Sophie-Véronique Colette Claude Cauchefer-Choplin (née Cauchefer, born 28 December 1959) is a French organist who has served as co-titular organist of the Church of Saint-Sulpice in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

since 2023.Official website of Sophie-Véronique Cauchefer-Choplin
(in French). Retrieved 15 February 2022.Royal College of Music
Sophie-Véronique Cauchefer-Choplin. Accessed on 13 December 2021.Yale University, Institute of Sacred Music
Sophie-Véronique Cauchefer-Choplin, organist. Accessed on 13 December 2021.''The Diapason'', "Daniel Roth named Titulaire Émérite, St. Sulpice, Paris"
17 March 2023. Retrieved 25 March 2024.

Early life

Born into a family of musicians in Nogent-le-Rotrou (

Eure-et-Loir Eure-et-Loir (, locally: ) is a French department, named after the Eure and Loir rivers. It is located in the region of Centre-Val de Loire. In 2019, Eure-et-Loir had a population of 431,575.department, France), Cauchefer-Choplin began

piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

lessons at a young age and took up the organ at the age of 14. She studied at the École National de Musique in

Le Mans Le Mans (; ) is a Communes of France, city in Northwestern France on the Sarthe (river), Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the Provinces of France, province of Maine (province), Maine, it is now the capital of ...

and was awarded a prize by the

French Ministry of Culture The Ministry of Culture () is the ministry (government department), ministry of the Government of France in charge of List of museums in France, national museums and the . Its goal is to maintain the French identity through the promotion and pro ...

in 1980. Continuing her studies at 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 ...

under Rolande Falcinelli, she won first prize in organ and improvisation, as well as prizes in harmony,

fugue In classical music, a fugue (, from Latin ''fuga'', meaning "flight" or "escape""Fugue, ''n''." ''The Concise Oxford English Dictionary'', eleventh edition, revised, ed. Catherine Soanes and Angus Stevenson (Oxford and New York: Oxford Universit ...

and

counterpoint In music theory, counterpoint is the relationship of two or more simultaneous musical lines (also called voices) that are harmonically dependent on each other, yet independent in rhythm and melodic contour. The term originates from the Latin ...

. In 1990, after further training with Loïc Mallié, she became the first woman to win the second prize in improvisation at the Chartres International Organ Improvisation Competition.

Career

In 1983 Cauchefer-Choplin was appointed organist at the Church of Saint Jean-Baptiste-de-la-Salle in Paris, stepping down from the role in 2013. In 1985, she was appointed deputy titular organist of the Church of Saint-Sulpice, under Daniel Roth, having auditioned while pregnant. In 2023 she succeeded Roth as co-titular organist, alongside Karol Mossakowski. She has been a professor at the

Royal College of Music The Royal College of Music (RCM) is a conservatoire established by royal charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, UK. It offers training from the undergraduate to the doctoral level in all aspects of Western Music including pe ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

since 2008 and a visiting professor at

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

in the United States of America. Cauchefer-Choplin gives concerts and improvisation masterclasses around the world and serves on the juries of national and international competitions. She has released several CDs of her recordings.France Orgue
List of CDs released by Sophie-Véronique Cauchefer-Choplin (in French). Retrieved 15 February 2022.

Personal life

Her brother is the cellist Pierre Cauchefer and her daughter Pauline is an actress.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cauchefer-Choplin, Sophie-Véronique 1959 births Living people People from Nogent-le-Rotrou Conservatoire de Paris alumni French women organists 20th-century French organists 21st-century French organists Academics of the Royal College of Music