Author Archives: Laurent Bouis

PÉROTIN LE GRAND ensemble

Founded in 2020 under the impetus of a group of singers from the Maîtrise Notre-Dame de Paris who benefited from Sylvain Dieudonné’s teaching, the ensemble Pérotin le Grand is dedicated to the rediscovery and promotion of the musical heritage of Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris, from the Middle Ages to the present day.
Under the artistic direction of Sylvain Dieudonné, the ensemble’s vocation is to carry this heritage beyond the walls. With a predilection for Gregorian chant and the repertoire of the School of Notre-Dame (12th – 13th century), Pérotin le Grand also interprets other forms of medieval music, sacred and secular. It particularly explores all music that, over time, has maintained a connection with Gregorian chant, and it promotes contemporary creation.
With variable geometry, the ensemble performs a cappella or accompanied by specialized instruments.

Sylvain DIEUDONNÉ medieval fiddle and direction
Holder of numerous prizes from the Paris National Superior Conservatory of Music and Dance, Sylvain Dieudonné has specialized in the study of Gregorian chant and medieval music.
A large part of his research work is devoted to the study and restitution of Notre-Dame de Paris’s musical heritage.
His activities as choir director and pedagogue at the Cathedral’s Maîtrise (1994-2019) allowed him to create partnerships with numerous artists and specialized ensembles. He takes the musical direction of the ensemble Pérotin le Grand in 2020. In September 2022, he is appointed professor of Gregorian Chant at the Paris National Superior Conservatory of Music and Dance.

Helena BREGAR soprano, choir director, dancer
A singer of Polish and Slovenian origins, holder of a master’s degree in classical singing & dramatic arts from the Music Academy in Bydgoszcz and the National Superior Professional Diploma of Musician from the Pôle Supérieur Paris Boulogne-Billancourt in the baroque singing class, she studied choir direction at the Nantes conservatory. Laureate of several international competitions, her repertoire extends from early music to contemporary music. She works with French ensembles Ensemble Flores Myrtae, la Compagnie La Tempête, l’Ensemble Vox Cantoris, Les Musiciens de Saint-Julien as well as l’Ensemble Intemperata (Poland), l’Ensemble Musica Cubicularis (Slovenia) and the world music vocal ensemble Mundovox, which she directs. In 2022, she founds l’Ensemble La Sensible (early, traditional and improvised music). In traditional singing, Helena uses the vocal technique called “cri-chant” which she teaches during workshops she regularly organizes. She also practices baroque, renaissance and traditional dance.

Raphaël MAS countertenor, percussionist, composer
Born in Paris, he enters the Maîtrise of Notre-Dame de Paris in 1992, where he will pursue his musical studies without interruption until the superior diploma of vocal studies, studies completed at the CNSM of Lyon.
He participates in numerous concerts, recordings and tours, as singer and/or percussionist with ensembles such as Alla Francesca, the Kamerata of Athens, l’Ensemble vocal de Notre-Dame de Paris, A Sei Voci, Pygmalion, Correspondances, Le Poème Harmonique, Les Solistes de Lyon, l’Ensemble vocal de Nantes, Les Cris de Paris, l’ensemble William Byrd, Vox Cantoris, Le Concert Spirituel, le chœur de chambre de Namur, etc. At the request of certain ensembles, he composes several pieces, such as Veni creator spiritus, piece for ensemble of soloists with 8 equal voices (SA), cornet and bowed fiddle (2011), les Sept dernières paroles du Christ, for men’s voice ensemble and clarinets, Exode(s), for three women’s voices and viola da gamba (2013), Old song (2016), for vocal quartet, Duo pour violoncelle seul (2019), for cello and alto voice, À travers temps (2020), piece in two for eight voices a cappella or choir, as well as a Regina Cæli commissioned by the ensemble 6 voix dans la nuit (2024).

