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Quiz: Palais Garnier

From abroad, the live show is available for replay until 25 July 2025!From France, you can watch the replay on the <a href="https://www.operadeparis.fr/info/150-ans-du-palais-garnier" target="_blank">Paris Opera website</a> or <a href="https://www.france.tv/spectacles-et-culture/theatre-et-danse/6837853-gala-d-anniversaire-150-ans-du-palais-garnier.html" target="_blank">France.tv</a>.Since its inauguration day, on January 5, 1875, the Palais Garnier has never ceased to amaze the public. With a sumptuous architecture and luxurious decorations including marbles, mosaics, sculptures and paintings, this building is truly extraordinary. A place of social gatherings and a national symbol, the Palais Garnier went through artistic and political history to become a world-famous monument.To mark this anniversary, a series of events is organised throughout the year 2025, kicking off with a Gala bringing together all the artists of the Opera. Musicians of the Orchestra, artists of the Chorus and the Academy, dancers of the Ballet Company and School, guest artists gather to celebrate the anniversary of this arts, music and dance temple.

MHB_2532 Bolero Hugo marchand Gala 150 ans Palais Garnier

Gala 150 ans - 1

Gala 150 ans - 2

Gala - 150th anniversary of Palais Garnier

rideau palais garnier carre

The Palais Garnier turns 150 - Program of festivities

From abroad, the live show is available for replay until 25 July 2025! From France, you can watch the replay on the Paris Opera website or France.tv. Since its inauguration day, on January 5, 1875, the Palais Garnier has never ceased to amaze the pub

The Palais Garnier turns 150

Anniversary Gala

Born in Germany, Thomas Hengelbrock is a violinist, conductor, researcher, and musical educator. At the heart of his work is an in-depth exploration of the musical text, meaning and content of the works he performs. He is as passionate about bringing forgotten compositions to light as he is about performing great works such as Mendelssohn's Elijah, Haydn's Creation, Beethoven's Missa solemnis, Parsifal and Cavalleria rusticana on period instruments.He also explores contemporary music. In residence at the Château de Fontainebleau with his Balthasar Neumann Choir and Orchestra, of which he is founder and director, Thomas Hengelbrock is also invited by orchestras such as the Vienna and Munich Philharmonics, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, the Orchestre de Paris, the Orchestre national de France, the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich and the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra, with whom he conducted the opening concert of the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg in 2017.In addition to his work as a conductor, Thomas Hengelbrock has directed several productions, including Dido and Aeneas and Don Giovanni, and has collaborated on interdisciplinary projects with actors such as Klaus Maria Brandauer, Johanna Wokalek and Graham Valentine. Deeply committed to artistic transmission, he has been working for many years to give young people privileged access to art and culture, sharing with them his enthusiasm for music.Since the Covid-19 pandemic, he has been particularly committed to the survival of culture and independent musicians in Europe. In 2016, Thomas Hengelbrock was awarded the Herbert von Karajan Music Prize. In September 2024, he was appointed music director of the Orchestre de chambre de Paris.At the Opéra national de Paris: Orphée et Eurydice, 2005, 2008, 2012, 2014, 2018; Idomeneo, 2006, 2009; The Magic Flute, 2008; Iphigénie en Tauride, 2021; Alcina, 2021; Faust, 2022; Simon Boccanegra, 2024.

Trained at the Académie de l'Opéra national de ParisVictoria Sitjà trained as an actor and director at the Théâtre de l'Odéon in Paris, under Luc Bondy and Jean Bellorini, and then in St. Petersburg, where she worked with Lev Dodin. In 2017, she launched the trilogy Nostalgie et Héritage, which brings together her productions of Chekhov's Three Sisters, Lagarce's Juste la fin du monde and Kafka's Lettre au père, presented at the Théâtre Gérard Philipe in Saint-Denis. Her multifaceted career has enriched her approach to the stage, with positions as stage manager, props mistress, translator and rehearsal director, notably for Isabelle Adjani and Amira Casar.She has also worked with internationally renowned directors such as Robert Wilson, Lydia Steier and Deborah Warner. In September 2021, Victoria Sitjà will join the Académie de l'Opéra national de Paris, where she will create two workshops for artists in residence: Après la fatigue du jour, a work on Richard Strauss's Four Last Songs, and Looking for Bernstein, a tribute to the illustrious composer and conductor Leonard Bernstein. Since then, she has collaborated regularly with the Opéra national de Paris on numerous productions and projects, including this season's children's show Actéon in partnership with the Maîtrise de Radio France.At the Opéra national de Paris (Amphithéâtre Olivier Messiaen): Après la fatigue du jour, 2022; Looking for Bernstein, 2023; Actéon, 2024

