What could be more natural, on the occasion of the centenary of the birth of Jean-Pierre Rampal, than to dedicate an exhibition to him here, in Vichy, where he made his debut as a soloist? One of the most emblematic virtuosos of the Grand Casino Orchestra, he still fascinates today with his art and with what the musical world owes him.
But do we remember that year after year, the lists of musicians composing the most prestigious of the summer formations reveal a lot of familiar names at the beginning of extraordinary careers? So we wanted to associate to this homage to Jean-Pierre Rampal the soloists of the Vichy Opera as a whole through some of the most important personalities from the Belle Époque until the 1960s. There will be many exceptional artists, from the glorious period of the interwar period to the elite of the great virtuosos of the modern era – among them another immense French flutist in the person of Maxence Larrieu, whom Vichy will have the pleasure of welcoming this fall.
In short, a whole historical journey to rediscover the actors of a fabulous musical richness – in fact a golden age of almost a century!
Denis Verroust
Exhibition curator