FolleJournée2009 HansJörgMammel&PierreHantaï

Pierre Hantaï (born 28 February 1964,

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

) is a French

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 ...

ist and conductor.

Career

The son of painter

Simon Hantaï Simon Hantaï (7 December 1922, Biatorbágy, Hungary – Paris, 12 September 2008; took French nationality in 1966) is a painter generally associated with abstract art. Biography After studying at the Budapest School of Fine Art, he traveled ...

, he discovered the music of

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 ...

when he was ten and first heard Gustav Leonhardt's recordings when he was eleven. He took up the harpsichord when he was eleven and was self-taught until meeting his first teacher, the American harpsichordist Arthur Haas. He later studied for two years in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

with Gustav Leonhardt. In 1983 he won the second prize in the

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 ...

harpsichord competition. His first recordings focused on the English virginalists (

Giles Farnaby Giles Farnaby (c. 1563 – November 1640) was an English composer and virginalist whose music spans the transition from the Renaissance to the Baroque period. Life Giles Farnaby was born about 1563, perhaps in Truro, Cornwall or near London. ...

and

John Bull John Bull is a national personification of the United Kingdom in general and England in particular, especially in political cartoons and similar graphic works. He is usually depicted as a stout, middle-aged, country-dwelling, jolly and matter- ...

), and on Bach. Influential solo recordings include two

Goldberg Variations The ''Goldberg Variations'', BWV 988, is a musical composition for keyboard by Johann Sebastian Bach, consisting of an aria and a set of 30 variations. First published in 1741, it is named after Johann Gottlieb Goldberg, who may also have ...

, released ten years apart (1993, 2003), and an ongoing series of

Domenico Scarlatti Giuseppe Domenico Scarlatti, also known as Domingo or Doménico Scarlatti (26 October 1685-23 July 1757), was an Italian composer. He is classified primarily as a Baroque composer chronologically, although his music was influential in the deve ...

’s sonatas. Following a first CD for Astrée in 1993, he has recorded six more volumes of Scarlatti recitals for

Mirare Mirare is a French classical music record label founded by René Martin and François-René Martin. The label was created for recordings of the La Folle Journée La Folle Journée is a French annual classical music festival held in Nantes. I ...

between 2002 and 2019. Other solo recordings include the ''

Well-Tempered Clavier ''The Well-Tempered Clavier'', BWV 846–893, consists of two sets of preludes and fugues in all 24 major and minor keys for keyboard by Johann Sebastian Bach. In the composer's time, ''clavier'', meaning keyboard, referred to a variety of in ...

'', Book I, three recordings dedicated to Bach’s

toccatas Toccata (from Italian ''toccare'', literally, "to touch", with "toccata" being the action of touching) is a virtuoso piece of music typically for a keyboard or plucked string instrument featuring fast-moving, lightly fingered or otherwise virt ...

and suites, as well as recordings of

Frescobaldi The Frescobaldi are a prominent Florentine noble family that have been involved in the political, social, and economic history of Tuscany since the Middle Ages. Originating in the Val di Pesa in the Chianti, they appear holding important posts ...

and

Couperin The Couperin family was a musical dynasty of professional composers and performers. They were the most prolific family in French musical history, active during the Baroque era (17th—18th centuries). Louis Couperin and his nephew, François Coup ...

He performs internationally as a soloist across Europe, North America and Asia at festivals such as La Roque d'Anthéron, La Folle Journée de Nantes, Festival Oude Muziek Utrecht, the Boston Early Music Festival, at

Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhatta ...

, the

Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian The Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation ( pt, Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian), commonly referred to simply as the Gulbenkian Foundation, is a Portuguese institution dedicated to the promotion of the arts, philanthropy, science, and education. One of ...

, and Hakuju Hall in Tokyo. In 1991, he and his brother Jérôme recorded part of the soundtrack to the French film '' Tous les matins du monde''. In 1985, he founded the ensemble ''Le Concert Français'', which he conducted from the harpsichord and which recorded both orchestral and chamber repertoire. He frequently performs with his two brothers,

Marc Marc or MARC may refer to: People * Marc (given name), people with the first name * Marc (surname), people with the family name Acronyms * MARC standards, a data format used for library cataloging, * MARC Train, a regional commuter rail system o ...

