Cinq Rechants by Messiaen (1950), the
Dodécaméron by
Ivo Malec (1971),
Récitatif, air et variations of
Gilbert Amy,
Nuits by
Iannis Xenakis (1968) and the
Sonata à douze by
Betsy Jolas (1971) and pieces by Barraud, Dao, Ohana and Petrassi. Following his radio work, Couraud taught at universities in the United States (Los Angeles and Princeton). His wide-ranging discography covers choral works from the 18th and 20th centuries, orchestral works, operas and operettas. ==References==