Illuminations - Improvisations on Bach by Philippe Thuriot

Johann Sebastian Bach

Philippe Thuriot

Illuminations - Improvisations on Bach

Price: € 19.95
Format: CD
Label: Challenge Classics
UPC: 0608917200140
Catnr: CC 720014
Release date: 07 February 2025
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Label
Challenge Classics

UPC
0608917200140

Catalogue number
CC 720014

Release date
07 February 2025

"The interpretations of Bach’s music do not just fill a chapter—they fill an entire encyclopedia of music history, in which Philippe Thuriot’s accordion arrangements deserve a place of respect. […] Exquisite taste and a relaxed cantabile contribute to a listening experience that is entertaining. 4 stars."

Classic Voice, 07-1-2026

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Artist(s)

Composer(s)

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About the album

Philippe Thuriot: When I look back, my childhood was filled with dance at bal evenings in my parents’ café, le Café du Village, where I also danced to my uncles’ accordion and drums. In reality. My first act of adolescence was discovering Bach instead of the rock bands my peers loved, sparking a decades-long quest for musical beauty. During my studies in Copenhagen, I immersed myself in contemporary accordion music, and the urge to improvise grew, leading to collaborations with jazz musicians. In parallel, dance re-emerged through my work with contemporary ballet troupes. It prompted me to experiment even more with improvisation. This project, “Illuminations”, weaves together all these various musical experiences, featuring surprises and improvisations based on Bach’s works. I reinterpret his music with modern elements and insights, ultimately reconciling with the music of my youth. So the spontaneity and sense of fun that I knew in childhood are back in a new form in “Illuminations”.

Philippe Thuriot: Wanneer ik terugkijk, besef ik dat mijn jeugd doordrenkt was met dans tijdens de bals in het café van mijn ouders, Le Café du Village, waar ik ook danste op de accordeon en drums van mijn ooms. In werkelijkheid was mijn eerste daad van adolescentie het ontdekken van Bach, in plaats van de rockbands waar mijn leeftijdsgenoten van hielden. Dit ontketende een decennialange zoektocht naar muzikale schoonheid.

Tijdens mijn studie in Kopenhagen dompelde ik mezelf onder in hedendaagse accordeonmuziek, en mijn drang om te improviseren groeide, wat leidde tot samenwerkingen met jazzmuzikanten. Tegelijkertijd keerde de dans terug in mijn leven door mijn werk met hedendaagse balletgezelschappen. Dit inspireerde me om nog verder te experimenteren met improvisatie.

Dit project, Illuminations, verweeft al deze muzikale ervaringen, met verrassingen en improvisaties op basis van Bachs werken. Ik herinterpreteer zijn muziek met moderne elementen en inzichten, en verzoen me zo uiteindelijk met de muziek uit mijn jeugd. De spontaniteit en het plezier die ik als kind kende, keren in een nieuwe vorm terug in Illuminations.

Philippe Thuriot: Wenn ich zurückblicke, war meine Kindheit erfüllt von Tanz auf Ballabenden im Café meiner Eltern, dem Café du Village, wo ich auch zur Ziehharmonika und den Trommeln meines Onkels tanzte. In Echt. Mein erster großer Schritt in die Adoleszenz war die Entdeckung von Bach anstelle der Rockbands, die meine Altersgenossen liebten, was eine jahrzehntelange Suche nach musikalischer Schönheit auslöste. Während meines Studiums in Kopenhagen tauchte ich in die zeitgenössische Akkordeonmusik ein und der Drang zu improvisieren wuchs, was zu Kooperationen mit Jazzmusikern führte. Parallel dazu tauchte der Tanz durch meine Arbeit mit zeitgenössischen Balletttruppen wieder auf. Das veranlasste mich, noch mehr mit Improvisation zu experimentieren. In diesem Projekt „Illuminations“ werden all diese verschiedenen musikalischen Erfahrungen miteinander verwoben, mit Überraschungen und Improvisationen, die auf Bachs Werken basieren. Ich interpretiere seine Musik mit modernen Elementen und Erkenntnissen neu und versöhne mich letztendlich mit der Musik meiner Jugend. So sind die Spontaneität und der Spaß, die ich aus meiner Kindheit kenne, in „Illuminations“ in neuer Form zurück.

Artist(s)

Philippe Thuriot (accordion)

Philippe Thuriot has spent his entire musical career moving between different worlds. His earliest musical influences sprang from the jukebox and the bal-musette dances at Le Café du Village, the pub run by his parents. Although he studied “noble” instruments such as violin and clarinet, in the end it was his first instrument, the accordion, that remained on his lap. It soon became clear that his appetite for broadening and deepening his musical horizons could not be satisfied. During his studies with the renowned Mogens Ellegaard at the Royal Conservatory of Copenhagen, his musical language and imagination flourished through the discovery of the contemporary repertoire for accordion. His first world tour, in 1996 with Alain Platel's La Tristeza Complice, introduced him to a...

