Tonight's Entertainment, Direct from Where?!? - Tuesday, 31 January

If you look back at my 19 January post, you'll see that I ran into one of my fellow Twin Cities Horn Club members Ingrid Welna, at the gate while waiting for my flight to Paris.  She was there with a gaggle of Gustavus Adolphus musicians, heading off on their tour to Spain and France!  (For those of you non-Minnesotans, Gustavus is a liberal arts college in Saint Peter, MN, about 70 miles south of Minneapolis).

Well, tonight I caught their concert at Salle Jacques-Higelin, part of the Marché Saint-Germain complex in the 6th arrondissement.  It was the last concert of their tour, so emotions were high and the performance was wonderful!  And I got to experience a venue I hadn't been aware of before.

And here's Ingrid, conducting one of the pieces on their program.

Help Wanted - Church Organist in Paris! - Sunday, 2 October

 

For decades my favorite Sunday morning activity has been to head over to The American Church in Paris for their 11:00 service.  Decent preaching, quasi-formal liturgy, FANTASTIC music (organ, instrumental, choir, handbells, visiting ensembles, etc.), the most racially and nationally diverse congregation I’ve ever seen, great post-service coffee hour, practical publications, and astonishing service programs for the whole community.  One of the big plusses has been their organist and music director, Fred Gramann, who also directed their very fine choir and the whole program.

Well, when I went to their website today I saw no mention of Fred.  EEK!  Had to do a bit of digging, and I found that he just retired.  As a matter of fact, last Sunday was his last service at the church and his big sendoff.  Darn it; I just missed him.  I know that they have many other gifted musicians in their congregation, but Fred was such a wonderful constant presence and obviously an inspiring leader.  https://www.acparis.org/spire-online-2022-09#art05

So hey, are any of my organist buddies looking for a job in Paris?!?  It’s a spectacular Beckerath organ.  I wrote about it in a few blog posts, but here’s info about a concert honoring the 20th anniversary of its installation:  https://mariellen-musing.blogspot.com/2008/09/little-glimpse-of-heaven-sunday-28-sept.html   Info about the organ here:  https://www.acparis.org/instruments/173-beckerath-organ

Jetlag Won :-( - Tuesday, 19 April

Gotta start adding one more day of jetlag recovery to the front of my trips.  Tonight I had a ticket for an 8:30 recital by the legendary Russian/Austrian pianist Elisabeth Leonskaja, playing works by Schubert at the Philharmonie de Paris.  It’s a long haul to the Philharmonie (of course I’d take a taxi, but it is handily accessible by the métro as well), but it’s still a bit of a walk from the taxi drop-off/pick-up location into the hall, and my legs were just too swollen and weak for it to be prudent, so I blew it off.  If you’re interested, you can see her recital program here:   https://philharmoniedeparis.fr/en/activity/recital-piano/22910-elisabeth-leonskaja  She seems to be a regular featured artist, so maybe next time!

The Philharmonie does have a livestreaming app, but they don’t post all of their concerts there (hey, they do have to fill the hall to make money!), and they did not post this recital.  Bummer!  The livestreams have excellent production values, and you get to see the inside and outside of this amazing hall, so check it out!  And for you real orchestra geeks out there, take a look at the (free) stream of the Orchestre de Paris’ March 23 concert featuring their amazing new conductor, the 26-year-old Finn, Klaus Mäkelä!  He is most pleasant to watch indeed!  You can also find it in the web here:  https://philharmoniedeparis.fr/en/live/1138171-orchestre-de-paris-klaus-makela-khatia-buniatishvili-tchaikovski-debussy-ravel-falla

If you want to know more about the hall, just search for “Philharmonie” on this blog - I've written about it several times.  And/or read my first post about it here:  https://mariellen-musing.blogspot.com/2015/06/the-new-philharmonie-de-paris-imagined.html   

Anyhoo, lesson learned.  This is a short trip and I just tried to cram in too many things!  Next time, I’ll give myself a couple days to recover before venturing to the outer ring arrondissements!

A Dark and Stormy “White Night” - Saturday, 2 October

Well, it was a dark and stormy night for the 20th annual “La Nuit Blanche à Paris,” which also happened to coincide with the launch of the Paris 2024 Cultural Olympiad.  

