A week in Saintes: chamber music on period instruments

From February 11 to 16 , the Abbaye aux Dames de Saintes became our own little world, fifteen musicians gathered for an adventure of romantic chamber music on period instruments .

Abbaye aux Dames, Saintes

In the mornings, Kaï Köpp , violist and professor of musicology and performance practice, guided us in the study of sources and treatises. We saw concretely how indications of style, articulation, and phrasing could be applied to our instruments, and how each instrument approaches these same principles differently. We were mixed together — strings, winds, and pianists from nine different countries — which made the exchanges particularly interesting: comparing treatises on the same subject and seeing how they apply to each instrument was fascinating. The link between singing and instrumental performance, or portamento for example, occupied us all week, through a wide variety of examples ranging from Bériot to Becker , including Bottesini . In the afternoons, we focused on practice with sonata lessons and ensemble rehearsals.

Marius Gruffel & Laura Le Lay (violin), Theresa Burggaller (viola), Hugo Bourgoin (double bass) & Anastasiya Magademova (pianoforte)

For my part, I was working on Mendelssohn's Cello Sonata No. 2 and Glinka's Piano Sextet. Mendelssohn demands precision and clarity, Glinka more breath and color. Working on these pieces on period instruments and with a pitch of 438 kHz completely changes the way you play: touch, articulation, balance with the piano, everything becomes more precise and deliberate. The guidance of Ophélie Gaillard, Kai Köpp, and Daria Fadeeva was truly helpful in finding these adjustments.

Tzu-Yu Yang, pianoforte

And between sessions, another kind of meeting (always punctual, this one!) awaited us: the legendary and generous meals of Framboise , our chef for the week, which gave us renewed energy for the rest of the day!

The return journey was a bit eventful due to the floods, but this did not diminish the memory of an intense, demanding and incredibly enriching week, full of stylistic and practical discoveries on the instruments, and memorable meals with Framboise!