Geneviève Laurenceau, violin – Orchestre de Picardie, Arie van Beek, Conductor – July 19, 2021 – Radio Classique
Back over to France this week for something recent; a concert performed by Orchestre de Picardie (a band I admit I’m not familiar with) led by Arie van Been and featuring Geneviève Laurenceau, violin – all recorded on July 19, 2021 at the Festival des Forêts in the Compiègne Forest (hence Festival of Forests).
The concert begins with three by Saint-Saëns: Romance op. 48 followed by Violin Concerto Number 1 and then followed by Caprice en forme de valse. The concert continues with a Premier performance of Borges en Memorium by the contemporary composer Karol Beffa and concludes with Bizet’s Symphony Number 1 in C.
The Beffa is a light and charming piece which should get considerable exposure simply because it is easily accessible, particularly to audiences getting their feet wet in Classical Music.
Associazone Mozart Italia offers a nice bio on Geneviéve Laurenceau:
Geneviève Laurenceau is considered one of the brightest representatives of the current French violin.
Her many activities as soloist, chamber concertmaster, festival director and professor make her a highly accomplished musician, living her passion in all its forms.
Born in Strasbourg, Genevieve Laurenceau started playing the violin at age 3 and performed from the age of 9 years with the Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra in her hometown. She studied under Wolfgang Marschner and Zakhar Bron in Germany, then studied with Jean-Jacques Kantorow in Rotterdam.
After several international success and first prize at the International Competition Novosibirsk (Russia), she won the Grand Prix of the Académie Maurice Ravel in Saint-Jean-de-Luz in September 2001. The following year, she won the fifth contest “The violin Adami” with pianist Jean-Frédéric Neuburger.
Geneviève Laurenceau has been invited to perform as soloist in major French and international orchestras under the direction of conductors such as Tugan Sokhiev, Ilan Volkov, Michel Plasson, Bruno Mantovani, Walter Weller, Jean-Jacques Kantorow Frederick Lodéon, as well as quite happily involved in chamber music, lately with Jean-Frédéric Neuburger, Anne Gastinel, Philippe Jaroussky, Philippe Bianconi, Bertrand Chamayou, finding in the plurality of ensemble and repertoire a communicative development.
Engaged in the repertoire of her time, she works regularly with composers such as Karol Beffa, Nicolas Bacri, Bruno Mantovani and Philippe Hersant, who dedicates her in summer 2012 “Por che llorax” duo for violin and cello (created at Festival Obernai music with Victor Julien-Laferrière).
Arie van Beek was born in Rotterdam. He studied percussion instruments and worked first as a percussionnist at the radio orchestras of the Nederlandse Omroep Stiching. He then turned to conducting. His teachers were Edo de Waart and David Porcelijn.
From 1994 through 2010 Arie van Beek was the chief conductor in residence of the Orchestre d’Auvergne in France. He has been since 2011 chief conductor of the Orchestre de Picardie and will be also from September 2013 on chief conductor in residence of the Orchestre de Chambre de Genève. He is permanent conductor of the Doelen Ensemble in Rotterdam.
Karol Beffa had a general education along with music studies, at the Ecole Normale Supérieure in Paris, he read history, English, philosophy (Master’s at Cambridge University, Trinity College) and mathematics.
Beffa studied harmony, counterpoint, fugue, music theory, improvisation and composition at the Conservatoire de Paris (CNSMDP), where he won 8 First prizes. He taught at the Sorbonne and at the Ecole Polytechnique. He wrote his PhD (2003) on György Ligeti’s Etudes for piano. Since 2004, he is an Associate Professor at the Ecole Normale Supérieure.
As a composer, his catalogue consists of some hundred works, which have been performed in France, China, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, Russia, the United States and Japan by ensembles as Maîtrise de Radio France, Chœur de l’Orchestre de Paris, Cambridge Voices, Ensemble Notabu, and the leading orchestras (Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Orchestre National de France, Orchestre de Paris, Saint Petersburg Philharmonic, London Symphony Orchestra, Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen…). His composing career is closely linked to that of the pianist.
His works are to be found in the repertoire of the leading orchestras, and of musicians such as Gautier Capuçon, Renaud Capuçon, Emmanuel Ceysson, Bertrand Chamayou, Karine Deshayes, Victor Julien-Laferrière, Nathan Laube, Marie-Pierre Langlamet, Anneleen Lenaerts, Paul Meyer, Edgar Moreau, Andreas Ottensamer, Akiko Suwanai, Kristjan Järvi, Paavo Järvi or the Modigliani Quartet and Ébène Quartet. He has been composer in residence with the Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse from 2006 to 2009.
He was named an Officier des Arts et des Lettres and was Chair of Artistic Creation at the College de France (2012-2013).
Now you know – hit the play button and relax.
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