La Nuit Blanche, held the first Saturday of October each year all over Paris, incorporates concerts, art installations, dance, exhibitions, staged scenes, video shows, neon light shows, disco-rollerblading (I kid you not!), etc. - mostly performing events but some participatory ones - from both French and international artists.  It was canceled last year due to the pandemic and apparently was a bit underfunded this year, yielding more video productions of performances than actual live performances.  Still, about 200 artists registered for the event.  It’s an all-night festival - the buses and Métro run through the night and some streets are closed.  

Sad to say, after a week of glorious sunny and warm weather, it drizzled all day today, started raining more heavily tonight, the wind picked up, and the temperature was in the low 50s F.  I had thought about venturing out to see something - there were some dance/orchestral events scheduled for Place de l'Hotel de Ville just a few blocks from my apartment, but I wimped out.  A sad response for a Duluth native - what happened to that old Nordic toughness?!?  In any case, I read that some events were canceled at the last minute.  Hey, I wouldn’t have wanted to be out performing in those conditions either!

https://quefaire.paris.fr/nuitblanche

La Seine Musicale - Far Out! - Friday, 5 October

The concert hall is in the round bubble
in the center of the picture

The ring corridor inside the
concert hall "bubble",
looking outward

My Friday night adventure was checking out the newest concert venue in Paris, La Seine Musicale. It opened about a year ago, and features a concert hall primarily for unamplified music (mostly classical and jazz) seating 1,150, plus a larger modular hall accommodating 6,000 where rock and popular/musicals/dance are performed and other events are held.  It’s in the far western suburbs of Paris, in the middle of the Île Seguin in the middle of the Seine, in an area called Boulogne-Billancourt, about 5 miles downstream from the Eiffel Tower.  The Pont de Sèvres terminus of Metro line 9 is just a few blocks away on one side of the river, as is the RATP line 2 Brimborion Station on the other side of the river.  Of course, taxis and Uber also serve the area, but it’s a long way from central Paris so it's pretty pricey, especially during rush hour (ask me how I know!).

I hadn’t been there yet, so I just had to check out a concert by Patricia Petibon, a coloratura soprano who specializes in baroque, Mozart, etc., but who also takes on modern and opéra-comique work with her unique theatrical and almost cartoonish (at times) style.

Inside the concert hall

La Seine Musicale has a modern industrial feel – lots of concrete and a bit of glass – very sterile in the corridors, bars, restrooms, etc. – it felt like they could hose down the place pretty easily!  The concert hall’s wood and red upholstery has a much warmer feel, but it’s at the other end of the facility from the entrance, so the journey there is through the concrete jungle.  It’s in a big dramatic glass, steel and wood bubble which I’m guessing provides acoustic separation from the rest of the facility (as the ring corridor does at Orchestra Hall in Minneapolis).

Apparently this was a concert to celebrate the release of Ms. Petibon's new album, “Alchimia.”  She performed with two pianists and a violinist.  The performance was amplified and included some prerecorded tracks, looping, etc.  There were some original works, some jazz interpretations of classic works (such as Puccini’s “O Mio Babbino Caro” done in both a straight style and a jazz style), some pieces just for piano and amplified violin, etc.  As I mentioned, Ms. Petibon has a very theatrical style – for the first few pieces the stage was quite dark and she had lights attached to her hands to amplify her dramatic sweeping arm movements.  It was a bit “over the top” for me, but then the songs were in French so I didn’t understand the lyrics, so the melodramatic effects might have been perfectly appropriate!  All the performers displayed excellent technique, but the style just wasn’t my cup of tea so it got tiring.  I’m glad I went to check out the place, though.

The entrance plaza, with multiple
outdoor cafes

They have a restaurant, a café, and several bars on the premises.  Since I wanted to give myself plenty of time to get there and figure out the venue, I decided to have a light supper in the outdoor café.  Nothing fancy, so the bill came to just 32 euros (about $40).

The Whole Evening was a Gift - Schubert Monday, 1 October

So tonight it was some Schubert!  At Theatre des Bouffes du Nord, none the less!

But it almost wasn’t, for me anyway.  When I bought my ticket a couple months ago the concert was already almost sold out.  But I nabbed a seat I thought would work up a few steps from the floor in row G.  Little did I know how treacherous those steps were, or that there was a big post blocking my way.  Ya had to be skinny and nimble to reach it.  Neither are words that describe me!

The nice usher suggested that I wait until everyone was seated, then he convinced a row of people to squish together to make room for me on the aisle of row C.  I couldn’t have picked a better seat if I tried.  What a gift.

