Maude Gratton (born 1983) is a French classical musician. She is pursuing a career of soloist, mastering the

pipe organ The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air (called ''wind'') through the organ pipes selected from a keyboard. Because each pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ''ranks ...

, the piano-forte and the

harpsichord A harpsichord ( it, clavicembalo; french: clavecin; german: Cembalo; es, clavecín; pt, cravo; nl, klavecimbel; pl, klawesyn) is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. This activates a row of levers that turn a trigger mechanism ...

Biography

Born in

Niort Niort (; Poitevin: ''Niàu''; oc, Niòrt; la, Novioritum) is a commune in the Deux-Sèvres department, western France. It is the prefecture of Deux-Sèvres. The population of Niort is 58,707 (2017) and more than 177,000 people live in the u ...

, Gratton studied the harpsichord and the organ at the Conservatoire de Poitiers in the class of

organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ (music), organ. An organist may play organ repertoire, solo organ works, play with an musical ensemble, ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumentalist, instrumental ...

Dominique Ferran. She graduated from the

Conservatoire de Paris The Conservatoire de Paris (), also known as the Paris Conservatory, is a college of music and dance founded in 1795. Officially known as the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (CNSMDP), it is situated in the avenue ...

in harpsichord, organ,

basso continuo Basso continuo parts, almost universal in the Baroque era (1600–1750), provided the harmonic structure of the music by supplying a bassline and a chord progression. The phrase is often shortened to continuo, and the instrumentalists playing th ...

and Renaissance

counterpoint In music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more musical lines (or voices) which are harmonically interdependent yet independent in rhythm and melodic contour. It has been most commonly identified in the European classical tradi ...

. In 2003, she distinguished herself with the 2nd prize of the Organ Competition of the

MAfestival Brugge The MA Festival Brugge, short for the festival Musica Antiqua Bruges in Bruges, Belgium, is a festival of early music and historically informed performances, started in 1960. The program includes concerts, master classes, conferences, visits in ...

and was promoted Young Soloist of the

Public Francophone Radios The Public Francophone Radios (French: ''Radios francophones publiques'') is a group of French-speaking radio broadcasters comprising Radio France, Radio Canada, the Radio Télévision Suisse and RTBF. It produces programmes such as ''L'actualité ...

in 2006.

Solo career

In 2009, Gratton recorded her first solo project devoted to the works of

Wilhelm Friedemann Bach Wilhelm Friedemann Bach (22 November 17101 July 1784), the second child and eldest son of Johann Sebastian Bach and Maria Barbara Bach, was a German composer and performer. Despite his acknowledged genius as an organist, improviser and composer ...

. The album was distinguished by the Gramophone's Choice and awarded a Golden Diapason in 2009. Since then she has recorded about ten albums as soloist or through different ensembles of

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

and

chamber music Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small numb ...

. Gratton collaborates with operatic soprano Camille Poul. She is a member of the Collegium Vocale Gent

choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which ...

, under the direction of conductor Philippe Herreweghe, established in 1970 at

Ghent Ghent ( nl, Gent ; french: Gand ; traditional English: Gaunt) is a city and a municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the East Flanders province, and the third largest in the country, exceeded in ...

(Belgium). In 2011, she founded the "Académie de musique de Saint-Loup" then in 2012 became the

artistic director An artistic director is the executive of an arts organization, particularly in a theatre or dance company, who handles the organization's artistic direction. They are generally a producer and director, but not in the sense of a mogul, since the ...

of the Festival Musiques en Gâtine in the Poitou-Charentes region, renamed the MM Festival in 2017. Gratton is part of the teaching staff of the Vannes Early Music Institute (VEMI), the European Academy of classical music of

Vannes Vannes (; br, Gwened) is a commune in the Morbihan department in Brittany in north-western France. It was founded over 2,000 years ago. History Celtic Era The name ''Vannes'' comes from the Veneti, a seafaring Celtic people who lived ...

, headed by French cellist Bruno Cocset.

' Ensemble

In 2005, Gratton was at the initiative of the band ''Il Convito'', alongside the musicians Claire Gratton and Stéphanie Paulet. The

ensemble was the 2007 winner of the "Déclic" program supported by Culturesfrance (current

Institut français The Institut Français (French capitalization, Institut français; "French institute") is a French public industrial and commercial organization (EPIC). Started in 1907 by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for promoting French, francophone as ...

since 2010) and Radio France. Her repertoire includes both music from the

Renaissance music Renaissance music is traditionally understood to cover European music of the 15th and 16th centuries, later than the Renaissance era as it is understood in other disciplines. Rather than starting from the early 14th-century '' ars nova'', the Tr ...

and works from the 19th century, performed on period instruments. "Il Convito" is invited to perform in several festivals including the "Journées musicales d'automne" of Souvigny,

La Folle Journée La Folle Journée is a French annual classical music festival held in Nantes. It is the largest classical music festival in France. The festival's name refers to the Pierre Beaumarchais play ''The Marriage of Figaro'', whose alternative title i ...

