On December 19, the unveiling ceremony of the "Chantel Juliet and Charles Dutois Chamber Music Library" was held at the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra. Witnessed by dozens of guests and friends at the ceremony, Maestro Charles Dutois and his wife, famous violinist Chantel Juliet, Li Bin, Secretary of the Party Leadership Group and Director of the Guangdong Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism, Yu Long, Vice Chairman of the China Association and Lifetime Honorary Director of the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra, Yu Qikeng, Honorary Director of the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra, and members of the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra jointly unveiled the library.
Maestro Charles Dutoit (third from right), renowned violinist Chantel Juliette (fourth from right), Li Bin (fourth from left), Secretary of the Party Leadership Group and Director of the Department of Culture and Tourism of Guangdong Province, Yu Long (first from right), Honorary Director of the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra Yu Qikeng (second from right), and members of the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra Chen Qing, Zhang Yi and Chen Zhimin.
In September 2020, a batch of 21 boxes containing more than 3,000 chamber music works by 230 composers from the 17th century to the present day was safely delivered from Montreal, Canada, to Guangzhou, China. The collection of scores collected by the famous violinist Chantel Juliette over the years of playing and teaching covers more than 3,000 works by 230 composers from the Baroque period of the 17th century to the modern and contemporary times, and the repertoire involves strings, winds, percussion, keyboards, vocal and other ensemble forms, among which instrumental works from duets to grand ensembles are the mainstay. In addition, works in genres such as instrumental solo, concerto, and small orchestra are included.
In the past few decades, many internationally renowned masters have used these scores, including pianists Marta Argerich, Stephen Hough, Gary Graffman, Yuja Wang, Kiri Gerstein, violinists Yitzhak Perlman, Leonidas Carvakos, Jill Shaham, Sarah Chang, Renaud Capuçon, cellist Yo-Yo Ma, Gautier Capuçon, Mischa Maisky, Wang Jian, etc. In addition, the scores have been used by world-famous ensembles such as the Meiyi Trio, the Tokyo String Quartet, the French Ebony Quartet, and the Shanghai Quartet, as well as world-famous composers such as Penderecki, Tan Dun, and Sheng Zongliang.
It is worth mentioning that some of the scores also have handwritten marks left by many famous artists during rehearsals and performances, and these marks also make the relevant scores a precious historical document.
After careful consideration, Ms. Chantel proposed to Maestro Yu Long to donate all the scores that have played a huge role in her decades-long career to the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra. The positive role of these sheet music materials in promoting chamber music research and teaching in China is obvious and of great significance. With the support of the Department of Culture and Tourism of Guangdong Province, the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra has established the Chantel Juliette and Charles Dutois Chamber Music Library, which is also a way to express our heartfelt gratitude to Ms. Chantel.
Mr. and Mrs. Dutoit visit the Canton Intersection Building and Library.
In addition to performing and traveling here many times, they also served as the director and director of the chamber music department of the "China Guangdong International ** Summer Camp (CISMA)" hosted by the province and undertaken by the former Provincial Department of Culture for three consecutive years from 2005 to 2007. The camp is the first large-scale international professional summer camp held in China, and it is a landmark cultural brand activity held in the construction of culture and art in our province, which fills the gap of the lack of high-level young talents in Asia at that time, especially the training project of outstanding orchestra players, and has been praised by the international industry so far. Today, most of the young people from Asian countries who were trained at that time have held important positions in many internationally renowned orchestras and academies.
It can be said that Ms. Chantel and Master Dutois have made outstanding contributions to the cultural construction of Guangdong, and Master Dutois has written this experience into his memoirs. The reason why Ms. Chantel chose to donate her precious collection to Guangdong, rather than to other cities in other countries where they had worked and lived, was based on this special friendship for Guangdong.
Ms. Chantel.
Speaking at the unveiling ceremony, Ms. Chantel said emotionally, "When I offered to donate the scores to the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra, Maestro Yu Long told me that the orchestra would build a library for it, and I told him that it would be nice to keep it simple, but the results I saw were not simple at all, but extraordinary. I was very touched and amazed by the beautiful library in front of me, and I can imagine how much effort the team of the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra has put in. 19 years ago today, the couple met Master Yu Long and Mr. Yu Qikeng for the first time, and together they planned the China Guangdong International ** Summer Camp. A few months later, we returned to China for summer camp auditions, but we often couldn't find the right score. Perhaps at that time, the idea of donating sheet music sprouted in my heart. This batch of music scores that have accompanied me for more than 25 years are donated to the Guangzhou Symphony and donated to Chinese practitioners for use, which is the best attribution of the scores. I saw many familiar faces today, which made me feel very familiar, and I hope that in the years to come, you can make the most of this batch of scores. I was deeply impressed by the meeting 19 years ago, because it was my birthday, and I was honored to be a part of the cultural construction process in Guangdong, which was the highlight of my career. ”
At present, this batch of music scores has been compiled and stored in accordance with the book management standards. The Chantel Juliet and Charles Dutois Chamber Music Library has the most extensive chamber music library in China. The collection of music score materials can first benefit the education of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, and will gradually benefit the teaching and research of ** universities and ** groups in the country and even Asia-Pacific countries and regions in the future. Those who need it can visit the library on-site by appointment. The appointment method will be announced on the official channels of the Canton Fair.
In the future, the library will also develop an online access function to gradually digitize the entire batch of sheet music, so that the collection of sheet music materials can reach a wider area and benefit more people in need.
*Courtesy of Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra.