T'as voulu voir Jacques Brel et on a vu...

Description

Second album by Camille Seghers and Alexis Thibaut de Maisières for Paraty, this project stems from a reflection on how Jacques Brel composed with his musicians, starting from a musical impulse, a motif, a rhythm. Contrary to this process, Alexis Thibaut de Maisières, pianist and arranger of the project, proposes to bring forth, from Brel's songs, the musical sources that might have nourished them. Initially conceived as a series of short "encores," these arrangements developed over the course of concerts to form a cycle. Each song is based on one or more classical works as arrangement material. Considered the keystone of the project, Les Désespérés — linked to the history of Ravel's Concerto in G and to Gérard Jouannest, Brel's pianist — is approached with particular fidelity to its original composition, while Amsterdam is conceived as a small suite for solo cello. Carried by the cello of Camille Seghers and the piano of Alexis Thibaut de Maisières, the project presents Brel's work without imitation, relying on instrumental expressiveness.