Musicatreize

MUSICATREIZE
Marseille’s contemporary vocal ensemble

Musicatreize performs vocal works by contemporary composers, either a cappella or with instrumental accompaniment. The highly adaptable ensemble is a seasoned performer on a wide variety of stages and settings, from the pared down concert to full musical theatre.
Musicatreize leans particularly towards the Mediterranean, working closely with composers who express the Southern way of life. Examples include the French/Moroccan composer Maurice Ohana, who first inspired director Roland Hayrabedian, and Lebanese Zad Moultaka, whose work they frequently feature.
As well as performing in their own concert room in Marseille, Musicatreize organizes a biennial Marseille festival “20 Lieux sur la mer” (20 seaside places). The ensemble tours extensively, performing at top festivals and prestigious concert halls in Southern and Northern Europe, Asia, Africa and America, and has produced numerous CDs. Critical acclaim includes the French « Victoire de la Musique Classique » award.

Directed by ROLAND HAYRABEDIAN
The man and musical director
A complex musical personality, Roland Hayrabedian’s determination drives him to more and more ambitious projects in contemporary music. He is an explorer, a discoverer of new and often improbable musical territory, with passion and rigorous
standards as his guides.
A formative point in his career came with his introduction to Maurice Ohana.
The singular musical world of the legendary French composer, with its inner magic, its poetic timbres and rhythms, had a lasting influence on Roland Hayrabedian. He has continued to perform this extraordinary work, which echoes his own leaning towards the ritual and the internal in song. It is a paradox that the man who first performed or commissioned over a hundred vocal works was not really fond of traditional choral singing. As a young conductor, he drifted into the vocal repertoire with the attitude of a rebel.

Understanding his work
Characteristic of his conducting are energy and precision. He is always attentive to phrasing and breathing, promoting the lyricism of a work. Under his baton, works from different aesthetic worlds and different ages communicate : Bach’s Magnificat with Stravinsky’s Symphony of Psalms, Lizst’s Via Crucis with Ligeti’s Lux aeterna, with Monteverdi, and Ohana, Lassus, Scarlatti. But at the heart of Roland Hayrabedian’s work is performing the music of living composers. This involves risks, but once a relationship is established, it usually leads to a collaboration of trust that can contribute to the development both of a mature body of musical works and of an inspirational bond. In such a way, he has promoted the young generation of international composers : Oscar Strasnoy, Bruno Mantovani, Alexandros Markeas, Jesper Nordin, Tapio Tuomela, Zad Moultaka, Juan Pablo Carreno, Frédéric Perreten.
He has often initiated cycles of works, like the Temptations, the 7 tales of Musicatreize, or currently the three-part Detective Cantatas. Above all, Roland Hayrabedian seeks out work that reveals the individual, where the composer lays himself on the line.