Magnus Liber vocal ensemble

Pascal Bezard (bass-baritone)
Éric Gervais (tenor)
Samuel Guibal (bass-baritone)

Since its creation in the early Carolingian period, the Gregorian repertoire has been interpreted in a wide variety of ways. As the official song of the Roman Church, it is the prayer and office song of monasteries, as well as the music of the great papal and imperial chapels, where it is performed by professional singers in the service of the Church of Princes.
The Magnus Liber ensemble’s concert presentation of this great corpus of Western music, with its wide range of emotions and original spirituality, is based on the idea of regular work on the repertoire by a group of professional singers.
Trying to approximate the idea of the great chapels of the High Middle Ages, Magnus Liber performs as a male choir of two to seven singers, depending on program and venue.
The ensemble works under the dual musical direction of Éric Gervais and Pascal Bezard, each bringing his or her own skills, experience, desires and personality.
Avoiding both musicological cataloguing and para-liturgy, the programs are built around the great themes that irrigate the texts of Gregorian chant. For each concert, the Magnus Liber ensemble proposes a theme to explore the diversity of musical forms, from the simplest to the most ornate, with the vocal cast varying to best serve each piece (choir, soloist, dialogue between soloists or between soloists and choir, etc.).
The Magnus Liber ensemble’s repertoire thus explores music from the time of Charlemagne, but also through polyphony, its survival at the time of the first Capetians to the immense flowering of the École Notre-Dame at the time of the construction of the Gothic cathedral, as well as masterpieces from the repertoire of the great composers of the late Middle Ages, such as Guillaume de Machaut in the 14th century.

Violin and organ duet : David Galoustov – Jean-Charles Gandrille

David Galoustov embodies the musical prodigy par excellence. Born to violinist parents, this violin phenomenon gave his first solo concert in Moscow at the age of 9. His journey takes him from Russia to Paris, where he perfects his art under Alexandre Brussilovsky, a student of Leonid Kogan and Yuri Yankelevitch, then under Miroslav Roussin, a disciple of David Oistrakh. He then enters the Paris National Superior Conservatory of Music in Gérard Poulet’s class, where he earns a first prize in violin and a Superior Training Diploma.
His exceptional talent earns him an impressive series of distinctions: finalist in the Yehudi Menuhin competition, honorary prize in the Radio France competition, second prize in the young performers competition in Kharkov. He also becomes a laureate of the Foundation of France with the Drouet-Bourgeois Prize, of the Alexandre Glazunov international violin competition and of the Natexis Banque Populaire Foundation.
His tours take him throughout France, from the Operas of Strasbourg, Lille and Limoges to the prestigious Pleyel and Gaveau halls, including Les Serres d’Auteuil. Internationally, he performs in Switzerland, Russia, Ukraine, England and Canada. He regularly collaborates with the Paris Philharmonic Orchestra, the National Orchestra of France, the Paris Orchestral Ensemble, the Toulouse Capitole Orchestra and the New Europe Orchestra.
His discography begins in 2001 with a first CD on Lyrinx, accompanied by pianist Julien Gernay. This recording, devoted to works by Tchaikovsky, Wieniawski, Kreisler, Paganini, Saint-Saëns and Ysaÿe, distributed by Harmonia Mundi, receives unanimous critical acclaim with four stars from Le Monde de la Musique and four tuning forks from Diapason. In 2005, still on Lyrinx with Julien Gernay, he records sonatas No. 2 and 3 by Edvard Grieg and eight pieces by Reinhold Glière. In 2012, he records with Caroline Sageman the complete sonatas for piano and violin by Beethoven, captured live at the National Theater of Marseille “La Criée.”
He also records as solo violin under the direction of Vladimir Cosma and performs with classical guitarist Emmanuel Rossfelder.
David Galoustov distinguishes himself through his great sensitivity and very refined playing, combining gentleness, strength and fluidity. His pure and round sonority, his elegant and distinguished timbre reveal the influence of his masters: the strength of Leonid Kogan, the vivacity of Jascha Heifetz and the technical musicality of David Oistrakh.

