Chambéry
Chambéry (, , ; Arpitan: ''Chambèri'') is the prefecture of the Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of eastern France. The population of the commune of Chambéry was 58,917 as of 2019, while the population of the Chambér ...
, Savoie, the youngest of three siblings. His brother is the violinist
Renaud Capuçon
Renaud Capuçon (born 27 January 1976) is a French classical violinist.
Since late 2016 he has been teaching at the Royal Northern College of Music.
Biography
Capuçon was born in Chambéry on 27 January 1976. He entered the conservatory in ...
.
He started learning the cello when he was four years old.Gautier Capuçon interview, Borletti-Buitoni Trust, London, 2004''La Croix'', 1 December 200 "Renaud et Gautier Capuçon frères d'archet" /ref> He began his formal musical education in his hometown at the Ecole Nationale de Musique de Chambéry, 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 him 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. He then became a pupil of cello pedagogue
Philippe Muller Philippe Muller (born 20 April 1946, in Mulhouse) is a French cellist.
Biography
Philippe Muller (born April 20, 1946, in Mulhouse) is a French cellist and pedagogue.
His first contact with the cello was under the guidance of Dominique Prete, p ...
Heinrich Schiff
Heinrich Schiff (18 November 1951 – 23 December 2016) was an Austrian cellist and conductor.
Early life
Heinrich Schiff was born on 18 November 1951 in Gmunden, Austria. His parents, Helga (née Riemann) and Helmut Schiff, were composers. H ...
at the
University of Music and Performing Arts, Vienna
The University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna (german: link=no, Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Wien, abbreviated MDW) is an Austrian university located in Vienna, established in 1817.
With a student body of over three thousa ...
.
Between 1997 and 1998, as a student, he was a cellist in the European Community Youth Orchestra (now the
European Union Youth Orchestra
The European Union Youth Orchestra (EUYO) is a youth orchestra with members drawn from the 27 members states of the European Union. Since its foundation in 1976, it has connected music colleges and the professional music world for generations o ...
Bernard Haitink
Bernard Johan Herman Haitink (; 4 March 1929 – 21 October 2021) was a Dutch conductor and violinist. He was the principal conductor of several international orchestras, beginning with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in 1961. He moved to Lon ...
,
Pierre Boulez
Pierre Louis Joseph Boulez (; 26 March 1925 – 5 January 2016) was a French composer, conductor and writer, and the founder of several musical institutions. He was one of the dominant figures of post-war Western classical music.
Born in Mont ...
and
Claudio Abbado
Claudio Abbado (; 26 June 1933 – 20 January 2014) was an Italian conductor who was one of the leading conductors of his generation. He served as music director of the La Scala opera house in Milan, principal conductor of the London Symphony ...
.
He is also an accomplished pianist. He started learning the piano at the age of sevenAgence Artistique Jacques Thelen, Paris and studied it as his second instrument at the Conservatoire Supérieur de Paris under Christophe Egiziano.French Music Export Offices /ref> He enjoys playing jazz piano recreationally. Now he teaches at Classe d'Excellence de Fondation Louis Vuitton with young students.
Cello
Capuçon's principal instrument is a 1701
Matteo Goffriller
Matteo Goffriller (1659–1742) was a Venetian luthier, particularly noted for the quality of his cellos. He was active between 1685–1735 and was the founder of the " Venetian School" of luthiers, during a time when Venice was one of the most imp ...
cello which he has on loan.Gautier Capuçon interview, EMI Classics promotion film "Gautier Capuçon – Dvorak and Herbert cello concertos", Dec 2008 He also has a 1746
Joseph Contreras
Joseph Contreras (c. 1710 – c. 1780), was a Spanish violin maker.
Contreras was born around 1710, in Granada, Spain(hence his commonly used nickname 'el Granadino'). He probably lived in Italy during his early life, his style being Italian. ...
cello on loan from BSI (Banca della Svizzera Italiana).
