BEFORES

Composers, performers, musicologists, historians and journalists exchange ideas with the public and offer their take on the works before the concert hall opens its doors. These convivial and enriching events are not to be missed.

WEDNESDAY 12 MARCH
6:00 PM – ENCOUNTER
Galerie Hauser & Wirth
“Boulez: multiple sparkles” with Bruno Mantovani, festival artistic director

To open this Printemps des Arts 2025, Bruno Mantovani reflects about the multiple personality of Pierre Boulez and discloses all the paths that will be explored during the Festival.

THURSDAY 13 MARCH
6:00 PM – PANEL DISCUSSION
Club des Résidents Étrangers de Monaco
“Le marteau sans maître: Boulez as conductor” with Chloë Rouge, musicologist, Bruno Mantovani

Orchestras, repertoires, gestures: this panel discussion will retrace Pierre Boulez’s career as a conductor, and examine its evolution in parallel with the composer’s life. Has Boulez’s music writing influenced his choices as a conductor? And vice versa? Let’s find out with Bruno Mantovani and musicologist Chloë Rouge.

FRIDAY 14 MARCH
6:00 PM – ENCOUNTER
Conseil National
“About Venezianischer Morgen” with Bruno Mantovani, composer

Before the world premiere of this piece which wanders around the “Floating City” on the beat of poems by Rainer Maria Rilke, its composer lets us in on some of its secrets.

SATURDAY 15 MARCH
6:00 PM – PANEL DISCUSSION
One Monte-Carlo, amphitheatre
“The Second Viennese School and its Posterity” with Jean-François Boukobza, musicologist and Bruno Mantovani

By adopting a new musical grammar, Arnold Schoenberg, Anton Webern and Alban Berg inspired generations of composers, including Pierre Boulez. What was the scope of this influence, and how did it work? We take a closer look with Bruno Mantovani and musicologist Jean-François Boukobza.

THURSDAY 20 MARCH
6:00 PM – LECTURE
Théâtre Princesse Grace
“Messagesquisse: Boulez and poetry” with François Meïmoun, musicologist

Poetry is at the heart of Pierre Boulez’s readings and of many of his works (Le Marteau sans maître, Le Soleil des eaux, Le Visage nuptial…). Composer François Meïmoun, himself highly sensitive to the power of words in music, sheds light on this poetic presence in the works of Boulez.

FRIDAY 21 MARCH
6:00 PM – PANEL DISCUSSION
Galerie Hauser & Wirth
“Pli selon pli: Boulez and his heirs” with Philippe Manoury et Yan Maresz, composers and Bruno Mantovani

A host of composers have followed in the steps of Pierre Boulez, particularly at the institution he founded in 1977, Ircam. Together with three composers familiar with this musical mecca, we examine Boulez’s legacy and how it has been passed down – or not – from generation to generation.

SATURDAY 22 MARCH
18H – RENCONTRE
Auditorium Rainier III
“Poésie pour pouvoir: Boulez as a Builder of Institutions” with Laurent Bayle, honorary director of the Philharmonie de Paris

Successively at the helm of Ircam, the Cité de la Musique and the Philharmonie de Paris, Laurent Bayle played a major role in France’s major musical institutions and was a privileged observer of Pierre Boulez’s role in the evolution of this institutional landscape.

WEDNESDAY 26 MARCH
6:00 PM LECTURE – Théâtre National de Nice, Salle des Franciscains
“Notations: Boulez’s Musical Language” with Viviane Waschbüsch, musicologist

Musicologist, composer and violinist Viviane Waschbüsch examines scores by Pierre Boulez and shows us the evolution of his musical language.

THURSDAY 27 MARCH
6:00 PM – PANEL DISCUSSION
Auditorium Rainier III
“sur Incises: the Writings of Boulez” with Pierre Rigaudière, musicologist and Bruno Mantovani

Programme notes, essays on music, studies on painting, controversial statements, etc. Pierre Boulez left a considerable body of writing. Musicologist Pierre Rigaudière presents an overview.

SATURDAY 29 MARCH
6:00 PM – LECTURE
Marius Monaco
“Répons: Messiaen and Boulez” with Yves Balmer, musicologist

Young Pierre Boulez’s six-month stint in Olivier Messiaen’s class between 1944 and 1945 was brief but memorable. Musicologist and composer Yves Balmer looks back on this singular relationship between master and student.

THURSDAY 3 APRIL
6:00 PM – PANEL DISCUSSION
Opéra de Monte-Carlo, Café de la Rotonde
“Dialogue de l’ombre double: Boulez and French Music” with Philippe Hurel, composer, Catherine Steinegger, musicologist and Bruno Mantovani

A student of Olivier Messiaen and admirer of the art of Claude Debussy, a model for generations of composers after him, Boulez stands at the crossing of a century of French music. Could he be the keystone of that period? A debate with musicologist Catherine Steinegger, composer Philippe Hurel and Bruno Mantovani.

SUNDAY 6 APRIL
3:30 PM – PANEL DISCUSSION
Opéra de Monte-Carlo, Café de la Rotonde
“Dérives: Boulez Today and Tomorrow” with Arnaud Merlin, musicologist, and Bruno Mantovani

What is left of the Boulez legacy in 2025 as regards institutions, the conducting practice, composition or pedagogy? With musicologist Arnaud Merlin and Bruno Mantovani, we’ll try to map out the “Boulezland” of today – and imagine its future.

The Befores are moderated by Tristan Labouret, musicologist

The Befores are accessible upon mandatory reservation and reserved to concert tickets holders:
+377 93 25 54 10 / contact@printempsdesarts.mc