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Jean-Charles Gandrille has nurtured the dream of becoming a composer since childhood. At just over 10 years old, by rewriting his first improvisation, he composes his first work in what constitutes for him a true revelation. Since then, he has never stopped writing.
Born in 1982, he grows up on the family farm, in contact with nature and birdsongs. He begins his musical studies with piano at the regional conservatory (CRR) of Versailles, then studies organ at the one in Paris, where he unanimously obtains First Prizes in Organ, Harmony and Orchestration. He continues his organ training at the CRR of Saint-Maur, which awards him a gold medal unanimously.
From 2001 to 2006, he completes his training at the Paris National Superior Conservatory of Music, receiving six prizes: Orchestration, Harmony, Organ Improvisation, Analysis, Counterpoint, and Fugue and Forms. At the same time, he learns violin for six years, then cello for nine years.
He studies composition during workshops with Jean-Louis Florentz, a great French composer who will lastingly mark his path and encourage his vocation.
Between 18 and 20 years old, he wins three International Organ Improvisation Competitions: Second Grand Prize and Audience Prize in Chartres in 2000, becoming at 18 the youngest laureate in the competition’s history; First Prize in Saarbrücken in 2001; First Prize and Audience Prize of the Yoann Pachelbel Competition in Nuremberg in 2002.
His compositions earn him several international distinctions: First Prize of the Valentino Bucchi Competition in Rome (2001), First Prize and Audience Prize of the French Flute Orchestra Competition in Paris (2002), and unanimous First Prize of the Organ Composition Competition of Saint-Bertrand de Comminges (2006).
In 2015, he is guest composer at the Auvers-sur-Oise Festival, where about ten of his works are performed, including one by Renaud Capuçon. The Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra commissions several works from him recorded on CD in 2015, with support from the Marcelle and Robert De Lacour Foundation.
Notre-Dame de Paris also commissions works from him, notably a Magnificat created in 2016 and released by Warner Classics in 2020. His Stabat Mater becomes in April 2019 the last polyphony sung at Notre-Dame, twenty-four hours before the fire, totaling 40,000 views on YouTube.
His recent creations include a Christmas Oratorio (2021), a Book for Cello for Gautier Capuçon (2023), and the album “Gandrille Piano Trio” with David Galoustov and Grégoire Korniluk (2024).
He accumulates recent international prizes, crowning an exceptional career. In 2023, he wins the 10th Fernando Rielo competition in Madrid for “Tibi Domine.” In 2024, he obtains the Special Prize of the Mansurian Competition in Armenia for Five Poems of Saint Gregory of Narek. In 2025, as the only Western finalist, he wins 2nd Prize of the OneSong Competition in Taiwan with Taiwan Rhapsody. In 2025, he wins the Special Prize at the Mansurian in Armenia, and the unanimous First Prize of the SEM competition in Sacile (Italy) for “Life Celebration.”
Jean-Charles Gandrille holds the organ position at Notre-Dame de l’Assomption in Auvers-Sur-Oise and participates annually in the International Music Festival.

Ensemble Vox Cantoris


Lisandro Pelegrina – Bertrand Dazin (countertenors)
Damien Rivière (tenor) – Jean-Christophe Candau (tenor – conductor)
Jean-Marc Vié (bass) – Eudes Peyre (baritone)
Jean-Christophe Revel (organ)

ENSEMBLE VOX CANTORIS
The Vox Cantoris ensemble (the voice of the cantor) was founded by Jean-Christophe Candau, in 2000 in the Alpes Maritimes. Since 2007 the ensemble has been in residence in La Réole, in Gironde, and contributed, in 2009, to the creation of the Early Music Festival of the same city. Direct reading from original notation, lectern singing, ornamentation, are some aspects of this research work, underpinned by the study of musical treatises, collaboration with contemporary musicologists and the collection of still-living oral traditions. The Vox Cantoris ensemble has therefore given itself the mission of bringing to life this musical heritage (monodic and polyphonic) which extends from the High Middle Ages up to the 19th century.

