The Symphonic Concert, which will fill the Caudan Arts Centre with music on October 28, will bring together at least forty-nine musicians and singers, most of whom are from Mauritius, with only four from Réunion. For Paul Olsen of Opera Mauritius, “this is historic,” because there hasn’t been a truly Mauritian symphony orchestra since the 1960s. Dominique Bellier
The leaders of Opera Mauritius sought out the best musicians from the Police Orchestra, the François-Mitterrand National Conservatoryof Music, andthe Ensemble415 to form this new ensemble, which was still lacking experienced oboe and bassoon players; these musicians will come from Réunion, as will the conductor, Daniel Bargier, who worked there for several years. Also a choir director, he placed great emphasis during rehearsals on musicians listening to one another— the only way for an orchestra to truly come together as a unified whole. The conductor of the Police Orchestra will play the violin, the director of the Conservatory, Marie Christinne Clarisse, will return to the piano, and the audience—if they don’t already know her— will have the pleasure of discovering, in the second half, the great cellist Anne Chauveau Dhayan.
The program for this first evening features 10 pieces by different composers, chosen by the conductor with the aim of highlighting the ensemble’s cohesion. The brass section will get right to the heart of the matter with Suite No. 2from Handel’s *Water Music* by Handel, followed by works bySaint-Saëns, Villa-Lobos, and Mendelssohn. The second half will begin with a Mauritian premiere by Jean-René Bastien, followed by excerpts from Peer Gynt and a Mozart concerto, the Variations on a Rococo Theme by Tchaikovsky, and *My Fair Lady*, performed by Sophie Némorin, Estelle Cathan, and Jessica Babet. Véronique Zuel and Jean-Michel Ringadoo will bring the concert to a spectacular close with the *Brindisi* from *La Traviata*.