The first half was Schubert string quartet #15.  Then, “Death and the Maiden,” #14!

Quartet Van Kuijk is VERY good.  And the guys are very cute!  Just wow.

And Schubert!  The spectacular beauty, the power, the humor, the melodies, the complexity, the material for collaboration, the craft, his almost frightening ability to control one’s breathing, ....  One of a kind.

The crowd went wild.  Multiple curtain calls.  Euro-clapping.  Then we got an encore of Poulenc’s “Les Chemins de l'amour” arranged for string quartet. Sweet!  Two more curtain calls before we were sent out into the balmy evening.  Aaahhhhh.  Life is good!

Handel, Mendelssohn (and Mozart) @ Saint-Eustache – Sunday, 1 October

the view from my chair

With 8,000 pipes, the organ at Saint-Eustache, my little (ha ha) neighborhood church, is reputed to be the largest pipe organ in France. Free half-hour recitals are given there almost every Sunday afternoon, and today the organist was the 30-year-old Virgile Monin, a graduate of the Conservatoire de Nantes and winner of major organ prizes in France and Luxembourg.

Mr. Monin played Jean Guillou’s transcription for solo organ of the Allegro from Handel’s Concerto in G minor Op.4 No.1 and his own transcription of Mendelssohn’s The Hebrides Overture.  I particularly liked his Hebrides – those dark opening chords, the swells, the drama, the moments of calm, the beautiful melodies – I thought that they all fit very well for the organ and this very resonant space. And his playing was spectacular!

part of the crowd

The place was packed, and hopefully everyone contributed a few euros at the exit. According to the program, last year the parish of Saint-Eustache spent 53,000 euros on the organ’s maintenance in addition to its usual tuning!

Mozart’s mother Maria traveled with him to Paris on a concert trip in 1778, and they stayed in this neighborhood. Sadly, she died while they were here. Her funeral? It was at Saint-Eustache. So come for the music or come for the beauty or come for the spirit or come to catch some Mozart vibe, just come!

Nationality, Era, Instruments, Building in Alignment - Wow! - Wednesday, 5 April

it was a full house!

Tonight it was a concert of music by the French Baroque composer Marc-Antoine Charpontier played on period (or period-replica) instruments at the Oratoire du Louvre (145, rue Saint-Honoré in the 1st arrondissement). Somehow I had never been to this venue before - it’s terrific and in the very center of town (just a block from the Louvre) and beautifully accessible. Its construction began in 1611 and it was made the royal chapel of the Louvre palace by Louis XIII in 1623.

the "upper room" at the
Oratoire du Louvre

Subsequently it became the home of the “Eglise Réformée de l'Oratoire du Louvre” protestant church, and The American Church in Paris used its “upper room” for its worship starting in 1816, before that congregation built its church in the 7th arrondissement (my favorite Sunday haunt!). I must explore the Oratoire some more next trip!

Anyhoo, the performances and program were excellent. There’s something about listening to music composed in the era of the building you’re occupying by a composer of that nation played on instruments he would know that can transport you to another reality! Sorry to say, though, that my reverie was broken a few times by the very uncomfortable and small chairs that filled the sanctuary!

"Écoute"
(aka the big giant head)

Walking back to the apartment, I passed my favorite outdoor sculputre, one that entranced me on my second trip to Paris back in 1989, Henri de Miller's "Écoute" on the plaza outside Saint-Eustache church. It was even more magical in the light of the streetlamps.

Tomorrow morning it’s up early to pack and turn my keys back to Philippe and catch an Uber to Aéroport Charles de Gaulle for my trip back to reality. It’s my least favorite part of the trip! But hopefully it’s “à bientôt” (see you soon), not “au revoir” to my favorite home-away-from-home!

Bummer at the Ballet - Tuesday, 25 October

I was very excited to have snagged a €25 ticket for tonight’s sold-out dance program by the principal dancers of the Ballet de l’Opéra national de Paris at the Palais Garnier (the spectacularly ornate opera house in the 8th arrondissement, built in the 19th century). The choreography was by George Balanchine, the costumes by Karl Lagerfeld, the music by Tchaikovsky, Brahms/Schönberg, Ravel and Stravinsky (performed by the Orchestre de l’Opéra national de Paris and an on-stage piano soloist).

the view from my seat, before
tall guy and big-haired lady
arrived

I’ve sat in the front row of some of the side boxes before, but this time I was in the second row on a horribly uncomfortable taller-than-normal chair. A woman with big hair and a very tall gentleman were in front of me. Bottom line, I could see almost nothing and the chair was cutting off the circulation in my legs.