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ORGAN: Jean-Christophe Revel
Jean-Christophe Revel discovered the organ with Jean-Marie Meignien, with a predilection for ancient organ. This taste leads him to constantly question the links between music and history, ancient repertoires and contemporary creations, in an in-depth work of transmitting musical practices. Trained with Odile Bailleux, he obtained a first prize in organ and improvement, with specialization in ancient music. He devoted his master’s degree to the tablature of B. Schmidt the Younger (1607) under the direction of Georgie Durosoir. Encounters with Jean Boyer and Jean-Charles Ablitzer also marked his path. A convinced chamber musician, he performs notably alongside James Bowman, Josep Cabré, Eugène Green, Marcel Pérès or Jean Tubéry, as well as with ensembles like Les Musiciens du Parnasse or Sospiranti. Curious about all musical genres, he works as much in the fields of ancient music as in those of today’s music with numerous contemporary composers such as J. Lenot, E. Tanguy, R. Campo, B. Mantovani or G. Pesson, who write for him. Regularly invited to numerous festivals in France and abroad, he has recorded for France Musique and television. Holder of the proficiency certificate in ancient music, he is the pedagogical director of the ancient music department of the CRR of Paris and co-directs that of the PSPBB, where he teaches basso continuo and ancient repertoires on organ. He also directs the Claviers en Pays d’Auch festival, where he is the titular organist of the remarkable Jean de Joyeuse organ of Sainte-Marie Cathedral.”
Lisandro Pelegrina – Bertrand Dazin (countertenors)
Damien Rivière (tenor) – Jean-Christophe Candau (tenor – conductor)
Jean-Marc Vié (bass) – Eudes Peyre (baritone)
Jean-Christophe Revel (organ)

ENSEMBLE VOX CANTORIS
The Vox Cantoris ensemble (the voice of the cantor) was founded by Jean-Christophe Candau, in 2000 in the Alpes Maritimes. Since 2007 the ensemble has been in residence in La Réole, in Gironde, and contributed, in 2009, to the creation of the Early Music Festival of the same city. Direct reading from original notation, lectern singing, ornamentation, are some aspects of this research work, underpinned by the study of musical treatises, collaboration with contemporary musicologists and the collection of still-living oral traditions. The Vox Cantoris ensemble has therefore given itself the mission of bringing to life this musical heritage (monodic and polyphonic) which extends from the High Middle Ages up to the 19th century.

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ORGAN: Jean-Christophe Revel
Jean-Christophe Revel discovered the organ with Jean-Marie Meignien, with a predilection for ancient organ. This taste leads him to constantly question the links between music and history, ancient repertoires and contemporary creations, in an in-depth work of transmitting musical practices. Trained with Odile Bailleux, he obtained a first prize in organ and improvement, with specialization in ancient music. He devoted his master’s degree to the tablature of B. Schmidt the Younger (1607) under the direction of Georgie Durosoir. Encounters with Jean Boyer and Jean-Charles Ablitzer also marked his path. A convinced chamber musician, he performs notably alongside James Bowman, Josep Cabré, Eugène Green, Marcel Pérès or Jean Tubéry, as well as with ensembles like Les Musiciens du Parnasse or Sospiranti. Curious about all musical genres, he works as much in the fields of ancient music as in those of today’s music with numerous contemporary composers such as J. Lenot, E. Tanguy, R. Campo, B. Mantovani or G. Pesson, who write for him. Regularly invited to numerous festivals in France and abroad, he has recorded for France Musique and television. Holder of the proficiency certificate in ancient music, he is the pedagogical director of the ancient music department of the CRR of Paris and co-directs that of the PSPBB, where he teaches basso continuo and ancient repertoires on organ. He also directs the Claviers en Pays d’Auch festival, where he is the titular organist of the remarkable Jean de Joyeuse organ of Sainte-Marie Cathedral.”

Duo “D’or et de Paille”: Clara Pertuy (mezzo-soprano) – Jan Myslikovjan (accordion)

Thanks to her musician father, Clara Pertuy began weaving her mezzo voice into the raw wool of traditional world songs and jazz, all while pursuing solid classical training. A classically trained pianist, she graduated from the Haute École de Musique in Geneva and the Pôle Supérieur de Musique in Bordeaux. She later became an operatic singer, earning a second DEM and a Concertiste diploma in baroque singing in Paris.
An eclectic artist (storytelling, theater, dance, improvisation), she participates in numerous multidisciplinary projects and co-founded the musical theater duo “À mains nues” for four-hand piano with Julie Leroux.
She then chose to devote herself to the voice and to singing, her preferred means of invoking the Essential, opening hearts, and connecting to the mystery of life. Accompanying herself with a medieval organetto, a lyre, and a tampura, she pursued studies in sacred singing from East and West, Indian dhrupad-style singing, sound yoga, and MLA psychophony.
Ancient, sacred, and polyphonic music are natural elements in her artistic path: ensemble De Caelis, Vox Cantoris, and Corsican trio A funtana. But she has also lent her “multiple” voices to contemporary composers such as A. Markeas, while often keeping one foot in the sky: The Passion according to Saint John by F. Ledroit, and The Divine Comedy ballet by Xin Peng Wang.
Passionate about ecospirituality (Jainism, Ayurveda, Hildegard, integral ecology), she co-founded the socially engaged musical company “d’Or et de Paille” in 2022 with Jan Myslikovjan, under the patronage of the NGO Pranayu, in support of nature protection and non-violence. Many projects have since come to life: workshops, training courses, concerts, as well as the album Āyu – Sacred and Profane Chants of the World released by Psalmus, from which tonight’s sacred repertoire is drawn.

