On top of being one of the best representatives of the French flute school, Juliette Hurel is also the principal flutist of the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra. She will be on tour in Belgium and Germany with this elite ensemble, conducted by the charismatic Yannick Nézet-Seguin, to perform a World premiere of the flute concerto “Love Songs” by Bruno Mantovani. Later on, Juliette Hurel will perform this new piece with the Orchestre national de Lyon, conducted by Leonard Slatkin.   

Musicartsnet : How did you come up with the idea of this concerto? 

Juliette Hurel : It was a process of three years between the first discussions and the final creation. I was invited to be a member of jury at the PARIS CNSM where Bruno Mantovani is Headmaster - and there we mentioned the idea of this concerto. Then I talk right away to Yannick Nézet-Seguin, our music director at the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra. These two wanted another orchestra to be associated on this commission. Thanks to François Dru, former artistic consultant of Lyon National Orchestra, we were able to have the Gaul’s capital as a partner on this project. 

MAN : The name of the composition is « Love Songs », could you tell us why? 

JL : It was Bruno’s choice I will thus quote his argument: “Since I became a musician, I get asked regularly if I come from the family of Annunzio Paolo Mantovani, the well-known Italian-British conductor who founded an orchestra carrying his name. I don’t have any parental connection with the father of easy listening and the man who represents the musical sentimentalism and the tenderness of sound, but this homonym always gave me a feeling of affection towards this artist who represents the antipode of my own esthetical beliefs. One of his most famous CDs is called « Love songs » and thus to pay homage to the sweetness of its sound, I decided to use the same title for this flute concerto. Nevertheless, despite my love for this soloist instrument that justifies such a title, there are only few things that this piece written in 2015 has in common with a romantic song. 

MAN : How was working with Bruno? 

JL : Last spring Bruno sent me some of the drafts of the flute part. Of course, the genesis of the composition is based on the dialogue with the composer. Our first discussions were mainly about the high demands on the technicalities of flute playing. We needed to find a compromise between composer’s will and the actual capacity of the instrument. At the beginning of November, I received the entire music score and I immersed myself in work. Since then we had regular Skype work sessions with Bruno. During the last one, 4 days ago, I played him the whole piece.  

MAN : And how about working with Yannick? 

JL : It is always a challenge to create music, especially a concerto. The soloist needs to have a lot of possibilities to talk to the conductor. From the start, I have been in contact with Yannick and we have a work Skype session coming very soon. The advantage in knowing the music the director is that I know his gestures well. Still, in order to anticipate his signaling, there are many technical details to be discussed, such as his conception of tempo and signaling players in certain parts. 

MAN : Isn’t it hard to work with the unknown? I mean, you will only discover the real sound of the whole ensemble (flute and the orchestra) during the first rehearsal? 

JL : Yes, it is a challenge to imagine the sound of the whole ensemble. Even though I have an idea of how it may sound, I find out for sure at the first rehearsal. That will be an important moment in the whole work process, since the united sound of the orchestra will be quite impressive especially in the big tutti with 4 percussionists. But we have some transitional stages to go through before that. This week I will work with the flute session of the orchestra that also has a very demanding part in the composition. I also listen a lot to Bruno’s music; I am currently discovering his violin concerto. This allows me to penetrate the universe of his music and sound. 

MAN : What is stimulating about creating a concerto? 

JL : So many aspects! It is a lot of work. You are happy and sometimes very anxious at the same time. You ask yourself so many questions. But playing a concerto with Yannick conducting, is a dream come true. It is not common for an Orchestra Principal to have an opportunity to play as a soloist under his Music Director, who also happens to be one of the most followed conductors of the world. 

 MAN : A lot of young musicians have recently joined the orchestra, isn’t that a sign of an orchestra in excellent condition? 

JL : Exactly, the flute section just welcomed a new member and other young musicians already joined us recently, and more recruitment is planned. Since August 2015 we have a new general director: George Wiegel. He used to be a trombone player in our orchestra, and then he became a manager of other Holland branch. He knows how everything works around here and so the orchestra runs well even though we are currently searching for a new music director.

Pierre-Jean Tribot-02/2016 

Calendar:

• February 26 (Rotterdam)- February 27 (Bruges)- February 28 (Dortmund)
  

Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, conductor: Yannick Nézet-Seguin

• April 9 (Lyon)
  

Orchestre National de Lyon, conductor: Leonard Slatkin