Elégies - œuvres pour orchestre de la Grande Guerre

<p>Is the &lsquo;classical&rsquo; record defunct? No, smaller labels are resisting, as artists invest time and effort in daring cultural projects, refusing to let themselves be discouraged by economical difficulties in this niche market. Thanks to the support of their audiences and via participative funding, together they can undertake what they would be unable to carry out as individuals.</p> <p>For 5 years, our association carries out an anthology of the music written during the First&nbsp;World War and unfairly forgotten. With the support of the Minist&egrave;re des Arm&eacute;es and the label of La Mission du Centenaire we have been able to release 35 recordings with Les Editions Hortus. The original, unique and ambitious nature of the collection, as much as its indisputable quality, was acknowledged by&nbsp;the press. The First World War centenary is now nearing its end so we went into partnership with the Orchestre de l&#39;Op&eacute;ra de Toulon to complete the collection with the very last recording!</p> <p>The Hortus label, known for its originality and the artistic quality of its choices, stands ready to distribute this CD in France and abroad. However, 5000&euro; are lacking to cover the recording and publication expenses of the album.</p> <p><img alt="" src="https://d3v4jsc54141g1.cloudfront.net/uploads/project_image/image/544981/mgg_bandeau-1538381884.png" width="100%" /></p> <p>The Orchestra of the Toulon Opera is offering us an original programme consisting of rare, even unknown works written during the Great War, recalling not only the conflict itself and its countless casualties but also, in the rebounding of hope, a confidence in the future which their descendants had the task of upholding.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>On the front lines, a young French composer, Jacques de la Presle, was dreaming of writing a great symphonic work. In the end he would not find the time but throughout his remaining life held on to the manuscript of a sketch: <em>Soir de Bataille</em> (Battle Evening), which has been orchestrated on the occasion of the present recording.</p> <p>The English organist Ernest Bristow Farrar (1885-1918) enlisted in 1915, was named Second Lieutenant in February 1918 and was cut down by machine gun fire, after only two days on the front, on 18 September 1918 at the battle of Epehy Ronssoy, only a few weeks after the premiere of his <em>Heroic Elegy</em>.</p> <p>Enlisted at the outset of the war, Frederick S. Kelly&nbsp;twice fought at Gallipoli (Turkey) where he made the acquaintance of the poet Rupert Brooke (1887-1915), himself enlisted as well, who was to die shortly thereafter from a severe infection. Following directly upon the death of his friend, Kelly decided to write the moving <em>Elegy&nbsp;</em>that he dedicated to the latter&rsquo;s memory. He would in turn be killed on 13&nbsp;December 1916 at Beaucourt-sur-l&rsquo;Ancre, while attacking an enemy post.</p> <p>In the rear, another British citizen, Frank Bridge, wrote his <em>Lament</em>&nbsp;in memory of the victims of the Lusitania, sunk by the Germans.</p> <p>Jean Cras, a native of Brittany, undertook a twofold career, both naval and musical. He composed <em>&Acirc;mes d&rsquo;enfants</em>&nbsp;(Children&rsquo;s Souls) for piano six (small) hands, intended for his three daughters Isaure, Colette and Monique, prior to transcribing them for four hands and eventually orchestrating them. These three pieces, dubbed &lsquo;<em>Pures&rsquo;</em>, &lsquo;<em>Na&iuml;ves</em>&rsquo; and &lsquo;<em>Myst&eacute;rieuses</em>&rsquo;, are revealing in terms of the confidence the composer accorded the future by virtue of the children.