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The singular musical approach of accordionist Jan Myslikovjan has been shaped since childhood through improvisation and the popular accordion repertoire.
Always inspired by traditional, ritual, and sacred music, he specializes in Balkan and Hindustani music, which he studies under Henri Tournier at the National Conservatory of Music in Paris, where he also earns an award in improvisation and classical accordion.
His passion for creation and contemporary music leads him to explore the many facets of the accordion, either solo or at the crossroads of the arts: he collaborates with various ensembles such as Ars Nova and 2E2M, is the dedicatee of around fifteen original works by composers such as F. Rossé and A. Markeas, and takes part in multidisciplinary projects such as The 100 Non-Accordionists by the company Hors-Laps, or Ali Baba by Cie Éclats…
His encounter with singer Clara Pertuy awakened a passion for early music, to which he brings new light by adapting it to his button accordion in the duo d’Or et de Paille.

Oboe and organ duo: Laurent Hacquard – Françoise Dornier

Laurent Hacquard, a Parisian born into a family of music lovers and musicians, pursued his musical studies with Alain Protin and Claude Maisonneuve, before entering the National Superior Conservatory of Music in Paris, where he obtained in 1981 and 82 the First Prizes in oboe and chamber music, in the classes of Pierre Pierlot and Christian Lardé.
He was principal oboe of the Pasdeloup Orchestra from 1982 to 2001. He also held this position at the Comédie-Française. Concurrently, he was occasionally engaged within the major Parisian orchestras, notably the Radio-France Philharmonic Orchestra and the Paris Opera Orchestra.
As a soloist, he has been heard particularly in the concertos of Mozart, Cimarosa, and Bellini, at Salle Pleyel, Salle Gaveau, at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, and as far as Indonesia.
He also performs in recital, with piano, harpsichord, organ, guitar, or harp.
In 1990, he participated in the founding of the Architecture and Music Ensemble of which he is now the artistic director. He is also the author of transcriptions intended for this ensemble.
He teaches at the Gabriel-Fauré and Maurice-Ravel Conservatories of the City of Paris.

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A Provençal by adoption, Françoise Dornier began her musical studies in Draguignan, before entering the Gabriel Fauré Conservatory in Paris, where she obtained the First Prize of Excellence in piano as well as the First Prize in organ from the City of Paris.
She won the First Prize in organ from the Paris National Superior Conservatory of Music in Michel Chapuis’s class, before perfecting her skills with Marie-Claire Alain, in the international competition preparation cycle at the Paris National Regional Conservatory; she participated in master classes in Belgium with Jean Ferrard, Bernard Foccroulle, Joris Verdin, and Daniel Roth as well as in Holland with Bernard Bartelink and Pierre Cogen.
In 1994, she obtained the First Prize of the “César Franck” international competition, as well as the “Charles Tournemire” Interpretation Prize, in Haarlem (Netherlands).
Holder of proficiency certificates in organ and musical training, she taught musical training at the regional conservatories of Amiens then Rueil-Malmaison, and is today a professor of organ and chamber music at the Gabriel Fauré Conservatory in Paris.
Silver Medal recipient from the City of Paris, Françoise Dornier performs in France and abroad: Germany, England, Belgium, Brazil, Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, and has recorded a CD devoted to the French romantic organ.
She is the titular organist of the Cavaillé-Coll/Fossaert at the Pentemont Temple in Paris.

