A unique heritage A concert hall for a musician An architect from the group using the Bauhaus style Artistic center during the interwar period

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "A unique heritage A concert hall for a musician An architect from the group using the Bauhaus style Artistic center during the interwar period"

Evan Harvey
5 years ago
Views:

A unique heritage Artistic center during the interwar period Built for and by W.

It was one of the great artistic centers between the 2 wars, welcoming pupils and audiences from all around the world to hear concerts or take lessons of the goddess of the harpsichord.

Wanda Landowska and Francis Poulenc got the idea of the well-known Concert Champêtre in the Auditorium.

1 A unique heritage Artistic center during the interwar period Built for and by W.Landowska in her garden in St Leu la Forêt in 1927 the auditorium was considered as a Music Temple by journalists of that time. It was one of the great artistic centers between the 2 wars, welcoming pupils and audiences from all around the world to hear concerts or take lessons of the goddess of the harpsichord. Her Sunday afternoon concerts attracted the Tout-Paris bringing together the elite of the Critics, of the Literature and of the Arts. Wanda Landowska and Francis Poulenc got the idea of the well-known Concert Champêtre in the Auditorium. At the origin of the Baroque revival Wanda Landowska, born Polish (in 1879) of French adoption, harpsichordist and pianist devoted herself to the defense of the ancient repertoire with inexhaustible enthusiasm but without ever forgetting to conduct and to play the works of her contemporaries. She was Jewish she fled from the Nazis in 1940 leaving her treasures to be pillaged. She went into exile in the United States where she died in A concert hall for a musician An architect from the group using the Bauhaus style The auditorium Wanda Landowska is neither an official building nor a dwelling and is a rare example of a concert hall built by and for a lady musician. Built in 1927 by the architect, landscape gardener and designer J.C Moreux, an enthusiast of straight lines privileged by the modern movement, it is an atypical building as its rectangular forms, flat roof and the absence of ornaments contrast with the building around it. Its modest dimensions (250 sqm) and its modular design allow functional flexibility. An emergency An intact structure The risk of building development The determined conservation work of the building by the actual owners ensured to maintain it in its original form. Now it is worrying. The owners, although conscious of its historical value need to sell the property and if so the building will very probably be irreversibly modified. ASWL Association pour la Sauvegarde de l'auditorium Wanda Landowska h t t p : / / w w w. a u d i t o r i u m - w a n d a - l a n d o w s k a. f r 1

Jean-Charles Moreux Nowadays he is known more as a designer than as an architect, without doubt because his furniture remains a valuable at auctions.

Lurçat, one of the promoters of rationalism and mass production of social houses where hygiene and comfort were considered as an urgent necessity.

The building because of its symmetry of the plan and of the entry front (south side) is as classical as the roman arch of the main entry.

On the other hand the absence of ornaments except the cornice which protects the front but has a constructive function too, the rough purity of the parallelepiped volumes, the use

2 Jean-Charles Moreux Nowadays he is known more as a designer than as an architect, without doubt because his furniture remains a valuable at auctions. His architectural work has almost disappeared. He was with his friend A. Lurçat, one of the promoters of rationalism and mass production of social houses where hygiene and comfort were considered as an urgent necessity. The Auditorium The modern movement and its straight lines cross the mind immediately at discovering the auditorium. However the classic architecture of it is palpable. The building because of its symmetry of the plan and of the entry front (south side) is as classical as the roman arch of the main entry. But the symmetry of the plan is not in contradiction with the functionality of the project, effectively simple: a stage and its annexes (lavatories and kitchen). On the other hand the absence of ornaments except the cornice which protects the front but has a constructive function too, the rough purity of the parallelepiped volumes, the use of long narrow windows, the flat roof, the structure of the eastern and western sides and the use of industrial materials display the integration of modern architecture supported by the international movements like the Bauhaus. «Perspective view of the Auditions Hall and of the New Garden» Drawing by Jean-Charles Moreux, 1927 Reconstructed 3D view of the Auditorium - Jean-Claude Battault - Bruno Parmiani Cité de la Musique

A project of public interest The Purchase and Renovation of the site Step One To protect the site from all threats of demolition or of transformation by present or future owners.

