The light is still warm on this summery September 18 in Montreal, the terraces crowded and rue Sainte-Catherine black with people. Place des Arts, the Maison symphonique is preparing to welcome the Montreal Symphony Orchestra (OSM) and its musical director, Venezuelan Rafael Payare. A high-end poster: after the Concerto pour pianoby Schumann, par Daniil Trifonov, la Fantastic Symphonyby Berlioz, two works which will, among other things, be on the program of the European tour planned from November 19 to 30, one of the stages of which stops on November 22 at the Philharmonie de Paris.
In the OSM’s luggage, two magnificent gilded bronze bells – the notes G and C –, which the public will hear in the Dream of a Sabbath NightBerliozian. Blonde and curvy, pampered like beauty queens, “they will also be part of the trip”assures Sébastien Almon, director of artistic operations and international development of the OSM.
The link between Quebec musicians and Europe is not anecdotal, as recalled by maestro Kent Nagano, stationed in Montreal from 2006 to 2020. “The orchestra has never broken with its European rootshe emphasizes. When you have French as your main language, there is inevitably an impact on phrasing, sound, breathing. Musically, this translates into a certain flexibility and a particular sense of color, which, combined with the well-known precision and efficiency of the North American phalanxes, make the OSM unique. » Same observation for maestro Rafael Payare, arriving in 2021, who appreciated the tasty alloy from his first concert in 2018 “virtuosity, flexibility and transparency” of 92 musicians, as well as the extent of their repertoire.
Historical directory
If there is one who is delighted by this upcoming departure, it is the solo bass trombonist Pierre Beaudry. At 63, the Quebecer who joined the OSM in 1982 has seen the quarter century of Charles Dutoit (1978-2002), the fourteen years of Kent Nagano (2006-2020), and, for two years, the taking of functions of Rafael Payare. With the first, a period of great excitement. “In the 1970s, we did three tours a year – more than thirty between 1981 and 2000 – and we “recorded” like crazy”he confides, pointing out the numerous recordings (more than 80) made by the OSM under the guidance of the Swiss conductor.
At the time, the musicians performed in the Wilfrid-Pelletier Hall, a multifunctional venue with nearly 3,000 seats, which bears the name of one of the founders of the orchestra, created on November 16, 1934. The Maison symphonique, designed by the architect Jack Diamond, whose 2,000-seat auditorium, lined with 70% blond Canadian beech wood from the Outaouais and 175 rubber insulating pads, has offered excellent acoustics since 2011, will change their lives. Pierre Beaudry savors its functionality and elegance, like on these rehearsal days when he arrives at 7:30 a.m., while collective work begins at 10 a.m. “I start with lunchhe said, then I take my instrument. All alone in my work space, I feel a bit like Monsieur de Sainte-Colombe in his music room, in the film Every morning in the world [1991]by Alain Corneau. »
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