Fantaisies lyriques

Description

PAUL MEYER - PASCAL CONTETLyrical Fantasies for Clarinet and AccordionTwo wind instruments, with very fusion-like tessituras, revisit the great operas through instrumental duets, as well as a few other classical masterpieces.The inventive and virtuosic arrangements and transcriptions were created by the two performers. They are the same age and immediately agreed on the idea of playing together 'the musical truant school'. The adventure began with a last-minute replacement of the piano by the accordion at a concert. The obviousness of this association of timbres, which is quite interesting, and their artistic connection invited them to continue together, from concert to concert, until the materialization on record, with the same whimsical and playful desire to reinvent the great repertoire. The accordion, a noble instrument by origin, was it not precisely invented for this: to bring music, and especially opera, to places where it was not played?A traveling duo, a duo of friendship, and a breath of fresh air!Paul Meyer, a recognized clarinetist, at the top of the global hierarchy on this instrument, and Pascal Contet, a herald of contemporary accordion, explore together the unexpected paths of opera fantasies and classical repertoire.Two artists at the peak of their art and accomplices, who offer a virtuosic, reinvented, and festive program, in which Contet's accordion provides an original setting for Meyer's clarinet, which navigates between the pride of the lied and the nuances of a velvet touch... The two wind instruments express themselves in unison for a high-end result in its musical choices, in the quality of the transcriptions, as well as in the excellence of the interpretation.Motivated by this project and also passionate about the accordion, the famous organist-composer Thierry Escaich composes two original fantasies for the duo, 'Capriccios', inspired by two great operas, which are therefore world premieres in the album. He also follows the recording.Punch, originality, credibility of the artists, accessibility of the tunes, likability of the protagonists, impact in concert... are the springs of this simple, refreshing, and relaxed project... in two words fundamentally popular.A duo that has been touring successfully for several years and will continue its wandering path.