Shrouded in mysterious darkness where myths and legends are born, the Night has always been an eternal muse for artists. Literature, painting, cinema, music—every art form has its share of nocturnal masterpieces. Paradoxically “more alive and richly colored than the day” (Vincent Van Gogh), the Night subtly stirs the imagination and the unconscious, often propelling our minds toward indescribable esoteric worlds. These “thousand and one nights” have inspired this new program. Nuit Fantastique brings together several works that portray in music the many facets of the realm of Nyx. From romantic pastoral scenes at dusk to the carefree atmosphere of cabarets where melancholy is never far away, this journey brings Mozart and Dizzy, Schubert and Porter, Saint-Saëns and Milhaud together. But beware! As pagan dances hypnotize to the point of trance, midnight strikes! Satan opens the ball, and Death lurks nearby, accompanied by spirits, vampires, and other unsettling creatures… May this journey through our Nuit Fantastique carry you toward unsuspected horizons where magic and imagination merge in a captivating dance!
Later, pianist Pierre Desangles will join Romain Leleu and his sextet to perform Shostakovich’s Concerto No. 1 for Piano, Trumpet, and Strings. Composed in 1933, this concerto is filled with energy, humor, and striking contrasts. The piano takes on a virtuosic role—at turns lyrical, ironic, or wildly unleashed. The trumpet, often used as a mischievous character, appears as a brilliant and sometimes sarcastic counterpoint. Together, they create a lively, almost theatrical dialogue between the two soloists and the strings. Both spectacular and deeply expressive, the concerto reveals the full modernity and distinctive spirit of Shostakovich.