A graduate of the Taiwan Teacher Training College (Music Department), Ching-Lien Wu continued her studies at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique in Lyon, where she was awarded the First Prize in Choral Conducting in 1987. She attended courses and workshops in orchestral conducting with JeanSébastien Béreau, Helmut Rilling, Michael Gielen and Pierre Boulez. 
In 1989, she was appointed Chorus Master at the Nantes Opera and in 1990, Assistant Chorus Master at the Théâtre du Capitole in Toulouse. From 1991 to 2001, Ching-Lien Wu served as Chorus Master at the Opéra National du Rhin in Strasbourg. The work she accomplished there was acclaimed by French and international critics. During this period, she was guest Chorus Master at the operas of Montpellier, Rouen and Shanghai as well as at Radio France for various operatic works and oratorios. In 1996, she was assistant to Norbert Balatsch at the Bayreuth Festival.
From 2001 to 2014, Ching-Lien Wu was Chorus Master of the Grand Théâtre de Genève. In September 2014, she was appointed Chorus Master of the Dutch National Opera in Amsterdam. In 2016, the German magazine Opernwelt awarded the Dutch National Opera Chorus under the direction of Ching-Lien Wu the best Chorus of the Year label. She has also conducted numerous concerts with her own choir «Le Motet de Genève» with the Suisse Romande Orchestra, the Geneva Chamber Orchestra and the Orchestratus Genevensis. She was at the helm
of this vocal ensemble from 2002 to 2012.
Since 1996, she has been invited to give master classes in choral conducting at the CNSM in Lyon. In her native country, she has been responsible for musical studies for several opera productions, including The Barber of Seville, an opera she also staged in Taipei. Ching-Lien Wu was appointed Chorus Master of the Paris Opera in February 2021 and took up her post on 26 April of the same year.

Louis Sady trained in 2015 at the Centre national de formation professionnelle aux techniques du spectacle, a work-study program at the Comédie de Caen, CDN de Normandie-Caen. There he learned the professions of technician, lighting designer and stage manager. In addition to his professional training, he also studied music, specializing in electronic music composition. In 2017, he became a lighting designer, sound designer and stage manager for various theater and opera productions. Since 2020, he has collaborated as lighting designer with Victoria Sitjà and Lucie Mazières on Après la fatigue du jour and Looking for Bernstein for the Académie de l'Opéra national de Paris.After designing the lighting for Garance Bonotto's show Pink Machine in 2023, he continues his collaboration with the Compagnie 1% artistique as sound and lighting designer for the show Dégâts des eaux. In 2024, he continues touring with his own musical creation, performed live in the show Paysage(s), directed by Aurélie Édeline. During the 2024-2025 season, Louis Sady will design the lighting for Actéon, directed by Victoria Sitjà, at the Académie de l'Opéra national de Paris.At the Opéra national de Paris (Amphithéâtre Olivier Messiaen): Après la fatigue du jour, 2022; In Search of Bernstein, 2023; Actéon, 2024.

With a passion for literature and art history, Lucie Mazières discovered theater at the Université Paris VII, where she graduated. She trained in set and costume design at the Institut d'études théâtrales de la Sorbonne Nouvelle and at the École Duperré with Claire Chavanne and Sylvie Skinazi. In 2019, she assists Alexandre de Dardel in the set design of Stéphane Braunschweig's Oncle Vania at the Théâtre des Nations in Moscow. In the same year, she collaborated with Philippe Quesne on the French Pavilion at the Quadriennale de scénographie in Prague.In 2023, she was dramaturgical assistant and artistic collaborator for Garance Bonotto's Pink Machine (Compagnie 1% artistique) at the Centre dramatique national de Rouen and on tour. She also designed the set for Janice Szczypawka's Des gosses at the Théâtre de la Maison d'Elsa.Since 2020, Lucie Mazières has collaborated with Victoria Sitjà as set and costume designer for Après la fatigue du jour and Looking for Bernstein at the Académie de l'Opéra national de Paris. More recently, she designed the sets for Marie Cœur-de-truie by Mathilde Courcol-Rozès and Dégât des eaux by the Compagnie 1% artistique.In the 2024-2025 season, she will design the sets and costumes for bonnes, directed by Louise Herrero, at the Théâtre L'Étoile du Nord and the Théâtre de la Tempête, and, at the Académie de l'Opéra national de Paris, the sets and costumes for Actéon (with the Maîtrise de Radio France), directed by Victoria Sitjà, and the sets for L'Isola disabitata, directed by Simon Valastro.At the Opéra national de Paris (Amphithéâtre Olivier Messiaen): Après la fatigue du jour, 2022; In Search of Bernstein, 2023; Actéon, 2024.