</p> <p><img alt="" src="https://d3v4jsc54141g1.cloudfront.net/uploads/project_image/image/544678/Tombe_Farrar-1538152382.jpg" width="100%" /></p> <p><strong>Programme:</strong></p> <p>Ernest B. Farrar: <em>Heroic elegy</em></p> <p>Frank Bridge: <em>Lament</em> (for strings) in memory of the victims of the Lusitania</p> <p>Frederick S. Kelly: <em>Elegy for strings</em></p> <p>Jacques de la Presle: <em>Soir de Bataille</em> (world premiere recording)</p> <p>Jean Cras: <em>&Acirc;mes d&rsquo;enfants</em></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Performers:</strong></p> <p><strong>Orchestre Symphonique de l&rsquo;Op&eacute;ra de Toulon</strong></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>The <em>Orchestre Symphonique de l&rsquo;Op&eacute;ra de Toulon</em> is a dynamic ensemble that has garnered considerable attention within the French musical landscape. Its highly eclectic repertoire spans four centuries of music. Prestigious conductors have commanded this legion: Giuliano Carella (Musical Director from 2003 to 2016),<em>&nbsp;Steuart Bedford, Serge Baudo, Laurent Petitgirard, Claude Schnitzler, Antonello Allemandi, Friedrich Pleyer, Wolfgang Doerner, Thomas Rosner, Emmanuel Jo&euml;l-Hornak, Jean-Christophe Spinosi, Dmitri Liss, Laurence Equilbey, David-Charles Abell, Rani Calderon, Alexander Briger, Rinaldo Alessandrini, Jurjen Hempel</em>&hellip; It has accompanied leading soloists such as <em>Shlomo Mintz, Vladimir Spivakov, Brigitte Engerer, Laurent Korcia, Nicholas Angelich, Gary Hoffman, Nemanja Radulovic, Anne Queff&eacute;lec, Abdel Rahman El Bacha, Alexandra Soumm, Micka&euml;l Rudy, C&eacute;dric Tiberghien, Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, Alina Pogostkina, Bertrand Chamayou, Andrei Korobeinikov, Alexandre Tharaud, Valeriy Sokolov, Yossif Ivanov, Martha Argerich, Mischa Maisky&hellip;</em> The <em>Orchestre Symphonique de l&rsquo;Op&eacute;ra de Toulon</em> participates in numerous regional concert projects in the context of a musical dissemination policy for all, in the service of a territorial dynamic. Thus it performs in the greater Toulon area as well as the Var <em>d&eacute;partement</em>, throughout the region and abroad. In Paris, it regularly appears at the National Comic Opera Theatre. The <em>Orchestre Symphonique de l&rsquo;Op&eacute;ra de Toulon</em> has developed a policy of pedagogical and social endeavours with partners such as the <em>CRR</em> Regional Conservatory, the <em>Inspection Acad&eacute;mique</em> educational authority, the <em>Universit&eacute; du Sud Toulon-Var</em>, the Intercity Hospital Centre of Toulon-La Seyne, the Toulon-La Farl&egrave;de Penetentiary Facility&hellip; The orchestra is a member of the French Association of Orchestras (A.F.O.). The Dutch conductor Jurjen Hempel has been the new musical director since September 2018.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Pierre Dumoussaud, chef d&rsquo;orchestre</strong></p> <p>Pierre Dumoussaud won First Prize in the ADAMI&rsquo;s &lsquo;Conductor Talents&rsquo;, as well as the 1st International Competition for Opera Conductors organized by the Royal Opera of Wallonia.&nbsp; He made his debut in <em>Carmen</em> in February 2018. He has conducted the National Opera of Bordeaux in productions of <em>Lucia di Lammermoor</em>, <em>Don Carlo</em>, <em>The Turn of the Screw</em> and <em>Les Tr&eacute;teaux de Ma&icirc;tre Pierre</em>. He also premiered the <em>Concerto for piano</em> by Thomas Enhco in Pau.<br /> Pierre Dumoussaud has conducted the great ballets <em>Rom&eacute;o et Juliette</em> and <em>Giselle</em>, also accompanying several choreographic premieres based on <em>El Amor brujo</em>, <em>L&rsquo;Histoire du soldat</em>, <em>Le Festin de l&rsquo;Araign&eacute;e</em> and Berio&rsquo;s <em>Folksongs</em>.<br /> In Europe he conducts the Lausanne Chamber Orchestra, the Royal Philharmonia of Galicia, the Budapest Opera, the North Hungarian Symphony Orchestra as well as the great French ensembles, among them the National Orchestras of the Capitole in Toulouse and those of Lille, Auvergne, Lorraine and Montpellier.<br /> Pierre Dumoussaud received the <em>Grand Prix du Livre Jeunesse</em> and that of the Charles Cros Academy for the creation and recording, with the Paris Chamber Orchestra, of two tales by Roald Dahl set to music by Isabelle Aboulker and read by Fran&ccedil;ois Morel.</p> <p><img alt="" src="https://d3v4jsc54141g1.cloudfront.net/uploads/project_image/image/544679/carnet_de_guerre_4-1538152410.JPG" width="100%" /></p> <p><strong>Project schedule</strong></p> <p>November 2018: recording<br /> December 2018 - January 2019: sound montage, mixing and mastering<br /> January - February 2019: editing<br /> February - March 2019: fabrication<br /> 15&nbsp;March 2019: CD release and sending of the compensations (<strong>except for the concert&#39;s tickets, which will be sent two days before the concert</strong>).</p>