Philippe Thuriot has spent his entire musical career moving between different worlds.

His earliest musical influences sprang from the jukebox and the bal-musette dances at Le Café du Village, the pub run by his parents. Although he studied “noble” instruments such as violin and clarinet, in the end it was his first instrument, the accordion, that remained on his lap.

It soon became clear that his appetite for broadening and deepening his musical horizons could not be satisfied. During his studies with the renowned Mogens Ellegaard at the Royal Conservatory of Copenhagen, his musical language and imagination flourished through the discovery of the contemporary repertoire for accordion.

His first world tour, in 1996 with Alain Platel's La Tristeza Complice, introduced him to a new artistic experience.

In the meantime, he also discovered the wondrous universe of improvisation. This led to collaborations with masters such as Uri Caine, Ellery Eskelin, René Lucier, Mark Feldman, Louis Sclavis and Maria Schneider.

Solo recitals alternated with collaborations with bands and ensembles.

Many composers have worked with him. Among other things, he premiered Dirk D’Ase's accordion concerto at the Wiener Konzert-Verein. He has performed with Prometheus Ictus, Oxalys, the WDR Big Band, Het Collectief, Symfonieorkest Vlaanderen and the Brussels Jazz Orchestra. Peter Vermeersch and Dick Van der Harst have also written accordion concertos for Philippe.

During the long, empty hours in hotel rooms while touring Pitié with Les ballets C de la B, Thuriot immersed himself in J. S. Bach's Goldberg Variations.

This led to an album supported by Warner Classics and Klara. It did not escape the attention of Philippe Herreweghe, who invited him several times to his Tuscan festival, Crete Senesi.

He was also invited to this prestigious festival with his solo album Couperin and Ravel (Warner).

Recent projects include I Silenti, featuring music by Claudio Monteverdi, with Fabrizio Cassol, Tcha Limberger and Claron McFadden, directed by Lisaboa Houbrechts.

In 2023–24, he toured with Vakepoes (La Geste, Toneelhuis, Opera Ballet Vlaanderen), an acclaimed music-theatre production by Lisaboa Houbrechts, featuring, among others, Stefaan Degand and Elsie de Brauw.

A new music-theatre project, Amours Aveugles by Koen Augustijnen, took shape and toured in 2024–25. This powerful work combining theatre and dance features musical adaptations by Gwen Cresens and Philippe Thuriot, with, among others, Ed Lyon (tenor), Liesbeth Devos (soprano), Gwen Cresens (accordion), Rosalba Torres (dance) and Elie Tass (dance).

In 2024, he recorded a new solo CD featuring music by D. Scarlatti for the label Challenge Records.

In 2025, he released Illuminations on the same label, featuring improvisations based on the music of J. S. Bach.

In his latest collaboration with the Brussels Jazz Orchestra, Philippe is the soloist in Looking Within, for which Bert Joris composed the music.

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Composer(s)

Johann Sebastian Bach

Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer and musician of the Baroque period. He enriched established German styles through his skill in counterpoint, harmonic and motivic organisation, and the adaptation of rhythms, forms, and textures from abroad, particularly from Italy and France. Bach's compositions include the Brandenburg Concertos, the Goldberg Variations, the Mass in B minor, two Passions, and hundreds of cantatas. His music is revered for its technical command, artistic beauty, and intellectual depth. Bach's abilities as an organist were highly respected during his lifetime, although he was not widely recognised as a great composer until a revival of interest in and performances of his music in the first half of the 19th century. He is now generally regarded as one of the greatest composers of all time.

Bach's abilities as an organist were highly respected during his lifetime, although he was not widely recognised as a great composer until a revival of interest in and performances of his music in the first half of the 19th century. He is now generally regarded as one of the greatest composers of all time.

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Press

The interpretations of Bach’s music do not just fill a chapter—they fill an entire encyclopedia of music history, in which Philippe Thuriot’s accordion arrangements deserve a place of respect. […] Exquisite taste and a relaxed cantabile contribute to a listening experience that is entertaining. 4 stars.
Classic Voice, 07-1-2026

The question here is how Bach might sound on an instrument that he would have been unfamiliar with, and yet which in its technical capacity is fully capable of reproducing Bach’s compositions in a new sound world. ... a rather captivating set of pieces that will broaden one’s horizons on how such well-known music can serve as the foundation of music of a completely different substance
Fanfare Magazine, 01-9-2025

brings me back to a trip to Paris just a few years ago, when I walked through the metropolis, enjoying the cool spring weather and the accompanying music that wafted through the air. ... Thuriot’s playing magically transports me - and I imagine he’ll do the same for you!
Fanfare Magazine, 03-6-2025

All in all, impressive improvisations and a praiseworthy initiative to elevate the accordion into the realm of the Baroque.
Music Emotion, 09-4-2025