Speaking about his Goffriller cello in April 2008, he said:Gautier Capuçon speaking on BBC radio, recorded April 2008, broadcast 2 May 2008
"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
Montagnana is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Padova, in Veneto (northern Italy). Neighbouring communes are Borgo Veneto, Casale di Scodosia, Urbana, Bevilacqua, Pojana Maggiore, Pressana, Minerbe and Roveredo di Guà. , the popula ...
or a
Stradivarius
A Stradivarius is one of the violins, violas, cellos and other string instruments built by members of the Italian family Stradivari, particularly Antonio Stradivari (Latin: Antonius Stradivarius), during the 17th and 18th centuries. They are co ...
. 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
Montagnana is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Padova, in Veneto (northern Italy). Neighbouring communes are Borgo Veneto, Casale di Scodosia, Urbana, Bevilacqua, Pojana Maggiore, Pressana, Minerbe and Roveredo di Guà. , the popula ...
cello as his "dream" instrument of choice, he said: "I hope one day to be able to play on a Montagnana."
Awards
*First prize, Maurice Ravel International Academy of Music competition,
Christchurch
Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon River / ...
, New Zealand, 1999
*First prize, 1er
André Navarra
André-Nicolas Navarra (Biarritz, 13 October 1911 – Siena, 31 July 1988) was a French cellist and cello teacher.
Early life
He was born into a musical family in Biarritz, his father being a bassist of Italian descent."'Play From The Stomach, ...
International Cello Competition,
Toulouse
Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Par ...
, France, 1999
*
Victoires de la Musique
Victoires de la Musique (; en, Victories of Music) is an annual French award ceremony where the Victoire accolade is delivered by the French Ministry of Culture to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry. The classical and jazz ...
Classique, "New Talent of the Year", 2001
*Borletti-Buitoni Trust Award, 2004
*Echo Classics Award (category: Young Artist of the Year) Germany, 2004
*Echo Classics Award (category: Chamber Music Recording of the Year (20th/21st Century)), Germany 2007
*Echo Classics Award (category: Concerto Recording of the Year) Germany 2010/2011
*Echo Classics Award (category: Chamber Music Recording of the Year (19th Century)/Mixed Ensemble)) Germany, 2012
Discography
Gautier Capuçon was an exclusive recording artist for
Virgin Classics
Virgin Classics was a record label founded in 1988 as part of Richard Branson's Virgin Records.
The unit, along with EMI Classics, was acquired by Universal Music in 2012 as part of the takeover of the EMI Group, however the terms of the Europea ...
(a division of EMI). In 2015 he recorded for
Erato
In Greek mythology, Erato (; grc, Ἐρατώ) is one of the Greek Muses, which were inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts. The name would mean "desired" or "lovely", if derived from the same root as Eros, as Apollonius o ...
, a division of
Warner Music Group
Warner Music Group Corp. ( d.b.a. Warner Music Group, commonly abbreviated as WMG) is an American multinational entertainment and record label conglomerate headquartered in New York City. It is one of the " big three" recording companies and t ...
*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 (Bach, Eisler,
Karol Beffa
Karol Beffa, born on October 27, 1973 in Paris, is a French and Swiss composer and pianist.
Biography
Karol Beffa had a general education along with music studies, at the Ecole Normale Supérieure in Paris, consisting of history, English, phi ...
, Bartok, Martinu), 2006
*Schubert Piano Trios, 2007
*Rachmaninov & Prokofiev: Cello Sonatas, 2008
*Fauré: Complete chamber music for strings, 2011
Other albums
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.
He also released these albums:
Collaborations
DVDs
Management
Gautier Capuçon is represented by:
*France: Agence Artistique Jacques Thelen, Paris
*UK: Harrison Parrott
*Germany: Weigold & Böhm
*North America: Columbia Artists Management Inc., New York
*Japan: Kajimoto Concert Management, Tokyo
