a very feminine track record and a vibrant tribute to the Ukrainian people

“It’s a ceremony that has a very special flavor, that of reunion, to celebrate music and artists”, summarizes at the end of the evening Stéphane Bern, presenter of the 29th Victories of Classical Music. A ceremony organized at the Grand Théâtre de Provence in Aix, clearly oriented towards youth and transmission, which very quickly wanted to pay tribute to Ukraine at war.

“Tonight we are going to play the anthem of the Republic of Ukraine as a prayer, in solidarity and support for a people who at this very moment are struggling, suffering and dying”, announced conductor Ariane Matiakh. In a moment of great emotion, the Nice Philharmonic Orchestra played the anthem in front of a standing audience, while the colors of the flag – yellow and blue – were projected on mobile video panels above the stage.

After paying tribute to his Ukrainian grandfather “who fought for freedom in his country before being very humanely welcomed as a refugee in France”the conductor described the situation in Ukraine as “heartbreaking”but said she was opposed to “sudden and global rejection of Russian artists”. She recalled that “many took a courageous stand” and “artists do not have to pay the price for the abuses of the Russian government”.

Broadcast live on France 3 and France Musique, the ceremony began with a choreography by Mehdi Kerkouche, revealed on the internet during the first confinement. On the Symphony No.9 by Dvorak, the dance steps were performed by Germain Louvet, star dancer of the Paris Opera, Chloé Lopes Gomes, soloist at the Ballet de l’Opéra National du Rhin, the students of the Ballet de Marseille dance school and dancers from the Kerkouche company, EMKA.

Performances followed. Among them, one will cite one of the first, the 3rd movement of the Concerto for piano and orchestra by Grieg, interpreted with energy and virtuosity by the German-Japanese pianist Alice Sara Ott in complicity with the conductor Ariane Matiakh. Or the sung performance of the very charismatic Barbara Hannigan in her Youkali by Kurt Weil, spirited and elegant.

In the competition, as in the previous year, attention was paid to the categories intended for young talents, starting with the newly created category of “revelation conductor”: Pierre Dumousseaud won against the two other candidates, Chloe Dufresne and Stephanie Childress. All were able to take turns directing the Nice Philharmonic Orchestra during the evening.

This year’s “instrumental soloist revelation” is the violinist Manon Galy, who, during her performance, shared with Renaud Capuçon the 3rd movement of the Concerto for two violins of Bach. It was the very famous violinist, at the very end of the ceremony, who presented him with the trophy, twenty-two years after having obtained it himself: “It’s moving to see a young talent take flight”he said.

The lyrical revelation was delivered by a local child actor, Daniel Auteuil, music lover and son of opera and operetta singers. “I set foot on an opera stage for the first time, in Algiers, at four years old, we were doing Butterfly“he said a little earlier. “I was playing her son and I felt the melodious breath of the singer hugging me. That’s why I did this job, to be hugged by singers”he had fun.

The mezzo-soprano Eugénie Joneau, also native to the region, who had made a name for herself shortly before in a comic zarzuela, Carceleras, was voted lyrical revelation. And hugged Daniel Auteuil.

In the categories reserved for confirmed artists, the baritone with an international career Ludovic Tézier won, for the third time, the “lyrical artist” category. As for cellists Emmanuelle Bertrand and Sol Gabetta, they are joint winners for the “instrumental soloist” category.

The eminent Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho was crowned this year for her opera Innocencea lyrical thriller in several languages ​​which caused a sensation at the Festival d’art lyrique d’Aix-en-Provence in 2021. She is the second woman to win this category, after Camille Pépin in 2020.

And for the best recording, Thierry Escaich was rewarded for his album screams (French Radio). Already awarded many times in the composer category, the man seemed touched: “a creation is important”he explains. “A composer takes a heritage, transforms it and projects it into the future”.