Images. Hommage à Marcel Tournier Emmanuel Ceysson, Véronique Gens & Quatuor Voce

• Marcel Tournier (1879 - 1951): Images, Suite No. 1, Op. 29:
• 1 Tournier: Images, Suite No. 1, Op. 29: I. Clair de lune sur l’étang du par 04:16
• 2 Tournier: Images, Suite No. 1, Op. 29: II. Au seuil du temple 02:08
• 3 Tournier: Images, Suite No. 1, Op. 29: III. Lolita la danseuse 02:19
• La lettre du jardinier:
• 4 Tournier: La lettre du jardinier 03:44
• Images, Suite No. 3, Op. 35:
• 5 Tournier: Images, Suite No. 3, Op. 35: I. Les ânesses grises sur la route d’El-Azib 03:12
• 6 Tournier: Images, Suite No. 3, Op. 35: II. Danseuse à la fontaine d’Aïn-Draham 04:02
• 7 Tournier: Images, Suite No. 3, Op. 35: III. Soir de fête à Sedjenane 02:41
• Insomnie:
• 8 Tournier: Insomnie 03:00
• Sonatine, Op. 30:
• 9 Tournier: Sonatine, Op. 30: I. Allègrement 05:16
• 10 Tournier: Sonatine, Op. 30: II. Calme et expressif 04:11
• 11 Tournier: Sonatine, Op. 30: III. Fiévreusement (en souvenir de mon ami Fernand Halphen) 05:28
• Rêverie de Bouddha:
• 12 Tournier: Rêverie de Bouddha 02:52
• Images, Suite No. 2, Op. 31:
• 13 Tournier: Images, Suite No. 2, Op. 31: I. Les enfants à la crèche de Noël 02:48
• 14 Tournier: Images, Suite No. 2, Op. 31: II. L’étrange cavalier 03:03
• 15 Tournier: Images, Suite No. 2, Op. 31: III. La marchande de frivolités 03:03
• Elle est venue, elle a souri:
• 16 Tournier: Elle est venue, elle a souri 02:17
• Images, Suite No. 4, Op. 39:
• 17 Tournier: Images, Suite No. 4, Op. 39: I. La volière magique 04:45
• 18 Tournier: Images, Suite No. 4, Op. 39: II. Cloches sous la neige 02:28
• 19 Tournier: Images, Suite No. 4, Op. 39: III. La danse du moujik 04:48
• Total Runtime 01:06:21

Info for Images. Hommage à Marcel Tournier

The harpist Emmanuel Ceysson is unanimously recognised for his powerful virtuoso playing. He was appointed principal harp with the Opéra national de Paris at the age of 22, where he remained for nine years before going to the orchestra of the Metropolitan Opera of New York for five years; he has been principal harpist of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra under Gustavo Dudamel since 2020. Here he pays tribute to Marcel Tournier (1879-1951), one of the greatest harpist composers in the history of the instrument. The majority of Tournier’s works are for solo harp or voice and harp, but he later added other instruments to certain pieces and so transformed them into chamber works. The works recorded here date from his mature years and show the influence of Debussy, Satie, and Ravel. Emmanuel Ceysson, the Quatuor Voce and Véronique Gens draw our attention to this important composer and to several previously unpublished versions of some of his works, the manuscripts of which have only recently come to light.

Emmanuel Ceysson, harp
Veronique Gens, soprano
Quatuor Voce

Emmanuel Ceysson
is one of the world’s leading harpists. He recently took up the position as Principal harp at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York, after a successful career at Opera de Paris lasting nine years. Since 2005 he has been a presence in such leading venues on the international musical scene as the Wigmore Hall, the Salle Gaveau, Carnegie Hall, the Vienna Konzerthaus, and the Berlin Philharmonie, where his appearances in recital, concerto repertoire and chamber music regularly win high praise from the press. His unfailing commitment to his instrument has earned him the highest international distinctions. In rapid succession, he won the Gold Medal and a special performance prize at the USA International Harp Competition (Bloomington) in 2004, First Prize and six special prizes at the New York Young Concert Artist Auditions in 2006, and First Prize at the prestigious ARD Competition in Munich in September 2009, thus becoming the first harpist to obtain awards at thee major international events.

Recent concert highlights include the Glière Concerto for Harp with the Grazer Philharmonisches Orchester at the Stefaniensaal of Graz and with the Prague Radio Symphony at the Gstaad Festival. Upcoming chamber music engagements include performances at the Hong Kong Chamber Music Festival, a recital at the Frick Collection, New York, with Quatuor Voce, his debut with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center in the Summer of 2019, solo recitals at the Teatro del Lago, Chile, performances at the Artist Series Concerts of Sarasota, Faure Impromptu for Harp Op 86 in Hong Kong, Mozart Concerto for Harp and Flute K299 with the Vivaldi Orchestra (Italy) and the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra (Canada). Recent and upcoming appearances include performances at Classical Tahoe, the Gliere Concerto for Harp with the Tapiola Sinfonietta, Finland, the Mozart Concerto for Flute and Harp with the Cincinatti Symphony Orchestra and the Springfield Symphony, and a recital with Joyce DiDonato at Carnegie Hall.

He was Visiting Professor at the Royal Academy of Music in London from 2005 to 2009 and has taught at the International Summer Academy in Nice since 2010. He also gives regular masterclasses in France and in the course of his foreign tours and appearances.

In 2010, Emmanuel Ceysson was nominated in the category ‘Solo Instrumental Discovery’ at the Victoires de la Musique Classique. In November 2011 he received a Prix d’Encouragement from the Académie des Beaux-Arts de l’Institut de France (Fondation Simone Del Duca) in recognition of his distinguished early career. Mr. Ceysson is a Naïve recording artist since January 2012 when he released Opéra Fantaisie, a solo album based upon famous operatic arias.

He has given recitals and educational residencies at countless international venues including the Wolf Trap Foundation in Virginia, North Orange County Community Concerts Association in California, Macomb Center for the Performing Arts in Michigan, Mary Baldwin College in Virginia, the Washington Center for the Performing Arts (WA), and Emporia Arts Council in Kansas.

Véronique Gens
was born in Orléans and first studied English and then singing at the Paris Conservatoire. Her repertoire includes roles such as Fiordiligi (Così fan tutte), Pamina (Die Zauberflöte), Vitellia (La clemenza di Tito), Eva (Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg), Agathe (Der Freischütz), Mélisande (Pelléas et Mélisande), La Contessa di Almaviva (Le nozze di Figaro), Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni), Mrs Alice Ford (Falstaff), Hanna Glawari (Die lustige Witwe), Madame Lidoine (Dialogues des Carmélites) and the title role in Iphigénie en Tauride. She has sung at opera houses in Berlin, Hamburg, Dresden, Vienna, Paris, Barcelona, Madrid, Amsterdam, Brussels, London and Tokyo as well as at the Glyndebourne, Aix-en-Provence and Salzburg Festivals. She made her debut at the Bavarian State Opera in 2005 as Giunone in the premiere of La Calisto and has since sung La Contessa di Almaviva, Donna Elvira and Mrs Alice Ford, among others.

Booklet for Images. Hommage à Marcel Tournier