Nantes Nantes (, , ; Gallo: or ; ) is a city in Loire-Atlantique on the Loire, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the sixth largest in France, with a population of 314,138 in Nantes proper and a metropolitan area of nearly 1 million inhabita ...

and the Bach Académie in

Bruges Bruges ( , nl, Brugge ) is the capital and largest City status in Belgium, city of the Provinces of Belgium, province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium, in the northwest of the country, and the sixth-largest city of the countr ...

. The musicians have also participated in several tours abroad. In 2015, the ensemble released its first album dedicated to Concertos for harpsichord and strings by

at Mirare. In May 2016, Gratton created "An Evening with Mozart", her first project for an orchestra of "Il Convito", around the work of

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...

Discography

, Maude Gratton, Mirare (2009) * Martín Matalon, Trame II for harpsichord and six instruments, conducted by

François-Xavier Roth François-Xavier Paul Roth (born 6 November 1971) is a French conductor, who founded Les Siècles, an orchestra which performs on instruments appropriate to the period of composition of each piece, from the late Baroque and Classical eras to 20t ...

, with the participation of Maude Gratton, Actes Sud (2010) *

Louis-Gabriel Guillemain Louis-Gabriel Guillemain (5 November 1705 – 1 October 1770) was a French composer and violinist. Biography Guillemain is thought to have been born in Paris, was brought up by the Count de Rochechouart, and started studying violin at an early ag ...

, Sonatas for violin and continuo, Sonata for violin and obbligato harpsichord, conducted by Stéphanie Paulet, Ensemble Aliquando, with the participation of Maude Gratton, Muso (2012) *

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard w ...

, Cantatas for viola and obbligato organ, works for organ, "Le Banquet céleste", conducting by

Damien Guillon Damien Guillon (born 1981) is a French countertenor. He is leader of the ensemble Le Banquet Celeste.Zig-Zag Territoires (2012) *

George Onslow George Onslow may refer to: *George Onslow (British Army officer) (1731–1792), British politician and army officer *George Onslow, 1st Earl of Onslow (1731–1814), British peer and politician *George Onslow (composer) André George(s) Louis ...

, Sonatas for Cello and Piano Op. 16, Maude Gratton and Emmanuel Jacques, Mirare (2012) * ''Biber Imitatio'',

Ricercar Consort The Ricercar Consort is a Belgian instrumental ensemble founded in 1980 together with the Ricercar record label of Jérôme Lejeune. The founding members were violinist François Fernandez, organist Bernard Foccroulle, and viola da gamba player ...

Philippe Pierlot Philippe Pierlot (born 1958) is a Belgian viola da gamba player and a conductor in historically informed performance. He is also an academic teacher at the royal conservatories of The Hague and Brussels. Career Born in Liège, Pierlot learne ...

and Maude Gratton, Mirare (2014) *

Antonio Vivaldi Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (4 March 1678 – 28 July 1741) was an Italian composer, virtuoso violinist and impresario of Baroque music. Regarded as one of the greatest Baroque composers, Vivaldi's influence during his lifetime was widespread a ...

, Concertos for cello(s), concerto for violin and organ, "Les Basses Réunies", conducted by Bruno Cocset, with the participation of Maude Gratton, Agogique (2014) * ''Il Concerto'', Concertos for Harpsichord and Strings, conducting by Maude Gratton, Mirare (2015) * Bach's '' The Musical Offering'', conducted by Philippe Pierlot, François Fernandez and Marc Hantaï, with the participation of Maude Gratton, Mirare (2015) * Bach, Leipzig Organ Works (1723-1750), Phi – Outhere music (2016). * Beethoven's Quintet for Piano and Winds, Edding Quartet & Northernlight, with the participation of Maude Gratton, Phi – Outhere music (2016).

Awards

* 1st Prize at the Concours des jeunes organistes de Saint-Germain-des-Fossés, France (2000) * 2nd prize at the Bruges International Organ Competition, Belgium (2003) * Youn Soloist of the Radios francophones publiques, France (2006) * Golden Diapason, Album, Wilhelm Friedemann Bach, Maude Gratton, Mirare, France (2009) * Golden Diapason, Album, Biber Imitatio, Ricercar Consort, Philippe Pierlot and Maude Gratton, Mirare, France (2014)

References

External links

Official website

Maude Gratton

Discography
(

Discogs Discogs (short for discographies) is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. While the site was originally created with a goal of becoming the la ...

)
Maude Gratton
(

France Musique France Musique is a French national public radio channel owned and operated by Radio France. It is devoted to the broadcasting of music, both live and recorded, with particular emphasis on European classical music, classical music and jazz. Hist ...

)
Maude Gratton
(abbayeauxdames)
Maude Gratton, clavecin & orgue
(Les bassesréunies)
Julius Reubke, Organ Sonata on the 94th psalm - Maude Gratton
(YouTube) {{DEFAULTSORT:Gratton, Maude French harpsichordists Women harpsichordists French classical organists French women organists Conservatoire de Paris alumni People from Niort 1983 births Living people 21st-century French women musicians 21st-century organists