Lucas Debargue & Friends - Fauré Project - 8:00 p.m.

Revealed by the XV International Tchaikovsky Competition in 2015, where he won 4th prize and the special critics' prize, Lucas Debargue has since carved out a special place for himself as a classical pianist on the international scene.

Hailed for the sincerity and communicative energy of his interpretations, he performs among others in the prestigious large halls of the Berlin and Paris Philharmonies, at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam and at the Musikverein and Konzerthaus in Vienna, as well as at Carnegie Hall in New York or at Suntory Hall in Tokyo. His chamber music partners include Janine Jansen, Gidon Kremer and Martin Fröst.

6 Lucas albums have been published by Sony Classical, including a monumental monograph by Scarlatti and the complete piano works of Gabriel Fauré.

Also a composer, Lucas has already created numerous pieces for piano and chamber music ensembles.

His debut was the subject of a noted documentary, directed by his friend Martin Mirabel and released in 2017:All about music.

PRESENTATION OF THE FAURE PROJECT

It was in 2020, in the midst of a health crisis, that he came up with the idea of recording all of Fauré's solo piano music after having completely deciphered it. The piano that Lucas chose as a partner in this adventure is theOpus 102by Stephen Paulello: this unique instrument, of monumental proportions – 3m in length, and 102 keys instead of the usual 88, seemed ideal to him for translating the sonic paradoxes of Fauré's music.

Rich in 57 opus numbers written over 50 years, Fauré's piano work is distinguished in its entirety by the subtlety of his writing and the diversity of colors and emotions which manifest themselves there, of the most enthusiastic rowdy with the darkest resignation. Romantic in character from the beginning to the end of his production, Fauré nevertheless gradually developed a personal language on the edge of modern aesthetics, exploring the limits of tonal language. Very little known to music lovers and pianists alike, this set of pieces deserved for Lucas Debargue to be the subject of a complete reading again, to coincide with the centenary of the death of its author.