Etienne Guiol is a painter and video designer. In 2006, he entered the Émile-Cohl school in Lyon, where he was trained in drawing and animation. Since 2012, he has been working in the field of video creation for theater, opera and monumental projection. Founder of the BK International studio in 2012, he and his team produce video creations for live performances and monumental architecture all over the world (Lyon, Paris, Versailles, Strasbourg, Rouen, Bucharest, Rome, Casablanca, Dubai, Jerusalem...).His stage creations have taken him to some of the world's greatest opera stages (La Scala, Milan; Bolshoi Theatre, Moscow; Opéra national de Paris; Operas de Versailles, Athens, Karlsruhe, Basel, Geneva, Budapest, Muscat, Hong Kong).In 2024, he was part of the set design team for the Opening Ceremonies of the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games under the direction of director Thomas Jolly. His work has won several awards: Maria Republica, a creation of the Angers Nantes Opéra, won the prize for best creation in 2016, and Le Coq d'Or, after Rimsky-Korsakov, won the Critics' Prize for best creator of scenic elements in 2014 with set designer Bruno de Lavenère.At the Opéra national de Paris: Cendrillon, 2022; La Vestale, 2024

La muette de Portici

Born in May 22, 1813 in Leipzig, Richard Wagner developed, at a young age, a passion for the theatre art. Influenced by Weber and Beethoven he chose nevertheless to start a career as a composer. His first opera The Fairies was not performed until after his death while his second one, The Ban on Love (1835), was a failure. He spent three years in Paris where he achieved Rienzi and The Flying Dutchman, and was then appointed Kapellmeister at the Royal Saxon Court, where he staged Tannhäuser in 1845. But his involvement in the left-wing May revolution prevented the creation of Lohengrin in Dresden and even forced him into exile in Switzerland. There, he started to work on Der Ring des Nibelungen, a project he began a year earlier. It took him more than twenty years to achieve the cycle, as he was interrupted for a long period by the writing of Tristan and Isolde and The Master Singers of Nuremberg. With the support of Ludwig II of Bavaria, who idolized Wagner, many of his works were staged in Munich. In 1871, Wagner commissioned a theatre of his design in Bayreuth dedicated to the performance of his works. There, in 1876, was created the complete cycle of Der Ring des Nibelungen as well as Parsifal, in 1882, his last opera and artistic legacy. Wagner died in 1883 in Venice following an angina pectoris.

