Renaud Capuçon

Renaud Capuçon's artistry is characterized by exceptional musicality, technical mastery, and intellectual penetration of a theme. Highly contrasting adjectives can describe his violin playing – sensitive and powerful, elegant and self-assured, exalted and serious. Yet, it is always marked by lyricism and virtuosity, with Capuçon producing a remarkable variety of timbres and tonal colors through the singing qualities of his instrument. In 2024, he was named Artist of the Year at the International Classical Music Awards: "As an artist committed to civic and social causes, violinist and conductor Renaud Capuçon is one of the greatest living musicians," the jury declared. In September 2022, Deutsche Grammophon announced the launch of a novel artistic partnership with Renaud Capuçon. This multi-year initiative will release a series of projects featuring audio and audiovisual publications. The recordings stem from the violinist's work with young interpreters and composers; they are produced by a dedicated company in which Capuçon is involved and are released on DG. The collaboration kicked off in November 2022 with an album of sonatas by Schumann, Beethoven, and Franck, recorded at a concert with Martha Argerich during the Aix-en-Provence Easter Festival in April of that year and dedicated to the memory of their friend and fellow pianist Nicholas Angelich. In 2023, a comprehensive Mozart project followed: Renaud Capuçon, with pianist Kit Armstrong, recorded the 16 mature violin sonatas, and the 4-CD album was released in June. In September, all the violin concertos with the Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne were released, and in November, Mozart: The Piano Quartets followed, recorded with three of his mentees; it inaugurates "Beau Soir," his new imprint with DG. On the occasion of the hundredth anniversary of Gabriel Fauré's death, Capuçon, again with the Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne, released an album in June 2024 featuring, among other works, the Violin Concerto, Masques et Bergamasques, the Élégie op. 24 (with cellist Julia Hagen), and the Ballade op. 19 (with pianist Guillaume Bellom) – described by BBC Music Magazine as a "sensitive and excellently performed selection." His latest album is a tribute to one of his favorite composers, Richard Strauss. In addition to chamber music such as the Violin Sonata, the Piano Quartet, the Sextet from Capriccio, and the string septet version of Metamorphosen, Capuçon performs the Violin Concerto with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra under Petr Popelka, and a performance of Ein Heldenleben from 2000 is included, with Seiji Ozawa conducting the Gustav Mahler Jugendorchester and a young Capuçon as concertmaster. Richard Strauss will be released digitally and on 3 CDs on January 31, 2025. For more than two decades, Renaud Capuçon has been a welcome guest in international concert halls and highly sought after for concerts, chamber music, and recitals. He has performed with numerous leading orchestras: Berlin Philharmonic, Vienna Philharmonic, Chamber Orchestra of Europe, Filarmonica della Scala, Boston Symphony Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, New York Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestre de Paris, Orchestre National de France, and Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France. He has developed intense artistic relationships with conductors such as Daniel Barenboim, Gustavo Dudamel, Daniel Harding, Andris Nelsons, and Yannick Nézet-Séguin, and is also a celebrated chamber musician, not least for his performances with Martha Argerich, Daniel Barenboim, Hélène Grimaud, Maria João Pires, Daniil Trifonov, Yuja Wang, and his brother, cellist Gautier Capuçon. The broad spectrum of his work is reflected in his discography, which, in addition to traditional concert and chamber music repertoire, also includes contemporary works by Arvo Pärt, Henri Dutilleux, Karol Beffa, Bruno Mantovani, Wolfgang Rihm, and Pascal Dusapin, as well as classical film scores. In addition to his work in the concert hall, Renaud Capuçon is also a dedicated teacher for outstanding young talents; in 2014, he was appointed professor at the Haute Ecole de Musique et Conservatoire de Lausanne. Furthermore, he is the artistic director of the Aix-en-Provence Easter Festival (which he founded in 2013), the Sommets Musicaux de Gstaad Festival (since 2016), the Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne (since 2021), and Évian's Rencontres Musicales Festival (since 2023). Since 2020, he has been a UNESCO Artist for Peace. In 2019, Capuçon gave a series of concerts in six French cathedrals to raise funds for the reconstruction of Notre-Dame de Paris, and in April 2020, he played works for solo violin as part of a small Good Friday service in the burnt-out building. On December 7, 2024, he performed with his brother Gautier as part of the celebrations for the reopening of the restored cathedral. Renaud Capuçon was born on January 27, 1976, in Chambéry, eastern France, on the same day as Mozart 220 years earlier. He began violin lessons at the age of four and ten years later entered the Paris Conservatoire before moving to Berlin to study with Thomas Brandis and Isaac Stern. Important experiences at the beginning of his career included serving as concertmaster of the Gustav Mahler Jugendorchester under Claudio Abbado and working as artistic director of the Les Rencontres artistiques de musique de chambre de Bel-Air festival, which he founded in 1996. In 2011, the French government appointed him Knight of the National Order of Merit, and five years later, Knight of the Legion of Honor. He plays the 1737 Guarneri del Gesù "Panette," formerly owned by Isaac Stern. 12/2024