A virtuoso pianist and genius composer, Franz Liszt and his Rhapsodies have influenced generations of musicians. Every autumn for twenty years, Châteauroux has dedicated a festival to the Hungarian composer. The “Lisztomanias”, which end on October 20, have once again won over the public.
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“If in August, you were still in Nohant, we could carry out our old festival project in Châteauroux.” VS‘is what Franz Liszt wrote in 1844 to his great friend George Sand, living on his property in Indre. The musician wanted to see culture flourish in the heart of Berry, a region dear to his heart. Established in 2002, thehe Lisztomanias festival thus realizes Liszt’s old dream, a unique way of paying homage to this great artist, through numerous concerts and workshops.
The festival brings together nearly 5,000 spectators each year in Châteauroux to celebrate Liszt’s personality. All generations of musicians salute the memory of this passionate man, whose life resembles a novel. “He has always been torn between a certain attraction for charm and seduction on the one hand and essential questions and a religious vocation on the other. He has juggled the two all his life”, specifies the pianist Boris de Larochelambert, present in Châteauroux.
Trio, orchestra, solo, chapel or large hall, the Liztomanias celebrate the creative diversity of one of the greatest pianists of his time. Adored during his lifetime, he continued 135 years after his death (in 1886) to move crowds. “One always imagines Liszt as this species of planetary pianist, which he was, but he was also an immense composer who composed religious pages, chamber music, pieces with orchestra. He is someone of very open to modernity. Each time I want to show very different facets of this great genius “, explains Jean-Yves Clément, the artistic director of the festival.
Two meetings to close the festival: this Tuesday, October 19, pianist Bertrand Chamayou presents a recital “Spiritual Liszt”. And then the young soloists of the Liszt Academy offer a closing concert on Wednesday October 20 at the Chapelle des Rédemptoristes.