WISHLIST
Every late summer since 1966, the Festival de La Chaise-Dieu (Chaise-Dieu Festival) has brought together thousands of music lovers and internationally renowned performers to the heart of the high plateaux of the Haute-Loire – the “Midi of the Auvergne” – and the environs of this small village in which stands out the majestic Gothic vessel of the Abbatiale Saint-Robert. The abbey church offers an exceptional heritage charged with spirituality, astonishing acoustics, a top-of-the-range programme, and a warm atmosphere: everything contributes to offering festival-goers an exceptional experience.
Georges Cziffra (1921-1994), the famous Hungarian pianist, established a festival at La Chaise-Dieu after discovering the abbey church and its organ, then a wreck, during a private visit to the home of Doctor Georges Mazoyer and his wife Suzanne. At the suggestion of Mazoyer and his wife, Cziffra agreed to give a few concerts at La Chaise-Dieu and to donate the fees he received to the reconstruction of the organ. Accompanied by his son, György Cziffra (1942-1981), conductor, he gave several recitals and concerts from 1966 onwards.
The arrival in 1976 of Guy Ramona, and the formation of an association by several music lovers to continue the Festival, gave a new impetus to the event. The number of concerts increased steadily to stabilise at around 35 in the Abbatiale Saint-Robert in La Chaise-Dieu, but also in other heritage sites in the region: in the churches of Le Puy-en-Velay and its Italian-style theatre, at the church of Saint-Jean in Ambert, in the Basilica of Saint-Julien in Brioude, in the churches of Saint-Georges in Saint-Paulien and Saint-Gilles in Chamalières-sur-Loire.
Guy Ramona directed the festival for 27 years and gave it its definitive character, and despite being among the first to rehabilitate the baroque repertoire, he did not hesitate to present contemporary works conducted by or in the presence of their composers.
In 2003, Jean-Michel Mathé took over from Guy Ramona, who nevertheless remained involved in the organisation of the festival by becoming president of the management association until 2009 when he was succeeded by Jacques Barrot. He is currently, with his wife, the honorary president.
Since 2010, the Festival has also made use of the Cziffra Auditorium in La Chaise-Dieu, a building that was inaugurated during the 44th edition. The Cziffra Auditorium is the first stage of the major renovation project of the Abbey’s monastic buildings. It is ideal for recitals and chamber music, and offers a different and more intimate programme (200 seats) for festival-goers.
Julien Caron, General Director from 2012 to 2022, enabled the creation of a range of activities outside the summer period, through the hosting of ensembles in residence throughout the year at La Chaise-Dieu. The numerous sessions organised since 2016 have thus opened up the festival’s activity to other genres and musical aesthetics, while becoming the main support for artistic and cultural education and professional training projects.
During these 10 years under his direction, the festival has also offered an increasingly important place to the repertoires of the twentieth (Richard Strauss, Messiaen…) and twenty-first centuries, through strong partnerships with several composers (Philippe HERSANT, Michaël LEVINAS, Édith CANAT DE CHIZY…), while opening up to a close dialogue with other artistic disciplines such as poetry, dance and painting.
Since 7 March 2022, Boris Blanco has been the general director of the Festival de La Chaise-Dieu.