THE 2025 ‘MIDIS DU FESTIVAL’

— SATURDAY 5 JULY AT NOON
IS THE OPERATIC REPERTOIRE SET IN STONE?

From Cavalli and Mozart to Charpentier and Britten, composers have constantly adapted their own works, or those of their predecessors, to suit the specific context and the constraints of a performance. The “perfect performance” of an opera, in which meaning is immutably fixed by the creators of the work, may well not exist; and the very malleability of these masterpieces – their openness to interpretation, whether musical or theatrical – is one of the key reasons for their continued relevance over the centuries. We will ask the main conductors and stage directors of the 2025 edition whether remaining faithful to the artist’s intentions helped guide their approach to La Calisto, Don Giovanni, Louise and Billy Budd.

WITH THE PARTICIPATION OF: Sébastien Daucé (conductor – La Calisto), Ted Huffman (stage director, adaptation, costumes and accessories – The Story of Billy Budd, Sailor), Oliver Leith (musical adaptation – The Story of Billy Budd, Sailor), Christof Loy (stage director – Louise), Jetske Mijnssen (stage director – La Calisto) and Claire Pasquier (artist from the opera company Collectif Meute).
MODERATOR: TIMOTHÉE PICARD

THE CENTENARY OF PIERRE BOULEZ (1925–2025) — “COMPOSING IN TODAY’S WORLD” SERIES

Pierre Boulez (1925–2016), a major figure in contemporary music, left a profound mark on the twentieth century as a composer, conductor and music theorist. He secured a special place in the history of the Festival d’Aix by initiating the Académie’s first composition residency in 1998. As part of the centenary celebrations of his birth, and in conjunction with the Composition Residency of the 2025 Académie, the Festival invites us to explore Pierre Boulez’s rich legacy through two panel discussions devoted to the challenges facing composers today and in the years to come.

— MONDAY 7 JULY AT NOON
PART 1 “COMPOSING IN TODAY’S WORLD”
COMPOSITION AND TECHNOLOGY IN THE AGE OF AI: A LOOK AT BOULEZ’S LEGACY

His pioneering work in electronic music – exemplified by the founding of IRCAM (Institut de Recherche et de Coordination Acoustique/Musique) in 1977 – and the integration of technological innovation into musical composition are among Pierre Boulez’s most important contributions to contemporary music. As guardians (to varying degrees) of this inspiring legacy, artists from different generations will reflect on the role of both established and emerging technologies in contemporary composition.

This roundtable is organised in cooperation with CultTech, and in partnership with the VOICES Performing Arts Festival in Berlin.

WITH THE PARTICIPATION OF COMPOSERS: Yannis Kyriakides, Stefan Lattner, Clara Olivares and Lucia Ronchetti.
MODERATOR: JEAN-BAPTISTE BARRIÈRE, composer and multimedia artist, former director of research, education and creation at IRCAM

— TUESDAY 8 JULY AT NOON
PART 2 “COMPOSING IN TODAY’S WORLD”
THE ACADÉMIE DU FESTIVAL D’AIX: JOURNEYS OF TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY COMPOSERS

Pierre Boulez was one of the driving forces behind the creation of the Académie du Festival d’Aix-en-Provence. Since 1998, nearly 180 composers have participated in the Académie through a variety of residencies (including the Composition Residency, Opera Creation Workshops, and multidisciplinary residencies), affording them the opportunity to present their work at the Festival. The participants of the 2025 Composition Residency will speak alongside composer Unsuk Chin, the mentor of this year’s residency; composer and former Académie participant Sivan Eldar, whose opera The Nine Jewelled Deer is being presented in Aix this summer; and the publisher Janis Susskind, from Boosey & Hawkes Music Publishers Ltd. Through the lens of their respective careers, these figures from the new generation of musical creators will discuss the current challenges encountered by composers, and the evolving landscape of contemporary music.

WITH THE PARTICIPATION OF: Sivan Eldar (composer – The Nine Jewelled Deer), Unsuk Chin (composer, mentor of the 2025 Composition Residency of the Académie), Tanja Elisa Glinsner and Miles Walter (artists from the 2025 Composition Residency of the Académie) and Janis Susskind (director of Boosey & Hawkes musical editions).
MODERATOR: FRANÇOIS DELÉCLUSE

— SATURDAY 12 JULY AT NOON
OPERA AND THE PEOPLE, FROM REALITY TO REPRESENTATION: AROUND LOUISE

In his opera Louise, which premiered in 1900, Gustave Charpentier brought the people of Paris to life, thanks to his realistic staging of a panoply of characters living on the butte of Montmartre – including local tradesmen known for their distinctive shouts (the famous “Cris de Paris”). From this example, the discussion will broaden into a reflection on the representation, and sometimes even the participation, of local populaces and the “social body” in opera – in particular, through the chorus, the quintessential embodiment of a “collective” on stage.

WITH THE PARTICIPATION OF: Clément Noël (musicologist, research associate at the BnF), Juliette Rennes (sociologist, director of studies at EHESS), Benedict Kearns (choir master – Louise) and Julie Pasturaud (mezzo, roles of Marguerite and La Laitière – Louise).
MODERATOR: DAVID CHRISTOFFEL for Métaclassique

— TUESDAY 15 JULY AT NOON
THE MAKING OF LA CALISTO

The artistic team of La Calisto offers a behind-the-scenes look at this project and its development – from the adaptation of the music to the staging of the final production. Sébastien Daucé, musical director of the ensemble Correspondances, shares details of his work on the score: his process was akin to that of Francesco Cavalli and his contemporaries in the seventeenth century, who adapted works according to the specific context and constraints of a performance. Join the creative leads and several of the performers for this deep dive into the making of La Calisto, one of the productions being presented at the Théâtre de l’Archevêché this summer.

WITH THE PARTICIPATION OF: Sébastien Daucé (conductor), Angélique Mauillon (harp – Ensemble Correspondances), Alex Rosen (Giove) et Héloïse Sérazin (assistant stage director).
MODERATOR: ANNE LE BERRE

— WEDNESDAY 16 JULY AT NOON
THE FESTIVAL D’AIX IN ITS REGION: INSPIRATION, COLLABORATION AND RENOWN

For over 75 years, the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence has pursued the same objective: to achieve international renown while remaining firmly rooted in its local context. This panel discussion will explore the different facets of that bipartite ambition. Recognised worldwide for its excellence, the Festival draws part of its inspiration from the Aix region and its Mediterranean setting, which lend a distinctive flavour to the Festival’s programming. Firmly committed to making the cultural diversity and richness it embodies available to the widest possible audience, the Festival conducts outreach initiatives and fosters amateur artistic practice throughout the region. It thus plays an important role in developing the influence and prestige of the region, by forging local partnerships, and by maintaining close ties with the City of Aix – as illustrated again this year, with the Festival’s participation in the “Year of Cézanne” celebrations.

WITH THE PARTICIPATION OF: Sophie Joissains (Mayor of Aix-en-Provence, Vice-President of the Région Provence Alpes Côte d’Azur), Bernard Foccroulle (General Director of the Festival d’Aix from 2007 to 2018 and Advisor for the 2025 edition), Michaël Dian (founder and Director of the Festival de Chaillol), Pauline Chaigne (Deputy Director of the Orchestre des Jeunes de la Méditerranée and Mediterranean programme – Festival d’Aix) and Frédérique Tessier (Head of the Passerelles department and the arts and cultural education division – Festival d’Aix).
MODERATOR: TIMOTHÉE PICARD