Cellist Héloïse Luzzati: “There’s no point in discovering music if you don’t share it”

The cellist Héloïse Luzzati is our guest this morning to discuss “La Boîte à Pépites”, a record label that she created in 2022 and which unearths scores by forgotten composers. The label has recently published monographs by Rita Strohl, Charlotte Sohy and Jeanne Leleu, in collaboration with collectives of artists and performers. After vocal music and chamber music, the section devoted to the orchestral music of composer Rita Strohl is released this Friday, October 11.

Discover musical treasures

With the release of his album “Rita Strohl, a composer of excess” with the label “La Boîte à pépites”, Héloïse Luzzati presents the orchestral music of a composer whose work has fallen into oblivion. “I discovered her thanks to other musicians who were already playing her music and who had had access to her manuscripts. I met André Martini, his beneficiary, who had the great kindness, trust and kindness to welcome me into his home and open his treasure chests to us with all the manuscripts.”says Héloïse Luzzati.

This work of research and editing of manuscripts allows not only to discover works, but also to learn more about the artist who composed them. Rita Strohl, a little-known composer, was a woman who, in the early part of her life, composed almost exclusively for chamber music ensembles. From the beginning of the 20th century, her writing took a decisive turn: she decided to compose only music for orchestra and for increasingly larger ensembles: “In this disc, we find in particular the Symphony of the Sea which is a work for double orchestra”explains the cellist.

At the end of her life, Rita Strohl finally decided to move away from composition: “She was a very spiritual person, she decided to withdraw from the musical world. She said she preferred oblivion, silence and solitude to liveliness.”said Héloïse Luzzati.

Put women in the spotlight

In recent years, numerous writings have focused on the question of female composers, whose orchestral music remains little-known, in particular because it was easier to play their music in salon settings rather than being programmed by a concert company. Héloïse Luzzati tells us that she continues to hear sexist comments about women composers: “When someone makes this type of statement in front of me, they know that it is a small form of provocation and that it will certainly launch a fascinating debate, but that I will have something to respond to on this subject. she testifies.

In 2020, the cellist founded her association “Elles – Women Composers” with the label “La Boîte à Pépites”, which aims to make female composers and their works known to all audiences in order to compensate for the absence of women in the programming current music. “It started from a personal curiosity: I had not studied works by female composers during my studies. I didn’t play it in concert either because I wasn’t offered any and ultimately I didn’t know enough about it myself. I wanted to know, record the music and share it with friends and fellow musicians and also with other people who might be interested.”says Héloïse Luzzati.

After the concert “Les Murmures de la Forêt” given this Tuesday, October 15 at the Philharmonie de Paris, the Orchester national d’Île-de-France will give in a second concert the melody with orchestra “Les Cygnes” and the Symphony of the forest this Friday, October 18 in Seine-et-Marne, at the Théâtre Sénart in Lieusaint.