Trio voice, violin and organ: Lys Nardet – Gilles Lefèvre – Patrick Delabre

Born in Cenon (Gironde), Lys Nordet first trained in classical and contemporary dance with Mlle Texier and M. Paoli (professor at the CNR of Bordeaux). She then taught classical dance and body expression in Bordeaux, then in Paris where she obtained a diploma as a physical trainer.
She began learning lyrical singing with Jacques Mars and entered the conservatory of the 10th arrondissement in Éliane Manchet’s class. She obtained her first prize in singing from the Paris conservatories in Bernadette Antoine’s class, as well as a first medal unanimously in musical theater and lyrical art in Joëlle Vautier’s class.
Stage career: she notably performs Mireille in Gounod’s “Mireille,” Belinda in Purcell’s “Dido and Aeneas,” Rowan in Britten’s “The Little Sweep,” Gabrielle in Offenbach’s “La Vie Parisienne” (directed by Jérôme Savary), Alice in Rossini’s “Le Comte Ory,” Violetta in Verdi’s “La Traviata,” and Micaëla in “Carmen.” She performs in various Parisian venues, at the Opéra-Comique, in Germany, the United States, and regionally.
Concert repertoire: she sings Vivaldi’s Magnificat and Gloria, Handel’s “Dixit Dominus,” Bach’s St. John Passion, Beethoven’s 9th Symphony, the Requiems of Mozart, Fauré, Brahms, Verdi, and Saint-Saëns, as well as songs by Fauré, Chausson, Poulenc, Debussy, and Rachmaninoff.
She collaborates with numerous conductors including Yves Parmentier, Jean-Claude Soubeyran, Claude Schnitzler, and international Ecuadorian and Chilean conductors. She regularly participates in festivals in France (Brittany, Vaison-la-Romaine, Ardèche) and abroad (New York, Connecticut, Ecuador).
She participates in contemporary creations of works by Pierre-André Athané, Michel Bosc, Gréco Casadesus, and Alain Payette. As a show creator, she conceives “Mélimél’opérette” which she adapts for different festivals.
Since 2005, she has worked with the Trabucco Company for lyrical shows and musical comedies on national tour (“Ça C’est Paris,” “Les Folles Années de l’Opérette,” “Piaf 100 ans d’amour”).

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Born on May 8, 1959, in Niort, Gilles Lefèvre began his violin studies in 1968 at the Conservatory of the Province of Quebec in Montreal with Calvin Sieb.
In 1974, he won the First Prize of the Montreal Symphony Orchestra Competition, then became a laureate of the International Youth Competition in Prague in 1975.
He studied in the United States at the Juilliard School with Ivan Galamian and Dorothy Delay, then in France with Zino Francescatti, Josef Gingold, Richard Odnoposoff, and Christian Ferras. From 1976 to 1982, he studied at the CNSM in Paris where he obtained his first prize in violin with Christian Ferras, as well as the chamber music prize in Geneviève Joy’s class.
The Cziffra Foundation invited him as a soloist for the inauguration of the Franz Liszt Auditorium in Senlis in 1977 and at the Chaise-Dieu festival. He performs as a soloist with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, the Île de France Orchestra, the Nice Symphony Orchestra, and the Toulouse Capitole Orchestra.
As a chamber musician, he collaborates with Christian Ferras, Georges Cziffra, Michel Plasson, Gérard Jarry, Pierre Pierlot, Marc-Olivier Dupin, and his brothers Philippe, David, and Alain Lefèvre. In 1981, he participated in the Paris Chamber Music Festival with his brother Alain, which earned them engagements in Brussels, Munich, and Paris.
From 1983 to 1986, he was concertmaster of the Paris and Normandy Chamber Orchestra. In 1985, he obtained his Teaching Certificate and began teaching, which he continues at the CNR of Tours and the P. Dukas Conservatory of the 12th arrondissement of Paris.
He is concertmaster of the Instrumental Ensemble of Mayenne with which he records works by Jacques Chailley and Albert Fasce (world premiere) on the Solstice label. A founding member of the Trio Ars Viva, he is invited as concertmaster to the Tours Symphony Orchestra and has held the position of concertmaster of the Orléans Symphony Orchestra since 2015.
He plays a Paul Kaul violin from 1936, a model created especially for Georges Enesco.