Tannhäuser - Acte III, Scène 1 Choeur des pèlerins

Born on board the Trans-Siberian Railway not far from Lake Baikal, Rudolf Nureyev (1938-1993) first learnt traditional folk dancing in Oufa (Bashkiria). He saw his first ballet at the Oufa Opera at the age of seven, however, he did not officially begin training as a dancer until he was fifteen. Two years later, he continued his studies at the Vaganova School in Leningrad during which time he was tutored by dance master Alexander Pushkin from 1955 to 1958. The following year he was accepted into the Corps de ballet of the Kirov Theatre where he soon became a soloist. During one of the troupe’s tours of Western Europe, Nureyev made his debut on the stage of the Palais Garnier on May 15, 1961 for a dress rehearsal of Sleeping Beauty. He would also cause a sensation by performing in the Act featuring the Kingdom of the Shades in La Bayadère three days after seeking political asylum from French customs and immigration officers at Le Bourget Airport on May 16, 1961 after the powers that be at the Kirov had decided to send him back to Moscow without allowing him to continue on the Ballet’s tour to London. As a result, Paris remained a city of great symbolic value for him. He ultimately became the director of the Paris Opera Ballet from 1983 to 1989 after having danced for numerous companies (including the Grand Ballet du Marquis de Cuevas and London’s Royal Ballet) and having created Tancrède (Vienna Opera, 1966) and Manfred (Paris Opera, 1979). The Paris Opera Ballet’s repertoire would be enriched by his reinterpretations of Marius Petipa’s choreographic masterpieces. These would include Don Quichotte (1981), Raymonda (1983), Swan Lake (1984), Romeo and Juliet (1984), The Nutcracker (1985), Cinderella (1986), Sleeping Beauty (1989) and La Bayadère (1992). The status accorded a male dancer, which in ballet had been greatly undermined since the 19th century, gained new importance in his works. Nureyev also created a number of contemporary ballets including The Tempest (1984), Bach Suite (1984) and Washington Square (1985). He also offered an extremely diverse contemporary repertoire (Frederick Ashton, Rudi van Dantzig, Roland Petit, Maurice Béjart, George Balanchine, Glen Tetley, Martha Graham, Murray Louis, Jerome Robbins, Bob Wilson, Paul Taylor, Hans van Manen, Lucinda Childs, Twyla Tharp, and William Forsythe). Finally, he began a new tradition at the Paris Opera by naming the new Etoiles on stage at the end of a performance in the presence of the audience. The stage of the Palais Garnier had great significance for him: he would salute his audience there for the last time at the end of a performance of La Bayadère on October 8, 1992. His funeral in January 1993 would also be honoured at the Palais Garnier. Rudolf Nureyev was a Chevalier of the Légion d’Honneur (1988) and a Commandeur des Arts et Lettres (1992).

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky was born in 1840 in Votkinsk, a small town in the Urals. While studying law in Saint Petersburg, he took music classes at the Saint Petersburg Conservatory under composer and pianist Anton Rubinstein. In 1866, pianist Nikolaï Rubinstein, Anton’s brother, offered him a position as harmony teacher at the Moscow Conservatory. There, he met playwright Ostrovski who wrote his first opera libretto, The Voyevoda, and composed his first symphony. In 1876, Tchaikovsky initiated a sustained correspondence with Nadejda von Meck, a wealthy widow and great admirer of his music. Though they only wrote to each other and never met, she became his patroness for the next 13 years, which allowed him to focus exclusively on composition. In 1877, hoping to ease the inner conflicts caused by his homosexuality, he married Antonina Miliukova, one of his former students at the Moscow Conservatory, but the marriage was a disaster and left the composer on the verge of suicide. By 1880, Tchaikovsky had become famous: regarded as the ultimate nationalist musician, Tchaikosky spent his time between composition, numerous travels and a small estate he bought in the countryside. In 1891, he traveled to the United States and conducted several of his works at the inaugural concert of Carnegie Hall. He died in 1893 in Saint Petersburg. Although the official cause was cholera, many speculations were made about his death and some even thought of suicide. Tchaikovsky was an eclectic composer. A brilliant orchestrator, with a fine sense of melody, he composed in every musical genre, though he was particularly acknowledged for his symphonic works (the First Piano Concerto is one of the most played concertos in the world). He changed the way musicians regarded ballet by bringing a symphonic touch to a genre before seen as “inferior”. Mostly known in France for his ballets (Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty, The Nutcracker) and symphonies, Tchaikovsky composed a dozen operas (The Voyevoda, Iolanta, The Oprichnik, Vakula the Smith…). Among them, only Eugene Onegin and The Queen of Spades made their marks as long-lasted successes in Europe.

1998 : Enters the Paris Opera Ballet School.2006 : Joins the Paris Opera Corps de Ballet.2010 : Promoted to « Coryphée ».2011 : Promoted to « Sujet ».2013 : Promoted to « Première danseuse ».Valentine Colasante is made an "Étoile" on January 5th 2018, following the performance of Don Quixote (Rudolf Nureyev), a ballet in which she performed the role of Kitri.As part of the Paris Opera Ballet’s official tours, she has performed in Australia (Sydney, 2007), China (Beijing, 2008), Russia (Novosibirsk, 2010), Malaysia (Singapore, 2011), the United States (New York, 2017) and Spain (Madrid, 2019).

