After having until now secretly prepared the first opening and closing ceremonies of the Olympic and Paralympic Games, the Paris 2024 Organizing Committee unveiled, on Thursday, September 5, the electro theme made in France of the grand finale which, on Sunday, September 8, will close the Paralympic events at the Stade de France. Twenty-four artists, pioneers, actors and descendants of the French touch divided into four scenes for about an hour of show.
Of course, Tony Estanguet (president of the Paris 2024 Organizing Committee), Thomas Jolly (artistic director), Thierry Reboul (director of ceremonies) and Victor Le Masne (musical director) have not said anything about the musical and choreographic performances that will punctuate the first part of the evening. We barely know that musicians with disabilities are expected to launch the festivities, between tributes to the athletes, national and Paralympic anthems and the extinguishing of the cauldron.
But, in the presence of several of the artists scheduled for this Sunday (Jean-Michel Jarre, Kittin, Martin Solveig, Ofenbach, Irène Drésel, Tatyana Jane, Agoria…), the quartet explained why and how it had been decided to “party with those who have been making the planet dance for years”.
If this electronic touch colored many moments of the first ceremonies (Kavinsky, Myd, Barbara Butch, Cerrone…), it seemed important that our “most exported musical genre” transforms this theatre of sporting exploits into a dance floor, in front of an international audience.
“Wave Journey”
A choice whose historical relevance Jean-Michel Jarre, true godfather of this musical scene and pioneer of large-scale electronic shows, underlines: “This music was born a century ago in France and Europe. It comes from the heritage of classical instrumental music. The first composers of the genre were nourished by impressionism and surrealism.”
Victor Le Masne recalls that in 1924 the Frenchman Maurice Martenot (1898-1980) began his work on what would become the Martenot ondes (first presented to the public in 1928), often considered the first synthetic instrument. An ancestor that gave the musical director the idea of a “wave journey” uniting all these artists. The wave serves as a common thread for the passing of the baton between each of the twenty-four musicians.
Read also | Article reserved for our subscribers Paralympics 2024: Alexander Ekman orchestrates an opening ceremony under the sign of harmony
Add to your selections
Among the elders, some measure the distance traveled since the 1990s. “When I think about how many times I’ve ended up at the police station after a rave or a party, I can’t believe I’m taking part in this ceremony,” ” says composer and DJ Sébastien Devaud, better known as Agoria. While young Tatyana Jane marvels at being able to play on the same stage as Martin Solveig, her “childhood idol”while welcoming the way the lineup will mix underground artists and international stars like Kungs, The Avener and Ofenbach.
You have 37.95% of this article left to read. The rest is reserved for subscribers.
