Series of historically informed chamber music concerts featuring music from the 18th and 19th centuries
The historically informed ensemble L’Encyclopédie launches the first edition of the festival Les Encyclopédiennes on May 29 and 30, 2026, in Geneva. This new event is dedicated to chamber music of the Enlightenment and early Romantic periods, and will take place in the prestigious setting of the Fondation Zoubov Museum, located in Geneva’s Old Town.
Conceived as both an artistic and intellectual laboratory, the festival offers five events combining concerts, cultural mediation, and innovative musical experiences. Inspired by the encyclopedic spirit of the 18th century, it brings music, thought, and heritage into dialogue, at the heart of a venue where artworks, instruments, and history resonate with sound.
Faithful to its mission of transmission, the festival will also reach out to younger audiences with Les Petits Encyclopédistes, a museum-musical tale for children, blending philosophical storytelling, museum discovery, and live music. Geneva schoolchildren will be invited to take part in this experience, combining musical, narrative, and museum exploration within the refined setting of a private mansion salon in the heart of the Old Town.
The highlight of the weekend will be a gala concert on Saturday evening, bringing together the musicians of L’Encyclopédie around the theme “Heroes!”, a musical exploration of heroic figures through hunting, mythology, war, and triumph in 18th- and 19th-century European music.
This initiative confirms the international reputation of Ensemble L’Encyclopédie, whose recordings—widely acclaimed by critics—are released by Harmonia Mundi, arguably the most prestigious classical music label today.
With Les Encyclopédiennes, the ensemble affirms its ambition: to invent new forms of concerts where music becomes at once an artistic experience, a means of transmitting knowledge, and a dialogue with cultural institutions.
Programme – May 29 & 30, 2026
Fondation Zoubov – Geneva
Friday, May 29
9:30 AM – Les Petits Encyclopédistes: museum-musical tale for ages 6–10
2:00 PM – Les Petits Encyclopédistes: second performance
7:00 PM – Ex Libris: concert by young talents of the Geneva University of Music
Saturday, May 30
3:00 PM – Experiential concert with the Fifres and Tambours de Genève
8:15 PM – Gala concert – Heroes!
