On 10 and 11 November 2023, the State Symphony Orchestra of Turkmenistan for the first time in Turkmenistan and the world will perform a concert for voice and large orchestra “Murmures Célestes & Marins” (“Celestial and Marine Whispers”) opus 273, by French composer Pierre Thilloy.
The concert, inspired by the melodies of Turkmen lullabies, was specially commissioned from Pierre Thilloy after his visit to Ashgabat in June 2023.
“Murmures Célestes & Marins” opus 273 is one of the rare concerts for voice. It simultaneously serves as a homage to both Turkmen culture and the principles of intercultural relations, ideals deeply ingrained in the philosophy of composer Pierre Thilloy, often referred to as a “traveler of composition.” The title bears a direct connection to the legendary Akhal-Teke horses, along with the enchanting lullabies of Turkmen tradition. Ultimately, the work pays heartfelt tribute to the Turkmen composer Nury Halmammedov.
At this premiere, supported by the Franco-German Cultural Fund, the Orchestra will welcome the German soprano Neima Fischer, https://www.neimafischer.com, recent winner of the Young Hope Prize at the Cesti International Baroque Opera Competition 2023, in Innsbruck.
The Franco-German Cultural Fund (FCFA) was established in honor of the 40th anniversary of the Élysée Treaty, marked on 22 January 2003. This program testifies to the desire of France and Germany to strengthen cultural cooperation.
The project is organized by Institut Français du Turkménistan (the French Institute of Turkmenistan) on behalf of the Embassy of France and the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany to Turkmenistan, jointly with the Ministry of Culture of Turkmenistan, as well as with the support of the Delegation of the European Union to Turkmenistan.
During his visit to Ashgabat, Pierre Thilloy also met with students of the Musicology Faculty and the Faculty of Composition and Instrumentation of the Maya Kuliyeva Turkmen National Conservatory. /// Institut Français du Turkménistan
PIERRE THILLOY
Born in 1970, in Beauvais, in the Oise, Pierre Thilloy began musical studies at the age of 20, in Nancy, with his Masters in writing, Noël Lancien, and in composition and orchestration, Jean-Pierre Rivière. He studied composition techniques with Professor Alexander Mullenbach, at the Luxembourg Conservatory and at the International Mozarteum Academy in Salzburg, as well as 20th century musical aesthetics with Maestro Mario Di Bonnaventura.
A prolific composer, his oeuvre encompasses ten symphonies, twenty symphonic poems, thirty concertos, an oratorio for three orchestras, choirs, and soloists, three requiems, and two operas, totaling over 250 works.
Finalist in numerous international competitions, Queen Elisabeth in Brussels, Léonard Bernstein in Jerusalem, Ladislav Kubik in the USA, Pierre Thilloy was the national winner of the General Music Competition in 1990, the FFEM in 1997, second International Prize “Olivier Messiaen” of the Foundation Guardini in Berlin, and the only European laureate of the very prestigious Rockefeller Foundation in New York; Prize of the Arts of the National Academy of Sciences, Arts & Letters of Metz for all of his work, Silver Medal of the Academic Society of Arts, Sciences and Letters of Paris, Grand Prize of the Arts of the Ausone Academy for his secular oratorio Mosella, among others…
He continues his work as a composer closely associated with French diplomacy by leading numerous projects in countries such as Brazil, the USA, Canada, Ukraine, Lithuania, Norway, Denmark, Türkiye, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, etc.
Appointed member of the Académie d’Alsace in March 2020, since the spring of 2020 he has been Associate Artist and Composer in Residence (labelled DGCA Ministry of Culture / SACEM) of the National Stage of Belfort (2020-2023) and Principal Associate Composer of the DODECABONE.