Step Two Perform the work necessary to renovate the building and the garden to put in its functional state. The Auditorium In its current state Purchase & Renovation 1 394 000 excl.

3 A project of public interest The Purchase and Renovation of the site Step One To protect the site from all threats of demolition or of transformation by present or future owners. To achieve this project it is necessary to raise further funds in form of donations. ASWL has the facility to receive funds on a blocked account and to deliver tax certificates. Step Two Perform the work necessary to renovate the building and the garden to put in its functional state. The Auditorium In its current state Purchase & Renovation excl. taxes The Music and Artistic Centre Wanda Landowska Purchase Purchase of the auditorium, the annex building and the garden Act costs Total purchase Functional renovation Diagnostic, programming and controls Work Developing and equipment* Total functional renovation TOTAL A controlled operation Under the authority of an artistic committee the foundation will ensure an equal distribution of local pedagogical activities and international famous events, all this in relation with the music partners and cultural authorities involved. An artistic managing board will be in charge of the yearly programming, a steering committee for the financial and technical managing. An assistant director will be appointed to implement its guidelines. Public investors and sponsors will be referred to determine the managing rules as part of the pluri-annual agreements. * Administration room, welcome and ticket-sales room, safety equipment, audio-video presentations and animations, lighting apparatus, garden and greenhouse installations 3

An educational purpose Music and Heritage for all The music and artistic Centre W. Landowska will promote the musical broadcasting and the discovery of the heritage on a local basis.

Sébastien Marq speaks with the young spectators of the show «Poucette» (Lisbon, June 2009) An opening to higher education On a local background it will house a training structure which should welcome

4 An educational purpose Music and Heritage for all The music and artistic Centre W. Landowska will promote the musical broadcasting and the discovery of the heritage on a local basis. It will put in touch permanently the structures which deal with young people. Sébastien Marq speaks with the young spectators of the show «Poucette» (Lisbon, June 2009) An opening to higher education On a local background it will house a training structure which should welcome a small number of far from home students in the limit of a partnership with universities and High Centres in Ile de France An international influence At an international level it will renew with one of the mores of this house developing master-classes and symposia around the harpsichord, ancient music and larger repertoires thus fulfilling a large demand from musicians of all around the world. A various programming Concerts of chamber music The Musical and Artistic Center will provide for various festivals and music events a concert hall which can house small groups playing programs combining intimacy and closeness between the audience and the interpreters. An International Contest Wanda Landowska s repute will be internationally valuted by the organization of a contest dedicated to harpsichords. A space for rehearsals and recordings The dimensions of W. Landowska s auditorium favor rehearsals and recordings, ideal for small music groups. Guest artists in residence The keeper s house, peace and poetry of the garden, the beauty and the historical interest of the auditorium will enable to offer optimal working conditions to guests artists. A place for contemporary creation The Musical and Artist Center will induce and favor the order and creation for works from a contemporary repertoire relying on a partnership between the «Cité de la Musique» and the «Foundation Royaumont» «I do not want to associate myself with those panegyrists of the past who find everywhere signs of decline in the art of their time and predict its imminent death» (Wanda landowska) 4 Wanda Landowska in her auditorium (around 1930) - Along the walls the instruments from her collection (harpsichords, clavichord, virginal, organ)

5 Auditorium Saint-Leu la Forêt A good visibility in Val d Oise In a part of the region Ile de France which is poor with heritage sites, the Auditorium and the garden created by W. Landowska and J.C Moreux will be registered among the remarkably beautiful sites of the department Val d Oise giving a plus to the image of our department. 5

A positive outlook A running for a balanced management Income 172 200 excl. taxes Local volunteering and donations..38 400 Partnerships.