I survived up to the first intermission (there were two of them) and enjoyed the glimpses I saw of the dancing, but I just couldn’t handle that chair even to sit back and listen to the music. So I stayed in the lobby for the rest of the program and heard snippets of the music through the walls! I did have the restrooms all to myself, and enjoyed a nice glass of champagne in peace & quiet. And after the second intermission a very thoughtful usher offered to let me stand and watch the performance from just inside one of the balcony entrances, a location that would give me a great view, but I just didn’t think my legs would tolerate a long stationary stand. In retrospect, perhaps I should have tried!

The cheap seats (like mine!) were sold out by the time Barb bought her ticket, a balcony seat at the back of the house. She reported an only slightly obstructed view from her seat! So lesson learned: go for seats in the first row of any balcony box even if you have to shell out a few more euros.

The good news is that I discovered an easy way to get in and out of the opera house without having to climb any stairs!  Just enter/exit through the Restaurant l’Opéra that’s on the east side and ask to use the fabulous ornate mirrored private elevator that will whisk you up to the first level of the hall, from whence you can take the public elevators wherever else you need to go! (It helps to be carrying a cane!) Their menu looks decent, so you might even have a drink or bite before or after the show…you can bet that I’m going to add that to my to-do list. Here's a link:  http://www.opera-restaurant.fr/en/

You can also access this elevator by entering at the box office door on the west side of the building, and asking an employee to take you through the lower level, but the resto is more festive and friendly!

Just a few shots of the lobbies with their spectacular marble walls and statues....

Dining, Duttilleux and Dance at the Philharmonie - Monday, 24 October

me & my baguette outside of my
favorite Boulangerie Eric Kayser

After a day of bumming around the 'hood and picking up a few provisions, we headed up to the Philharmonie de Paris in the far northeast corner of Paris, designed by architect Jean Nouvel at a mere €534 million (which was about  €173 million over budget - yikes!) for dinner in their resto "Le Balcon" and then a concert of Henri Duttilleux' music. It's the 100th anniversary of Duttilleux' birth, and there are concerts honoring him all over France this year.

the view from my seat

Sure glad I sat in the back row
 of my balcony section -
these are steep steps
with no railing!

The Orchestre National des Pays de la Loire performed four of his works in this one-hour program, accompanied by modern dance from the Centre national de danse contemporaine and some abstract scenic and floating-watery-color type projections on a white scrim behind the dancers. The music was modern/abstract with fascinating tone colors, long arching lines, some haunting and some peaceful soundscapes punctuated by percussion and other rhythmic elements. At times there was almost too much to observe - the music, solos within the orchestra, the dance, the projections, the background of the hall - all vied for my attention. It was all movement and color, as is the hall itself! A cimbalom was used in two of the pieces; perhaps not so unusual, you might say, but I've heard it played in person only twice in my life and the other time was one week ago at a MN Orchestra concert!

Our pre-concert dinner at Le Balcon was surprisingly tasty - not top tier gourmet stuff but not bad! For an appetizer we shared sautéed forest mushrooms served over a bed of warm mushroom mousse; Barb had cod, and I had pork, both with appropriate accompaniments. The chairs and tables, which repeated shapes used on the exterior and floors of the building, were almost as amusing as the food!

a haunting image!  (actually just a reflection in the window at Le Balcon)

Departing the mother ship.....

Two Charmers Stole our Hearts – Thomas Enhco and Vassilena Serafimova – Tuesday, 3 May

These two expressive charmers grabbed us by our hearts in the very first seconds of their piano-marimba-percussion-voice performance at the ancient Théâtre des Bouffes du Nord (opened in 1876), and never let go.  Bach and then Mozart, and then a wild romp through jazz, improvisation, Fauré, rock, their own compositions, Piazzolla, chant….  Two hours without intermission, and with just a few remarks between some of the pieces.  Their clever and often whimsical arrangements and masterful performances and movie star good looks held us as happy hostages.

