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August 12, 1949: invited by a friend, André Böröcz arrives in Menton.
From the old port André Böröcz saw a church then two ...
Borrowing through the alleys of the old town, he discovered the deserted parvis. The forecourt Saint Michel is one of those sublime places open on the horizon and the sea.
When suddenly a radio on the edge of a window escapes the sound of a violin, "it was Jasha Heifetz who played Bach’s second violin partita". He stood there, frozen, suspended between heaven and earth, absorbed by the sea, the setting sun, the music carrying it.
From this wonder of a late afternoon of August 1949, he was guided all his life by the only quest to relive this moment, and we share it ...
Since the festival flourishes in this baroque decor where intimacy is combined with the monumental. "If the landscape can be a source of musical emotion, no, certainly, is more propitious than this old Chin drawn to the fact of the ancient Mediterranean shore" reminded Margerite Long.
Since 1950, the date of its creation, the most illustrious performers have created enchantment: Robert Casadessus, Wilhem Kempff, Long Marguerite, Aldo Ciccolini, Sviatoslav Richter, Maria-Jaos Pires, Jacques Thibaud, Jean Pierre Rampal, Isaac Stern, Mstilav Rostropovich ...
"In 1949, I climbed for the first time the steps that made me discover the marvelous Parvis Saint Michel.On arrived at this piazzetta suspended between heaven and earth, I had a blow to the heart.
Nothing has changed since, the music has just settled there. She feels good there: everything is harmony, joy, the agreement is perfect. And each time, when we arrive up there, artists and spectators, it is the same sensation: that of calm and serene happiness. This is the miracle of Parvis Saint Michel and the Festival.
He is one of the seven wonders of the world.
Do not tax me with immodesty, the word is Sviatoslav Richter "
André Böröcz
List of artists who have honored the Festival with their presence for 5 years.
The best musicians in the world perform in the sublime setting of the forecourt of the Saint Michael Archangel Basilica.
The virtuosos of tomorrow, but also renowned artists perform at the Palais de l'Europe.
The whole city vibrates with the notes of the Festival through concerts and happenings.