(

traverso The Western concert flute is a family of transverse (side-blown) woodwind instruments made of metal or wood. It is the most common variant of the flute. A musician who plays the flute is called a flautist (in British English), flutist (in Ameri ...

) and Jérôme (viola da gamba) as part of the Trio Hantaï. He played for many years with

La Petite Bande La Petite Bande is a Belgium-based ensemble specialising in music of the Baroque and Classical eras played on period instruments. They are particularly known for their recordings of works by Corelli, Rameau, Handel, Bach, Haydn, and Mozart. Hi ...

(directed by

Sigiswald Kuijken Sigiswald Kuijken (; born 16 February 1944) is a Belgian violinist, violist, and conductor known for playing on period and original instruments. Biography Kuijken was born in Dilbeek, near Brussels. He was a member of the Alarius Ensemble of ...

), and he continues to perform with

Jordi Savall Jordi Savall i Bernadet (; born 1 August 1941) is a Spanish 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 family of ...

, ,

Hugo Reyne Hugo Reyne (born in 1961) is a contemporary French recorder player, oboist and conductor. He is the founder and music director of La Simphonie du Marais. Biography Born in Paris, Hugo Reyne began learning the flute and oboe at a very young a ...

, and

Maude Gratton image:Maude-Gratton-0441.jpg, Maude Gratton (born 1983) is a French classical musician. She is pursuing a career of Solo (music), soloist, mastering the pipe organ, the piano-forte and the harpsichord. Biography Born in Niort, Gratton studied ...

. He has collaborated with many other musicians, including

Philippe Herreweghe Philippe Maria François Herreweghe, Knight Herreweghe (born 2 May 1947) is a Belgian conductor and choirmaster. Herreweghe founded La Chapelle Royale and Collegium Vocale Gent and is renowned as a conductor, with a repertoire ranging from Rena ...

and Marc Minkowski.

Teaching

Pierre Hantaï has never held a permanent teaching post in a conservatory. During the 1990s, he taught privately. His students, including Bertrand Cuiller and Maude Gratton, continued their studies at the CNSM de Paris with

Christophe Rousset Christophe Rousset (; born 12 April 1961) is a French harpsichordist and conductor, who specializes in the performance of Baroque music on period instruments. He is also a musicologist, particularly of opera and European music of the 17th and 18 ...

and Olivier Baumont. In 2000, Hantaï replaced Rousset, then the harpsichord professor at the CNSM, during his sabbatical year. At the end of the year, Rousset quit and a job search was held as a formality, with the expectation that Hantaï would succeed Rousset and continue to work with his students at the CNSM. In what one student called an unexpected twist that shook the harpsichord class, though, he lost the post to Baumont, who has been the harpsichord professor at the CNSM since 2001. Since then, he has largely limited his teaching activities to master classes (

Villa Medici The Villa Medici () is a Mannerist villa and an architectural complex with a garden contiguous with the larger Borghese gardens, on the Pincian Hill next to Trinità dei Monti in Rome, Italy. The Villa Medici, founded by Ferdinando I de' Medici, ...

, Fondation

Royaumont Royaumont Abbey is a former Cistercian abbey, located near Asnières-sur-Oise in Val-d'Oise, approximately 30 km north of Paris, France. History It was built between 1228 and 1235 with the support of Louis IX. Several members of the Fren ...

, Académie de Villecroze, Accademia Europea Villa Bossi, etc.). He tutored the harpsichordist Lillian Gordis between 2009 and 2013.

Discography

Solo Recordings

* 1990:

: ''Farnaby's Dreame'', Accord * 1990 :

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 ...

: ''Concerti per cembalo ; Sonatas ; Menuets'', Opus 111 * 1993 :

: ''22 sonates'', Astrée * 1993 : Bach: '' Goldberg Variationen'' 992 Recording Opus 111 * 1994 : Bach: ''Concertos pour clavecin'', Le Concert Français, Astrée * 1995 :

: ''Doctor Bull's Good Night'', Astrée * 1997 :

Girolamo Frescobaldi Girolamo Alessandro Frescobaldi (; also Gerolamo, Girolimo, and Geronimo Alissandro; September 15831 March 1643) was an Italian composer and virtuoso keyboard player. Born in the Duchy of Ferrara, he was one of the most important composers of k ...