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Awakened early to music, Patrick Delabre practices piano and singing. He studies organ and composition at the national regional conservatory of Lille, then deepens his knowledge of harmony, counterpoint, fugue, and organ at the national superior conservatory of music in Paris, from which he is a four-time laureate.
Appointed assistant principal organist to Philippe Lefebvre at Chartres Cathedral in 1976, he succeeded him in 1986, and served as principal organist until his retirement in September 2022; he is now organist emeritus of the great organ. A laureate of the Lyon international improvisation competition and finalist of the Chartres international improvisation competition, he develops his activity around the cathedral’s great organ, teaching, concerts, and educational programs.
After teaching composition at the Poitiers conservatory for twenty years, he took responsibility for the organ classes in Lucé and Chartres in 2003.
He performs on the great French instruments: Saint-Maximin, Poitiers, Sainte-Croix in Bordeaux, Saint-Ouen in Rouen, and in Paris (Saint-Sulpice, Saint-Eustache, Notre-Dame). He also gives concerts abroad: England, Belgium, Germany, Poland, Czech Republic, Switzerland, United States, Canada, Japan.
A member of the jury of international competitions (Chartres, Hamburg, Saint-Blasien), he records an album of Johann Sebastian Bach and César Franck at Chartres Cathedral. The Forlane record label commissioned him to compose arrangements of traditional popular songs for children’s choir and instrumental ensemble, recorded by the Children’s Choir of the Chartres National School of Music in 2002.
His recording of Mozart’s church sonatas with members of the Chartres String Quartet receives favorable reception from music critics. In 2006, as part of the Fulbert of Chartres Millennium, he participated as improvising organist in the creation of the oratorio Stella Maris by Helge Burggrabe, filmed by Arte at Chartres Cathedral and also created in Hamburg. He also performed the premiere of Jacques Charpentier’s Mass of Chartres for voices, instruments, and organ.
He is a Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters.

Summer concerts 2025

This summer, while the great organ of Chartres Cathedral undergoes reconstruction, we are pleased to present the program for our 51st Festival and Summer Evenings.
During the four years of this restoration project, the Chartres Cathedral Great Organ Association continues its activities by offering the public a series of concerts showcasing the richness of vocal and instrumental repertoires, with a special focus on sacred music works that are particularly well-suited to this sacred place of spirituality and culture.
We invite you to join us in discovering this original and refined program of outstanding quality!

Festival Sundays at 4:30 pm: July 20 through August 10 (https://www.orgues-chartres.org/festival-2025/).

Soirées Estivales Thursdays at 9:00 pm: July 24 through August 14 (August 14 concert exceptionally at 4:30 pm) (https://www.orgues-chartres.org/soirees-estivales-2025/).

The program is now available on the website: download our flyer

Summer concerts 2024

This summer, while the great organ of Chartres Cathedral is being rebuilt, we are delighted to announce that our 50th Festival and Soirées estivales will feature several instrumental and vocal ensembles.
We warmly invite you to join us, and enjoy an original and refined program of remarkable quality.!
Don’t miss this unique opportunity to experience unforgettable musical moments!

Festival Sundays at 4:30 pm: July 14 to August 18 (https://www.orgues-chartres.org/festival-2024/).

Soirées Estivales Thursdays at 9:00 pm: July 18 to August 22 – no concert on August 15 (https://www.orgues-chartres.org/soirees-estivales-2024/).

The program is now available on the website: download our flyer

Trio of cello, voice and organ: Mari Akagawa – Marie Faucqueur – Nicolas Lhoste

It was an encounter that led Mari Akagawa to France, where she continued to explore the learning of her favorite instrument, the cello, which she had begun at the age of 12 in her native Japan.

Her path crossed that of Reine Flachot (1922-1998) in Tokyo, and with it an imminent departure for the École Normale de Musique de Paris, where she continued her musical studies before moving on to the Paul Dukas Conservatoire in the 12th arrondissement, the CRR de Versailles and finally the CRD de Chartres, the town that “adopted” her, so to speak, and where she obtained her DEM.

Her curiosity has always been keen, and her taste for early music is increasingly assertive, leading her to train in Baroque cello with Hendrike Ter Brugge and Antoine Ladrette at the CRD de la Vallée de Chevreuse.

At the same time, another passion emerged: teaching and pedagogy, thanks to Odile Bourin (author of various cello methods). She was able to set up several cello classes in various municipal music schools in the Eure-et-Loir region, and organize meetings, masterclasses and workshops.
and organize encounters, masterclasses and workshops for students from the department.

