Rencontres Musicales Champéry | "The 4 Seåsøns" Vivaldi - Rasmussen

With the support of SPEDIDAM


Musicians:
- Le Concert de l'Hostel Dieu" Orchestra
- Patrick Cohën-Akenine, concertmaster
- Frank-Emmanuel Comte, harpsichord and direction

Works by Vivaldi, Rasmussen, Jenkins


Program:
- Antonio Vivaldi: Concerto for 2 violins and cello RV 578a
- Karl Aage Rasmussen after Antonio Vivaldi: The Four Seasons, a new setting (2018)
I. Spring
II. Summer
III. Autumn
IV. Winter
- Karl Jenkins
Allegretto: Excerpt from Concerto grosso "Palladio" (1995) Inspired by Albinoni and Vivaldi


"Les 4 Seåsøns"

300 years and not a wrinkle! This year we're celebrating this prestigious anniversary of the edition of Vivaldi's Four Seasons, a work that fascinates more than ever. So it's hardly surprising that it inspires contemporary composers to make their own contributions. The Danish composer Karl-Aage Rasmussen, for example, gives it a northern flavour... A photographic environment illustrates the different seasons, enriching our imagination and paying tribute to the magnificent Val d'Illiez. A creative and cosmopolitan way to initiate this "Journey to Italy"!


Patrick Cohën-Akenine
Patrick Cohën-Akenine emerged from his studies crowned with success (first prize from the Paris CNSM, Ministry of Culture prize, special prize at the Evian Competition...). He quickly became a leading musician on the Baroque scene, recognized for his human and interpretive qualities. For several years, he was concertmaster with Le Concert Spirituel, Les Talens Lyriques and Les Arts Florissants, and was regularly invited to conduct orchestras such as the Orchestre des Pays de Savoie, the Opéra de Rouen, the orchestra of Barcelona's Escolia Superior de Música, the Orchestre Symphonique d'Orléans and the Orchestre du CNSM de Paris... Abroad, Patrick Cohën-Akenine is frequently in demand as a specialist conductor of French Baroque music with international orchestras. In 2000, with François Poly (cello) and Béatrice Martin (harpsichord), Patrick Cohën-Akenine founded Les Folies françoises, of which he is artistic director. Over the past 25 years, this baroque ensemble has made its mark on the musical scene, asserting its specificity through its stage productions, concert performances and recordings. In 2008, with Les Folies françoises and the Centre de Musique Baroque de Versailles, Patrick Cohën-Akenine reconstituted Les Vingt-quatre Violons du Roy. Patrick Cohën-Akenine is a professor of Baroque violin at the CRR de Versailles, where he is in charge of coordinating the Early Music Department. He has also taught at the CRD de Paris Saclay for 20 years.


Franck-Emmanuel Comte
Conductor and harpsichordist Franck-Emmanuel Comte occupies a singular place on the European Baroque scene. A creative and versatile artist, he explores his passion for the Baroque repertoire through cross-disciplinary, original and interdisciplinary projects, which he often initiates. After studying at the CNSMD in Lyon, where he trained in composition as well as orchestral and choral conducting, he began his career in several opera houses (Nantes, Lyon, Studio Opéra de Paris...) and collaborated with various classical and baroque orchestras (Orchestres des Pays de Savoie, Ensemble Orchestral Contemporain, University of Auckland Orchestra, Collegium Musicum Riga, Ensemble Arion de Montréal...). At the same time, in 1992 he founded Le Concert de l'Hostel Dieu, Lyon's internationally renowned orchestra, of which he is still artistic director. Regularly invited to conduct in international capitals (Barcelona, London, Moscow, Montreal, Krakow, Rome, Brussels, Madrid, Tel Aviv, Beijing...) and at prestigious festivals (Ambronay, La Chaise-Dieu, Händel Festpiel de Halle, Bayreuth Baroque Festival, MA Festival Brugges, London baroque festival...), Franck-Emmanuel Comte is as passionate about the Baroque repertoire as he is about atypical projects. Most notably, he co-created the ballet Folia with choreographer Mourad Merzouki, a show that has been presented at some 100 curtain-raisers since 2018 to over 105,000 spectators across Europe. In recent years, he has led several original projects, including the world premiere of Il Paradiso perduto at the Lyon Auditorium, the Franco-English 50/50 project, and various concerts and operas highlighting Baroque women composers, including Talestri by Maria-Antonia de Walpurgis. He also wrote the heritage music and some of the original music for the television series Marie-Antoinette, co-produced by Canal + and the BBC. Highly committed to teaching and professional integration, he teaches Baroque aesthetics at the Université Catholique de Lyon and chairs the jury of the Concours International de Chant Baroque de Froville, which reveals new talent every year. Since 2024, he has been co-artistic director of La Trinité, Lyon's new baroque and irregular stage, based at the Chapelle de la Trinité. He is also artistic director of the Centre Musical International J.-S. Bach de Saint-Donat and the Festival baroque du Pays du Mont-Blanc.


Le Concert de l'Hostel Dieu
Since its creation in 1992, Le Concert de l'Hostel Dieu has been a major player on the French Baroque scene. The orchestra stands out for its sensitive, dynamic interpretation of the 18th-century vocal and instrumental repertoire, systematically favoring a historical and philological approach. Under the direction of Franck-Emmanuel Comte, the orchestra is particularly active in promoting the originality and specificity of the Baroque manuscripts held in the libraries of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, and has produced a number of restitutions and editions of previously unpublished works, rich in the privileged ties that Lyon maintained with Italy.
Transposing the richness and diversity of Baroque music into our own time is also one of the major artistic axes of the Concert de l'Hostel Dieu. Nurtured by stimulating collaborations, the orchestra brings Baroque aesthetics together with cultures and artists from diverse horizons. Transmission and sharing are at the heart of the orchestra's creative work, as it multiplies its cross-disciplinary projects and accompanies the concert experience with numerous awareness-raising initiatives for a wide variety of audiences. It is also committed to supporting the emergence of young artists and helping them to become professional musicians. Under the direction of Franck-Emmanuel Comte, it has given over 1,700 concerts in Lyon and in European and world capitals (Barcelona, London, Riga, Krakow, Rome, Brussels, Madrid, Calcutta, Beijing, Shanghai, Moscow...) and at numerous international festivals (Montserrat, Brežice, Wallonie, Nuits de Fourvière, Ambronay, La Chaise-Dieu, Peralada, Händel-Festspiele de Halle, Felicja Blumental Festival de Tel Aviv...). Their most notable projects have been recorded on the Aparté, Arcana/Outhere and 1001 Notes labels, and have been widely acclaimed by the international press.


Practical information:
- https://www.rencontres-musicales.ch/

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