: ''Partite et Toccate'', Astrée * 1997 : Bach: '' Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue -

Toccatas Toccata (from Italian ''toccare'', literally, "to touch", with "toccata" being the action of touching) is a virtuoso piece of music typically for a keyboard or plucked string instrument featuring fast-moving, lightly fingered or otherwise virt ...

,'' Virgin Veritas * 1999 : Bach: ''Works for Harpsichord'', Virgin Veritas * 2002 : ''Scarlatti 1'', Ambroisie * 2002 : ''Scarlatti 2'', Mirare * 2003 : Bach: '' Le Clavier bien tempéré'', Premier livre, Mirare * 2004 : Bach: ''Variations Goldberg'', Mirare * 2006 : ''Scarlatti 3'', Mirare * 2008 :

François Couperin François Couperin (; 10 November 1668 – 11 September 1733) was a French Baroque composer, organist and harpsichordist. He was known as ''Couperin le Grand'' ("Couperin the Great") to distinguish him from other members of the musically talented ...

: ''Pièces de clavecin'', Mirare * 2012 :

Jean-Philippe Rameau Jean-Philippe Rameau (; – ) was a French composer and music theory, music theorist. Regarded as one of the most important French composers and music theorists of the 18th century, he replaced Jean-Baptiste Lully as the dominant composer of Fr ...

: ''Symphonies à deux clavecins'', Mirare * 2014 : Bach: ''Suites anglaises'' n^o 2 et 6 ; ''Concerto italien'', Mirare * 2014 : ''Magnificat et Concerti'' '': A. Vivaldi, J.S. Bach'',

La Capella Reial de Catalunya ''La Capella Reial de Catalunya'' is a group of soloist singers with the aim of making the repertoire of Catalan historical music and, by extension, that of Spanish and other music widely known throughout the world. The group was formed in Barc ...

, Alia Vox * 2014 : Bach: ''Concertos for Two Harpsichords'', with Aapo Häkkinen, Helsinki Baroque Orchestra, Aeolus * 2016 : ''Scarlatti 4'', Mirare * 2017 : ''Scarlatti 5'', Mirare, mention « Choc de Classica » * 2019 : ''Scarlatti 6'', Mirare

Orchestral/Chamber Music

* 1991: ''Christmas Concerto, Sonatas after Concerti Grossi op. VI'' / Le Concert Français, Opus 111 *1992 : ''Maskes & Fantazies'' / Le Concert Français. Naïve * 1997 : Marin Marais: ''Pièces de viole'' / Jérôme Hantaï. Virgin Veritas * 1997 : Jean-Marie Leclair: ''Sonates pour violon et basse continue, Livre IV'' / François Fernandez. Naïve * 2002 : ''Pavana: The Virgin Harpsichord'' / Skip Sempé. Astrée * 2003 : Marais: ''Pièces à deux et à trois violes'' / Jérôme Hantaï. Warner Classics * 2003 : Georg Philipp Telemann : ''Essercizii Musici'' / Le Concert Français. Naïve * 2005 : Bach: ''Sonates pour flûte'' / Marc Hantaï, Jérôme Hantaï. Warner Classics * 2005 : Marais: ''Pièces de viole, vol. 2'' / Jérôme Hantaï. Warner Classics * 2006 : Bach: ''Suites pour orchestre nos. 1 & 4, Sonate pour violon et clavecin no. 4'' / Le Concert Français. Mirare * 2018 : Bach: ''Sonatas for flute and harpsichord'' / Marc Hantaï. Mirare

References

External links

*
Bach-cantatas.com: Pierre Hantaï
- biography and photos
Goldberg Web: Pierre Hantaï
- biography and discography {{DEFAULTSORT:Hantai, Pierre 1964 births French harpsichordists French performers of early music French male conductors (music) Musicians from Paris Living people 21st-century French conductors (music) 21st-century French male musicians