Animalia concert: when nature comes to life through music

Conceived in collaboration with the École normale de Musique de Paris – Alfred Cortot, this concert forms part of the ‘Animals in Music’ series, designed to complement the exhibition ‘Animalia. Bestiary from the Al Thani Collection’.

For centuries, animals have fuelled the imagination of composers. Their songs, their movements, their evocative power and their symbolic significance inspire works of great richness, blending poetry, fantasy and virtuosity.

This third concert offers a fresh perspective on nature as a whole, through the way in which the arts allow us to see and hear the living world. Echoing the myths and imaginary creatures of the exhibition, Rameau’s Les Cyclopes opens the programme, before Tchaikovsky’s The Seasons unfolds, in twelve scenes, landscapes, animals, atmospheres and scenes from everyday life throughout the year.

Featuring: 

Louisa Sophia Jefferson, piano.

‘Tchaikovsky’s The Seasons’

When nature awakens through music

Louisa Sophia Jefferson, piano

Jean-Philippe Rameau (1683–1764)

Les Cyclopes – excerptfrom the Pièces de clavecin

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840–1893)

The Seasons, Op. 37a

January — By the fireside

February — Carnival

March — Song of the Lark

April — Snowdrop

May — May Nights

June — Barcarolle

July — Song of the Reaper

August — The Harvest

September — The Hunt

October — Autumn Song

November — Troika

December — Christmas

The École Normale de Musique de Paris – Alfred-Cortot is a private higher education music institution founded in 1919 by the renowned pianist and teacher Alfred Cortot. Located in the 17th arrondissement of Paris, it trains musicians of the very highest calibre, including concert performers and teachers. It is one of the world’s most prestigious institutions for higher music education and welcomes nearly 600 students, 70 per cent of whom are international, hailing from nearly 50 different countries. Its 120 teachers are renowned musicians and educators, ranked amongst the very best in France.

The School’s teaching of the highest standard is recognised worldwide, making it an ambassador for French culture abroad. The École Normale de Musique de Paris also boasts a magnificent concert hall, the Salle Cortot, built in 1929 by the architect Auguste Perret, which can seat 400 people; recognised as having ‘one of the finest acoustics in Paris’, it hosts numerous concerts each year featuring the greatest musicians of our time.

For several years now, the École Normale de Musique de Paris has been partnering with major museums and heritage institutions to develop concert series linked to their collections and exhibitions. This project has three objectives: to foster dialogue between the artistic disciplines, to support the professional integration of young musicians, and to reach out to new audiences.

These regular events invite visitors to discover the works from a fresh perspective, through the dialogue between music and the visual arts. They enable the School’s musicians to perform in prestigious venues, whilst offering museums a high-quality, bespoke musical programme.