... 3 000 Master-classes and symposiums (rental of premises or sponsors funding).....65 000 Contest enrollments.......[ ] Rehearsals and recordings rental.....10 000 Shop.

6 A positive outlook A running for a balanced management Income excl. taxes Local volunteering and donations Partnerships.. [ ] Ministry of Education collège Wanda Landowska educational programs Ministry of Culture [ ] Regional and local authorities...[ ] Concert tickets income Tourist tickets Master-classes and symposiums (rental of premises or sponsors funding) Contest enrollments [ ] Rehearsals and recordings rental Shop Occasional financial supports (sponsors) Financing needs Expenses excl. taxes Administration - Participation of ASWL and of partner organizations Employee secretariat, at least part-time Artistic director General and Economic Management Technical stewardship Permanent Manager Organization of teaching with the Steering Committee Site maintenance and equipment operation Administrative costs administration communication missions and events service delivery

David Levine 1965 Inducement from all over the world Teri N. Towe, presenter of an American Club of the Amis de W.

Centre. Olaf Van Hees, a dutch collector already made the donation of an harpsichord from 1915.

Landowska and a commemorative plaque on the gate of the house are the evidence of it. The association for the protection of the Auditorium founded in 2009, represented by D.

A project supported by regional Associations The Hiver Musical event and its great concerts, the Music School, Les amis de la Bibliothèque and its conferences of high interest as well as AGEVHO and

Without mentioning the neighbor cities of St Prix, the Festival of Baroque Music in Mady Martin, 2011, «C est du classique mais c est pas grave», France Inter Meetings, supports and donations