Valentine Colasante

1999: Enters the Paris Opera Ballet School.2004: Joins the Paris Opera Corps de Ballet.2009: Promoted to "Coryphée".2010: AROP Dance Prize.2011 : Promoted to "Sujet".2019: Promoted to "Premier danseur".2023: Marc Moreau is named "Danseur Étoile" on March 2nd 2023, following the performance of Ballet impérial (George Balanchine) in which he performed the principal soloist.

Marc-Moreau-james-bort-nb (c) James Bort OnP

2010: Enters the Paris Opera Ballet School.
2015: Joins the Paris Opera Corps de Ballet.
2017: Promoted to "Coryphée".
2019: Promoted to "Sujet".2021: AROP dance prize award.2024: Promoted to "Premier danseur".

DOCQUIR_Thomas-94

Lac des cygnes - Acte III, Pas de trois du Cygne noir

Gioacchino Rossini was born in Pesaro on February 29, 1792. Son of musicians (his father played the horn and his mother sang in troupes of fairground operas), he studied singing and harmony in Bologna under the guidance of the abbot Mattei. At the age of 18, he had his first opera buffa performed in Venice, La Cambiale di matrimonio, which was soon followed by works of the same genre (L'Inganno felice, L'Occasione fa il ladro...). At the age of 20, three of his operas had already been performed, and a year later the number would rise to ten. In 1813, the creation of Tancredi, also in Venice, opened the doors to success and made him the undisputed master of the Italian opera scene for many years. The works follow one another at a frenetic pace: The Barber of Seville and Otello in 1816, La Cenerentola and Armide in 1817, La Donna del lago in 1819, Maometto II in 1821, Semiramis in 1823... Between 1818 and 1822, he is artistic director of the Teatro San Carlo in Naples. In 1822, he married the singer Isabella Colbran (1785-1845). From 1824, he settled in Paris. He was appointed head of the Théâtre Italien, a position he kept for two years, then First Composer to the King and General Inspector of singing in France. Le Voyage à Reims was created at the Théâtre Italien for the coronation of Charles X. Rossini reused part of the music in Le Comte Ory in 1828. His last opera, Guillaume Tell, created at the Paris Opera on August 3, 1829, was a triumph. In 1830, the revolution made him lose his royal offices; he separated from his wife and practically abandoned his musical activity. He remarried Olympe Pélissier and composed a Stabat Mater, commissioned by a Spanish prelate, as well as a number of occasional pieces, and numerous chamber music works, collected in a series of books entitled Péchés de vieillesse, often tinged with humor. From 1836 to 1848, he lived in Italy and then settled permanently in France. He died in Passy on November 13, 1868. Rossini left all his belongings to his native town, Pesaro, where a festival is held every year that has brought back to life many of the composer's forgotten works, some of which have since entered the repertoire of major opera houses.

Born in New Orleans, Louisiana, to Cuban parents, Lisette Oropesa played the flute before beginning her studies in vocal performance at Louisiana State University. She entered the Lindemann Young Artist Development Program and moved to New York City. She began her career at the Metropolitan Opera, New York, where she starred in various roles including Susanna (Le Nozze di Figaro), Manon Lescaut (Manon), Violetta (La Traviata), Nannetta (Falstaff), Gretel (Hänsel et Gretel) and Gilda (Rigoletto). She has performed Konstanze (Il Seraglio) at the Bayerische Staatsoper Munich and Vienna Staatsoper, Gilda (Rigoletto) at the Dutch National Opera, Teatro dell'opera di Roma, Los Angeles Opera, Royal Opera House Covent Garden, Metropolitan Opera de New York and Vienna Staatsoper, Norina (Don Pasquale) in Glyndebourne, the title-role of Lucia di Lammermoor at the Royal Opera House Covent Garden, the Opernhaus Zurich, Vienna Staatsoper, at the Salzburg and Aix-en-Provence festivals and at Teatro alla Scala, in Milan, and Violetta (La Traviata) at the Arena di Verona, Bayerische Staatsoper Munich, Royal Opera House Covent Garden and Teatro dell’Opera in Rome, Elvira (I Puritani) at Teatro di San Carlo in Naples, the title role of Alcina in London, Amalia (I Masnadieri) at the Bayerische Staatsoper in Munich, Fiorilla (Il turco in Italia) at Teatro Real in Madrid and Juliette (Roméo et Juliette) in Savonlinna. Her repertoire also includes Ophelie (Hamlet), Leïla (Les Pêcheurs de perles), Marie (La Fille du régiment), Rosina (The Barber of Seville) and Adina (L’Elisir d’amore). This season, she sings Marie in Chicago, Elvira in Dresden, Mathilde (Guillaume Tell) in Vienna and Amina (La sonnambula) in Rome. She won the Beverly Sills and Richard Tucker awards in 2019.

