Raphaël Pichon (born in 1984 in Paris) is a French

countertenor A countertenor (also contra tenor) is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range is equivalent to that of the female contralto or mezzo-soprano voice types, generally extending from around G3 to D5 or E5, although a sopranist (a ...

, choral and orchestral

conductor Conductor or conduction may refer to: Biology and medicine * Bone conduction, the conduction of sound to the inner ear * Conduction aphasia, a language disorder Mathematics * Conductor (ring theory) * Conductor of an abelian variety * Cond ...

Biography

Raphaël Pichon was a member of the Maîtrise des petits chanteurs de Versailles (children's choir) during his childhood. He then studied violin and piano at the before joining the

Conservatoire de Paris The Conservatoire de Paris (), or 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 Jean Ja ...

, where he studied singing and conducting. First of all a countertenor, he sang under the direction of

Ton Koopman Antonius Gerhardus Michael "Ton" Koopman (; born 2 October 1944) is a Dutch conductor, organist, harpsichordist, and musicologist, primarily known for being the founder and director of the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir. He is a professor ...

Jordi Savall Jordi Savall i Bernadet (; born 1 August 1941) is a Spanish Conducting, conductor, composer and viol player. He has been one of the major figures in the field of Western early music since the 1970s, largely responsible for popularizing the viol ...

Gustav Leonhardt Gustav Maria Leonhardt (30 May 1928 – 16 January 2012) was a Dutch keyboardist, conductor, musicologist, teacher and editor. He was a leading figure in the historically informed performance movement to perform music on period instruments. Leo ...

Laurence Equilbey Laurence Equilbey (born 6 March 1962) is a French conductor, known for her work in the choral repertoire, and more recently as the founder and music director of the Insula Orchestra. She also founded the chamber choir Accentus in 1991, and has ...

Paul Agnew Paul Agnew (born 11 April 1964 in Glasgow) is a Scottish operatic tenor and conductor. Biography Agnew read music as a Choral Scholar at Magdalen College, Oxford. He became associated with various groups specializing in early music (Ex Cathe ...

Jean Tubéry Jean Tubéry (1964 born in Toulouse) is a French player of the cornett (''cornetto'') and conductor. He is noted for being, along with his own teacher Bruce Dickey and his colleague Jean-Pierre Canihac, one of the main cornett players to resurrect ...

Vincent Dumestre Vincent Dumestre (born 5 May 1968) is a French lutenist. In 1997 he founded the ensemble Le Poème Harmonique. Career He studied the classical guitar at the École Normale de Musique de Paris and art history at the École du Louvre. Afterwa ...

, Bruno Boterf, Michel Laplénie and Sébastien d'Hérin. He also collaborated with and Gabriel Garrido. In 2006, during his studies at the Paris Conservatory, Raphaël Pichon created the choir and orchestral ensemble Pygmalion, dedicated to the repertoire on period instruments. Pichon has also directed the chamber choir OTrente, turned towards the romantic and contemporary repertoire.

Opera

A recording of ''Dardanus'' by Jean-Philippe Rameau appeared in 2013. In 2015 appeared a live recording of Rameau's ''

Castor et Pollux ''Castor et Pollux'' (''Castor and Pollux'') is an opera by Jean-Philippe Rameau, first performed on 24 October 1737 by the Académie royale de musique at its theatre in the Palais-Royal in Paris. The librettist was Pierre-Joseph-Justin Bernard ...

''. Also in 2015 Pygmalion performed ''Dardanus'' at the Bordeaux Opera in a staged production by

Michel Fau Michel Fau (born 1964) is a French comedian, actor and theatre director. Personal life At 18, he left his hometown for training at French National Academy of Dramatic Arts from 1986 to 1989. He trained with Michel Bouquet, Gerard Desarthe an ...

Discography

From an early date in the ensemble's history, Pygmalion's recordings have received a favourable reception from the critics. An album of mass compositions by

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (German: Help:IPA/Standard German, �joːhan zeˈbasti̯an baχ ( – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque music, Baroque period. He is known for his prolific output across a variety ...

( ''Missæ Breves'', BWV 234 and 235) in 2008, was awarded a golden Diapason, and an Editor's Choice of the British magazine ''Gramophone''. In September 2012, their third album, ''Missa'', a recording of the first version of the '' Mass in B minor'' by Bach was rewarded by the magazine ''

Télérama ''Télérama'' is a weekly French language, French cultural and television magazine published in Paris, France. The name is a contraction of its earlier title: ''Télévision-Radio-Cinéma''. Fabienne Pascaud is currently managing editor. Ludovic ...

''. Pygmalion's recording of Bach's

Motets In Western classical music, a motet is mainly a vocal musical composition, of highly diverse form and style, from high medieval music to the present. The motet was one of the preeminent polyphonic forms of Renaissance music. According to the Engl ...

won the Opus Klassik award for a choral work in 2021. In 2023, their version of Monteverdi's ''

Vespro della Beata Vergine ''Vespro della Beata Vergine'' (''Vespers for the Blessed Virgin''), Stattkus-Verzeichnis, SV 206, is a musical setting by Claudio Monteverdi of the evening vespers on Marian feasts, scored for soloists, choirs, and orchestra. It is an ambitio ...

'' was well received.

References

External links

"Raphaël Pichon"
biography, Pygmalion
"Raphaël Pichon: sacré chef d’orchestre!"
by Gilles Macassar, 9 February 2013, updated 8 December 2020, ''

'' (in French)
"Raphaël Pichon: 'La musique classique n'a rien de raisonnable
by Sophie Bourdais, 2 December 2016, updated 8 December 2020, ''Télérama'' (in French) {{DEFAULTSORT:Pichon, Raphaël 1984 births Musicians from Paris Living people Conservatoire de Paris alumni French countertenors French choral conductors French male conductors (music) French performers of early music Founders of early music ensembles 21st-century French singers 21st-century French conductors (music) 21st-century French male singers Harmonia Mundi artists