They have made their first recording, for Deutsche Grammophon, and I read that it was supposed to come out in April, but I haven’t seen it in the online shops yet.  The France “ARTE” channel was filming this concert for broadcast.  The sold-out house was holding its breath during the performances and letting loose with shouts and applause and whistles at the end of each.

You can see a 2015 video of them here:  http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2ge7n6

OK, so who’s going to bring them to Mpls/St.Paul?  MN Orchestra? Schubert Club? Chopin Society? MPR? Someone had better get on this soon!

check out the TV camera on tracks

and the TV camera right next to me!

Jazzy Latin Bizet – "Carmen la Cubana" – Saturday, 30 April

I was fascinated when I saw the listing for “Carmen la Cubana” at Théâtre du Châtelet, and managed to get a ticket for the final performance.  What a riot!  Bizet’s melodies adapted to an unmistakable Latin beat and inflection and style.  A pit orchestra replaced with a loose, jazzy Latin dance band (Ricky Ricardo only aspired to this level of cool!) – brass, reeds, percussion, piano, solo violin.  Formal Flamenco replaced with sensuous Salsa and African style dancing. Operatic voices replaced with musical theatre voices.  In Spanish with French supertitles.  It was amazing and fun and felt “real.”

Here’s a 1-minute clip of the directors presenting the stage design and show concept to the cast:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_PacEvHGRAU

And in this article you’ll find a 3-minute clip showing some of the music and dance:  http://culturebox.francetvinfo.fr/scenes/comedie-musicale/carmen-la-cubana-bizet-a-la-sauce-rumba-et-salsa-au-theatre-du-chatelet-237725

The venue was only slightly problematic.  I was able to take an elevator up to the balcony 2 lobby, then there were just a few stairs into the balcony.  But the steps down to my row were very steep with no railing.  A nice woman tried to help me, but she didn’t really offer a steady arm to lean on – she sort of moved with me rather than holding still. But then a nice gentleman happened along who gave me a very strong arm to grab – it was almost like grabbing a railing!  People here can be SO gracious and helpful.  The rows are a bit close together and cramped, but happily my seat was on the aisle, with no seat in front of me, so I was able to stretch out my leg when I needed to!

“All you hear is from the opera. It is just arranged differently," said Manny Schvartzman, music director, in an interview.  I hope that Bizet would approve.  But hey, does it matter?  Given the crowds this show has gathered, the public seems to approve!

the stage

more of the hall

the view from my seat

It’s Spectacularly Difficult to Sound So Effortless – Tuesday, 13 October

WHAT A BARGAIN! I got a 10 euro ticket to sit up in the stratosphere at the new Philharmonie de Paris for a concert by the spectacular Gewandhaus Orchestra Leipzig and clarinetist Martin Fröst under the direction of Riccardo Chailly. I was seated in one of the “clouds” behind the orchestra, so got a good view of the Maestro, of Fröst’s rear end (nice!) and of the musicians & their music. 

This is one of the world’s greatest orchestras, and they performed just brilliantly in big dramatic moments as well as in subtle intensely quiet moments; in the large ensemble and in smaller chamber-size ensembles; as an accompanist for the soloist and as the main deal. Their balance was perfect, their phrasing fluid, the solo lines SPOT ON and natural (yaaay horns! [and all the other principals]) – they made it sound easy (which it is anything but – especially the first horn’s treacherous theme in Til Eulenspiegel sounded as effortless as falling off a log).  Wow, just wow.

We got Mozart's Clarinet Concerto and Strauss’ Death & Transfiguration, Metamorphosen and Til Eulenspiegel. After his concerto Martin Fröst played an encore by Poulenc filled with “fireworks” – I didn’t catch the name of it, but there was a recurring theme that sounded a little like the opening theme of Til Eulenspiegel. If any of my clarinet-playing friends know what this is, give me a shout!

I was pretty much eye level with
the center "cloud"

At last Thursday’s concert of the Orchestre de Paris I noticed muddiness and balance problems in my 28-euro seat over in one of the side “clouds.” Of course, that was a different (lower tier) orchestra and conductor, so it probably wasn’t an acoustical problem! In any case, I can assure you that I’ll happily buy a ticket for Porte 5A, seat C167 again!

Happy camper at
intermission

The concert started at 8:30. It ended at 11:00. Good thing I didn’t need to sleep or anything before heading off to the airport early Wednesday morning!

The Hall almost looks like an
alien spaceship at night!

http://philharmoniedeparis.fr/en