At the Paris Opera: Il Seraglio (Konstanze), 2015; Rigoletto (Gilda), 2017; Les Huguenots (Marguerite de Valois), 2018 ; L’elisir d’amore (Adina), 2018; The Barber of Seville (Rosina), 2020; Hamlet (Ophélie), 2023; Giulio Cesare (Cleopatra), 2024

Oropesa.Lisette

Guillaume Tell - Acte II, Scène 2 « Sombre forêt »

Kaija Saariaho was born in Finland in 1952 and studied under Paavo Heininen at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki. From there, she went to Darmstadt and then Fribourg, to follow the classes of Brian Ferneyhough and Klaus Huber respectively. Her research into tone and timbre prompted her study of new instrumental and computer-generated techniques which she has explored at IRCAM, France’s musical research institute since 1982. That exploratory work has since become an important component of her compositions. She reinforced her international renown with pieces like Verblendungen for orchestra and magnetic tape (1982-84), Lichtbogen for chamber music and electronic ensembles (1985 86), and Nymphéa (1987) commissioned by New York’s Lincoln Center for the Kronos Quartet. From the 1990s onwards, her music became more expressive in its melodic fluctuations. Timbre and colour remained at the core of her compositions. Her principal works include the violin concerto, Graal théâtre, written for Gidon Kremer in 1995 ; two musical compositions dedicated to Dawn Upshaw: Château de l’âme, which premiered at the Salzburg Festival in 1996 and Lonh, a cycle of melodies for soprano and electro acoustics which was first performed at Vienna’s Festival Wien Modern in 1996 ; Oltra mar for orchestra and mixed chorus, which was first performed in 1999 by the New York Philharmonic Orchestra; a concerto for flute, Aile du songe, composed for Camilla Hoitenga (2001) ; Nymphea Reflection for string orchestra, dedicated to Christoph Eschenbach (2001) ; Orion, for the Cleveland Orchestra (2002) ; and Quatre Instants, for soprano and piano/orchestra written for Karita Mattila and first performed in April 2003. Her first opera, L’Amour de loin, set to a libretto by Amin Maalouf and directed by Peter Sellars, premiered at the Salzburg Festival in 2000. In 2003 it received the Grawemeyer Music Composition Award. Her second opera, Adriana Mater, set to an original libretto by Amin Maalouf and again directed by Peter Sellars, had its world premiere at the Paris Opera in March 2006. Kaija Saariaho has also written La Passion de Simone, a vast oratorio based on the life and thoughts of the philosopher Simone Weil, commissioned by the Venice Festival, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Barbican Centre and Lincoln Center. That work, based on a text by Amin Maalouf, was first performed by the Klangforum Wien in Vienna on November 26, 2006 under the baton of Susanna Mälkki with Peter Sellars directing. Amin Maalouf was also the librettist of her third opera, Emilie, which premiered at the Lyon Opera in 2010. Her other creations include True Fire (2015) for baritone and orchestra which was first performed by Gerald Finley and the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra with Gustavo Dudamel conducting; Trans, a concerto for harp which premiered at Suntory Hall in Tokyo; and Only the Sound Remains which made its debut at the Dutch National Opera in Amsterdam (2016).

