Gautier Capuçon

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Gautier Capuçon (born September 3, 1981) is a French cellist.

Contents

[edit] Biography

Gautier Capuçon was born in Chambéry, south-east France, the youngest of three siblings. His brother is the violinist Renaud Capuçon.

He started learning the cello when he was four years old.[1][2][3] He began his formal musical education in his hometown at the Ecole Nationale de Musique de Chambéry,[4] where he graduated with first prizes in cello and in piano.

In Paris, he studied the cello initially with Annie Cochet-Zakine, who had heard the talented youngster in Chambéry and brought him with her to the Conservatoire Supérieur de Paris (CNR), where he graduated in 1997 with the first prize in cello. Following on, he then became a pupil of the distinguished cello pedagogue Philippe Muller at the most prestigious Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris (CNSMP), where he graduated in 2000 with first prizes in cello and chamber music. After that, he went to Vienna for masterclass studies with Heinrich Schiff.[3][5][6]

Between 1997-8, as a student, he was cellist in the European Community Youth Orchestra (now the European Union Youth Orchestra) and also in the Gustav Mahler Jugendorchester, playing under distinguished conductors including Bernard Haitink, Pierre Boulez and Claudio Abbado.[5]

He now enjoys a flourishing concert career and is in demand internationally as a soloist, playing with many of the world's leading conductors and orchestras. He also has a passion for chamber music, in which he often partners his brother as well as with many renowned musicians.[5]

As with many instrumentalist virtuosi, he is also an accomplished pianist. He started learning the piano at the age of seven[6] and studied it as his second instrument at the Conservatoire Supérieur de Paris under Christophe Egiziano.[5] He enjoys playing jazz piano for recreational fun.[3]

He married Delphine Borsarello, also a cellist and daughter of the violinist Jean-Luc Borsarello, in September 2007.

[edit] Cello

Capuçon plays a 1701 Matteo Goffriller cello which he has owned since 2002. [2][7] He also has a 1746 Joseph Contreras cello on loan to him from BSI (Banca della Svizzera Italiana).[5]

Speaking about his cello in April 2008, he said:[8]

"I am very lucky to be playing this cello for ten, nearly eleven, years now. It is a Matteo Goffriller, of the Venetian school, from 1701. All the Goffriller cellos that I have tried are not easy to play. For each note you need to know how much bow pressure, how much vibrato and how much bow speed you can put on it. It is an instrument that you really need to know to be able to play; it is not like a Montagnana or a Stradivarius. Montagnana, for example - most of them are really easy to play. So in a way, on the Goffriller, I probably search more and look more for different things."

Describing a Montagnana cello as his "dream" instrument of choice, he said: "I hope one day to be able to play on a Montagnana."[8]

[edit] Awards

[edit] Discography

Gautier Capuçon is an exclusive recording artist for Virgin Classics (a division of EMI).

Orchestral:

  • Haydn - Cello Concertos, 2003
  • Brahms - Double Concerto, 2007

Chamber:

  • Ravel - Chamber Music, 2002
  • Face à Face: Violin & Cello Duets, 2003
  • Saint Saëns - Carnival of the Animals, 2003
  • Brahms Piano Trios, 2004
  • Schubert - Trout Quintet, 2004
  • Inventions: Violin & Cello Duets, 2006
  • Schubert Piano Trios, 2007

In addition, Gautier Capuçon has featured in EMI's annual CD releases of live recordings from the Lugano Festival each year, "Martha Argerich & Friends", at which he is a frequent returning guest performer.

[edit] Management

Gautier Capuçon is represented by:

  • France: Agence Artistique Jacques Thelen, Paris
  • UK: Clarion Seven Muses, London
  • North America: Columbia Artists Management Inc., New York
  • Japan: Kajimoto Concert Management, Tokyo

[edit] External link

[edit] References

  1. ^ Gautier Capuçon interview, Virgin Classics promotional film, 2003
  2. ^ a b Gautier Capuçon interview, Borletti-Buitoni Trust, London, 2004
  3. ^ a b c La Croix, 1 December 2006 "Renaud et Gautier Capuçon frères d'archet"
  4. ^ Columbia Artist Management Inc., New York
  5. ^ a b c d e French Music Export Offices
  6. ^ a b Agence Artistique Jacques Thelen, Paris
  7. ^ Cozio registration database of old stringed instruments
  8. ^ a b Gautier Capuçon speaking on BBC radio, recorded April 2008, broadcast 2 May 2008


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