7 David Levine 1965 Inducement from all over the world Teri N. Towe, presenter of an American Club of the Amis de W. Landowska announced : personal belongings of the artist displayed in Berlin at the National Museum of Music Appliances between November 2009 and February 2010 will be given to the Music and Artistic Centre. Olaf Van Hees, a dutch collector already made the donation of an harpsichord from A great local mobilization in support of the municipality The city of St Leu la Forêt is long faithful to the memory of this great harpsichordist: college W. Landowska and a commemorative plaque on the gate of the house are the evidence of it. The association for the protection of the Auditorium founded in 2009, represented by D. Marty as his chairman, already relies on 12 major associations to support the local council and improve thereby the image and value of the Auditorium and its garden. It is to say Culture for All. A project supported by regional Associations The Hiver Musical event and its great concerts, the Music School, Les amis de la Bibliothèque and its conferences of high interest as well as AGEVHO and its attractive productions about the rich heritage of the city are as many evidences of the population sensitivity in artistic and patrimonial topics. Without mentioning the neighbor cities of St Prix, the Festival of Baroque Music in Mady Martin, 2011, «C est du classique mais c est pas grave», France Inter Meetings, supports and donations Pontoise, the Automne musical in Taverny and the Royaumont foundation and the Cité de la Musique In Paris. The Support Committee Members Benjamin Alard, harpsichordist, Musique Classique Awards Jean-Marc Aymes, harpsichord Professor in CNSM de Lyon - Olivier Baumont, harpsichord Professor in CNSM de Paris - William Christie, harpsichordist, Musical Director of Les Arts Florissants - Bertrand Cuiller, harpsichordist - Jocelyne Cuiller, harpsichordist - Huguette Dreyfus, harpsichordist, grand-pupil of Wanda Landowska - Pascal Duc, director of the Early Music Departement in CNSM de Paris - Céline Frisch, harpsichordist, Musique Classique Awards Martin Gester, harpsichordist, Musical Director of Le Parlement de Musique - Jörg Hansen, Bachhaus Eisenach - Pierre Hantaï, harpsichordist - Élisabeth Joyé, harpsichordist, professor in Conservatoire du 7e, Paris - Bruno Mantovani, director of the CNSM de Paris - Martial Morand, professor of figured bass at the CNSM de Lyon - Blandine Rannou, professor of figured bass at the CNSM de Paris and in Versailles - Yves Rechsteiner, director of the Early Music Departement in CNSM de Lyon - Christophe Rousset, harpsichordist, Musical Director of Les Talents Lyriques - Skip Sempé, harpsichordist - Noelle Spieth, harpsichordist, harpsichord professor in CRR de Paris - Stanisław Suchora, organizer and coordinator at the Institut Polonais - Blandine Verlet, harpsichordist - Thomas Vernet, clavecin en France - Aline Zylberajch, harpsichordist, Professor in Strasbourg Conservatoire The first donors Roland Azoulay, Saint-Leu la Forêt - Dirk Bastenhof, Eaubonne - Marcelle Benoit, Paris - Jean-Pierre Berben, Saint- Leu la Forêt - Anne-Marie Bessand-Massenet, Mortagne Au Perche - Rodolphe Boudet, Paris - Brunner Naga, Pfâffikon- Zûrich, Suisse - Cars Lacroix, Beauchamp - Yvonne Champailler, Paris - Joël Decourcelle, Margency - Alain Delot, Maisons-Alfort - Françoise Denis-Ghesquiers, Saint-Leu la Forêt - Diane-Jeannine Deriaz, Paris - Huguette Dreyfus, Paris - Gisèle Dubois, Saint-Leu la Forêt - Pierre Dudouyt, Saint-Leu la Forêt - Marie-Hélène Dufour, Rueil-Malmaison - Jacqueline Englert, Paris - Ets Fayolle Et Fils, Soisy-Sous-Montmorency - Antonio Fernandez Albalat y Garcia, La Coruna, Espagne - Albert Franqueville, Taverny - André Herduin, Joué-Les-Tours - Marguerite Janvier, Le Mans - Jean-Luc Joseph, Saint-Leu la Forêt - Pascal Kinadjian, Andilly - Thierry et Thérèse Lafont, Saint-Leu la Forêt - Robert Lecat, Taverny - Marie- Pierre Lejeune Afzali, Saint-Leu la Forêt - Gabriel Martin, Saint- Leu la Forêt - Daniel Marty, Saint-Leu la Forêt - Marie-Claude Payen, Bethisy Saint Pierre - Abilio Pires, Epinay Sur Seine - Alain Pottiez, Saint-Leu la Forêt - Claude Robin, Taverny - Alain Sebillet, Saint-Leu la Forêt - Monique Steinlein, Saint-Leu la Forêt - Gilbert Sylvestre, Saint- Leu la Forêt Revue Harpsichord in America, ca 1960 Charles Constantin 1903 Wanda Landowska in front of the entrance of her Auditorium ca

8 Press review X. Lacavalerie, Classica n 133, June 2011 R. Dameron, L Echo Régional, 9 Sept 2011 J. Pound, BBC Music Magazine, Sept 2011 Sous la direction de J.J. Eigeldinger - Wanda Landowska et la renaissance de la musique ancienne Actes Sud/Cité de la Musique 2011 G. Tardif, readers Télérama, 18 May 2011 ASWL Association pour la Sauvegarde de l'auditorium Wanda Landowska 8 Conception: Association pour la Sauvegarde de l auditorium Wanda Landowska 01/2012 & 09/2013 Writing: P Steinlein, D Marty, G Tardif, S Marq, R Baroin Graphic design: S Marq & JL Joseph Print: Mairie de Saint-Leu la Forêt J. Drillon, Le Nouvel Observateur n 2429, June 2011

RULES OF THE INTERNATIONAL EARLY MUSIC COMPETITION

RULES OF THE INTERNATIONAL EARLY MUSIC COMPETITION IN LOIRE VALLEY 2017 THE COMPETITION PRESENTATION The International Early Music Competition in Loire Valley is open to all instrumental ensembles performing