Circle map - I. Morning Wind

Giuseppe Verdi was born in 1813 into a modest but relatively well-to-do family in the hamlet of Le Roncole, near Busseto. He received his first musical training from the village organist. In 1824, he became the organist at the church in Busseto. After following music lessons with the organist and composer Ferdinando Provesi, he was noticed by Antonio Barezzi, a spirits merchant and music aficionado who also founded the Filarmonici (Societa filarmonica), the town’s amateur orchestra. Barezzi would become Verdi’s patron and sponsor and the composer would ultimately marry Barezzi’s daughter Margherita in 1836. A stipend enabled him to continue his studies in Milan where he took private lessons with Vincenzo Lavigna, a teacher at La Scala, and a friend of Rossini. On the recommendations of the impresario Bartolomeo Merelli, his first opera, Oberto, conte di San Bonifacio was performed at La Scala in Milan. For a short while following the death of his two children and then his wife Margherita, and after the relative fiasco that befell his second opera, Un giorno di regno, Verdi considered abandoning music altogether. However, he started composing again when Merelli offered him the libretto for Nabucco. That opera was a huge success at its premiere at La Scala on March 9, 1842 and it did not take long before all of Italy was singing Va pensiero, the anthem in which the chorus of slaves lament their lost freedom. From then on, Verdi became the bard of Italian unification. Most of the works that followed would be operas with patriotic undertones (I Lombardi alla prima crocciata, Ernani, Giovanna d’Arco, Attila, La Battaglia di Legnano…). In 1847, Verdi left for London for the world premiere of I Masnadieri, then settled in Paris where he met up with Giuseppina Strepponi, who would create the role of Abigaille. They would never be separated again. Verdi purchased the property at Sant’Agata, near Busseto and openly enlisted in the struggle for the liberation of Italy, which was then occupied by the Austrians. After 1850, Verdi was unrivalled in Italy. In particular, his popular trilogy, Rigoletto – Il Trovatore – La Traviata dates from this period.Les Vêpres siciliennes (Paris, 1855), Simon Boccanegra (La Fenice in Venice, 1857), Un ballo in maschera (Rome, 1859), La Forza del destino (Saint Petersburg, 1862), Don Carlos (Paris, 1867), Aida (Cairo, 1871), the Messa di Requiem (Milan, 1874), Otello (Milan, 1887), and Falstaff (Milan, 1893) would follow. In 1861, he was elected deputy of Busseto. He passed away in Milan on January 27, 1901. With no heir at the time of his death, Verdi bequeathed his copyrights to the retirement home for aging musicians that he had founded in Milan.

Born in Lima in 1973, tenor Juan Diego Flórez began singing and playing Peruvian folk and pop music at an early age. At the age of 17, he enrolled at the National Conservatory of Music in Lima and three years later won a scholarship to continue his vocal studies at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. In 1996 he made his professional debut at the Rossini Opera Festival in Pesaro, where he was hired on short notice to sing the tenor role of Corradino in Matilde di Shabran.In the same year, at the age of 23, he was invited to make his debut at La Scala in Milan for the opening of the season under Riccardo Muti. Since then, he has appeared on the world's most important opera stages under the direction of the world's greatest conductors. Early in his career, he made a name for himself with his interpretations of the Belcanto repertoire, and later with his portrayals of French Romantic heroes.Juan Diego Flórez has recorded numerous solo albums as well as complete operas on CD and DVD. In 2024 he will launch his own label with a new album dedicated to Zarzuela. In 2011, Juan Diego Flórez founded "Sinfonía por el Perú", an inclusive social project that runs orchestras and choirs throughout Peru to help the most vulnerable.At the Opéra national de Paris: L'Italienne à Alger (Lindoro), 2000; La Cenerentola (Don Ramiro), 2002; La Dame du lac (Giacomo V), 2010; La Fille du régiment (Tonio), 2012.

Jérusalem - Acte II, Scène 7 « Je veux encore entendre ta voix »

Maurice Ravel (1875-1937), born in Ciboure, France, near Saint-Jean-de-Luz, began studying the piano at an early age. He joined the composition class taught by Gabriel Fauré in 1897. His early works composed in 1898 (Sites auriculaires, Schéhérazade) were poorly received, whereas the Pavane for a Dead Princess (1899) and Jeux d’eau (1901) brought him a certain fame. His cantata Myrrha was awarded with the second Prix de Rome in 1901, while Sonatine and Miroirs (1905), two essential pieces for piano, were a step forward in his research of harmonic. In 1909, Maurice Ravel and Gabriel Fauré founded with other artists the Independent Musical Society to promote contemporary music, a movement that was hardly supported by the National Music Society. Following World War I, Ravel started a triumphant career as a conductor and pianist, touring in Europe and the United-States. Among his most famous compositions are Rapsodie espagnole (1907), Ma mère l’Oye and Gaspard de la nuit (1908), Valses nobles et sentimentales (1912), Le Tombeau de Couperin (1917), the Concerto pour la main gauche (1931). Maurice Ravel also wrote works specifically for dance: Daphnis et Chloé (1912), commissioned by Serge Diaghilev; Boléro (1928), commissioned for the dance company of Ida Rubinstein; La Valse (1920), initially commissioned then rejected by Diaghilev, and used in 1929 by Bronislava Nijinska for the Rubinstein Company. Two pieces were later adapted for dance: Ma mère l’Oye (Théâtre des Arts, 1912) and Adélaïde ou le Langage des fleurs (an adaptation of Valses nobles et sentimentales, 1912). Throughout the 20th century, many choreographers drew on his scores. Maurice Ravel also composed chamber music, melodies (Histoires naturelles, Don Quichotte à Dulcinée) and two operas: The Spanish Hour (1907) and L’Enfant et les Sortilèges (1919-1925).