Mari Akagawa is an artist rich in desires, encounters and talents. She plays equally well with chamber music groups, chamber orchestras and symphony orchestras, and enjoys creating and performing with dancers, storytellers and actors, or accompanying poetry readings with her two cellos, which are always with her.

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Marie Faucqueur has been conducting amateur and professional orchestras of all kinds for over fifteen years, from symphonic phalanxes to orchestras d’harmonie.

Initially trained by Jean-Marc Cochereau and Claude Kesmaecker, she joined Nicolas Brochot’s class at the Évry departmental conservatory, graduating with a 1st prize in Orchestral Conducting and a Diplôme d’État in Ensemble Conducting.
From the Orchestre d’Harmonie Français to the Brass Band Exo Brass, via the Ensemble Harmonique de Rungis and the Vents d’automne project (Paris-Saclay), she is deeply attached to the wind band repertoire, which she has taken beyond French borders on tours of Italy and Portugal. With a 1st Prize in Counterpoint (obtained unanimously by the jury) and a 1st Prize in Harmony, Marie Faucqueur has never ceased to enrich this repertoire with arrangements and orchestrations created especially for the ensembles she conducts.

Organist, student of François-Henri Houbart and holder of a Diplôme d’État in early instruments (organ specialty), she won the Gaston Litaize Grand Prix at the Duruflé-Litaize International Organ Competition in 2006. Trained in Éric Lebrun’s class at the CRR de St-Maur-des-Fossés, she was unanimously awarded the 1st Prix de Perfectionnement in 2009, with congratulations from the jury. She also studied with Marie Claire Alain, Michel Chapuis, Michelle Leclerc, Pierre Pincemaille, François Espinasse, Pierre Méa and Henri-Franck Beaupérin. This excellent training naturally led him to Paris: first at the Chapelle St Vincent-de-Paul (Paris VI), then at the organ of Sainte-Geneviève-des-Grandes-Carrières (Paris XVIII).

A poly-instrumentalist and harmonium player for over 20 years, in 2013 she founded the Taramonium Project with Philippe Dourneau and Hidéhiko Kan. In 2020, the trio, which flirts with jazz, recorded “Teatime in Louville“. A first CD that integrates the harmonium in a resolutely modern perspective, through original compositions created by the trio.

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Nicolas Lhoste began singing at the age of 8 with the “Maîtrise de la Cathédrale de Chartres”, and went on to train with other choirs such as the “Maîtrise des Hauts de Seine” and the “Chœur d’enfants de l’Opéra National de Paris”. He took part in operas with children’s voices (Paillasse, Werther, Turandot, Wozzeck, Tosca, Boris Godounov, La Bohème, etc.).
As a male voice, he sings in various groups, including the “Chœur de l’Armée Française” and the “Chœur Français d’Opéra”. He is regularly engaged as an extra in France’s opera houses (Opéra de Montpellier, Opéra de Strasbourg, Opéra de Tours), working with leading names in the profession (François-René Duchable, Roberto Alagna, Karine Deshayes, Ton Koopman, Alain Altinoglu, Michael Schønwandt, Jean-Claude Casadessus, etc.).

Particularly attracted to the early music and oratorio repertoires, he has taken part in numerous concerts and recordings with vocal and instrumental ensembles. In 1994, he founded a male vocal ensemble specializing in early music.
In 2006, the rector of Chartres Cathedral entrusted him with the post of cantor, and he became musical director and administrator for all the cathedral’s concerts, a position he will hold until 2023. From 2019, he will lead the Maîtrise de la cathédrale de Chartres choir for 4 years, directing the children’s and adult choristers in major liturgical celebrations, concerts and tours. In opera singing, he studied with baritone Jean-Philippe Lafont for 4 years.
Today, Nicolas Lhoste performs in ensembles of varying sizes, ranging from medieval music (Ensemble Fulbert) to contemporary works (Ensemble Sequenza93). He is also an additional chorister with the Radio France choir. In the 2024/2025 season, he will debut with the Geneva Opera Choir for 2 operas. He was awarded the Chevalier des Arts et Lettres in 2015.