2007 : After winning the First Prize at the CNR (national conservatory) in Nantes, he enters the Paris Opera Ballet School.
2011 : He joins the Paris Opera Corps de ballet.
2014 : Promoted to "Coryphée". Bronze medal at the Varna International Dance competition.
2015 : Promoted to "Sujet". Cercle Carpeaux Prize. AROP Dance Prize. Nominated for the Benois de la Danse Prize.
2016 : Promoted to "Premier danseur".
2017 : Benois de la Danse Prize, "best dancer" category. 2018 : Forbes 30 Under 30 Europe: Arts & Culture.

Following a performance of La Sylphide (Lacotte, after Taglioni) in which he perfoms the role of James on the stage of the Bunka Kaikan in Tokyo (Japan) on March 3rd 2017, he is named "Étoile".As part of the Paris Opera Ballet’s official tours, he has performed in Spain (Madrid/ 2019), the United States (New York/ 2017), Japan (Tokyo/ 2017 and 2020).

Hugo Marchand

Boléro

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born on January 27, 1756, in Salzburg. A child prodigy (he took his first harpsichord lessons when he was 4 and began composition at 6), he quickly became famous, thanks to the many tours he made with his father, Leopold, who was himself vice chapel-master at the court of the Prince-Archbishop of Salzburg, as well as a mentor and teacher to his son. At the age of 16, Mozart was appointed concertmaster to the new Prince-Archbishop of Salzburg, Hieronymus von Colleredo. He was commissioned to compose works to the tastes of his day and asked to perform. But he quickly grew tired of the confining environment of Salzburg and, in 1777, he resigned his position at the court. In 1779, he became the resident organist at the Salzburg cathedral, then settled in Vienna. He performed for the Court, gave music lessons and piano concerts, while being vice chapel-master at the cathedral. His Don Giovanni was a huge success in Prague but was poorly received in Vienna. Mozart's health was declining and he spent the last years of his life in poverty. He died on the night of 5 to 6 December 1791: he was not yet 35 years old. He was buried in a common grave, due to sanitary measures but also because of his family's destitution. In spite of his early death, Mozart created in 30 years one of the greatest legacy in music history, comprising classical masterpieces in almost every musical genre: opera, sacred music (including his famous Requiem), symphonic, concert or chamber music... His operas include some early works such as La Finta semplice, Mitridate re di Ponto, Lucio Silla, or La Finta giardiniera. Composed in 1781 Idomeneo started to reveal Mozart's personality. Then Il Seraglio, composed the next year, marked his true independence as an artist and the beginning of his mature masterpieces: Le Nozze di Figaro in 1786, Don Giovanni in 1787, The Magic Flute in 1791. With La Clemenza di Tito Mozart returned to the seria genre.

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Extras

Quiz: Palais Garnier

The Palais Garnier turns 150 - Program of festivities

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Anniversary Gala

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La muette de Portici

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Tannhäuser - Acte III, Scène 1 Choeur des pèlerins

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Lac des cygnes - Acte III, Pas de trois du Cygne noir

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Guillaume Tell - Acte II, Scène 2 « Sombre forêt »

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Circle map - I. Morning Wind

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Jérusalem - Acte II, Scène 7 « Je veux encore entendre ta voix »

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Boléro

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The Magic Flute - Ouverture

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Quiz: Palais Garnier

The Palais Garnier turns 150 - Program of festivities