Lucienne Renaudin Vary - The Voice of the Trumpet (2017)

At just 17 years of age, Lucienne was hailed ‘Revelation of the Year’ in the 2016 Victoires de la Musique Classique (the French Grammy Awards), performing live at the ceremony to a televised audience of 1.5 million. Lucienne had already appeared at the Victoires three years earlier, at the age of 14, in an tribute to French trumpet legend Maurice André. In addition to a sterling classical technique, Lucienne is also a prodigious and passionate jazz trumpeter, having studied both styles in parallel. For her forthcoming debut album, titled A Voice, she will move effortlessly between the two in wide-ranging repertoire inspired by and featuring the human voice.

“I’m thrilled to record my first album for Warner Classics, with the freedom to explore music from Baroque to jazz,” said Lucienne. “It was a great honour and privilege to collaborate with artists I admire; notably Erik Truffaz, who improvises in duet with me for a new orchestral arrangement of Gershwin’s Summertime, and Rolando Villazón who suggested we record a Donizetti aria together.” Lucienne and her guest soloists recorded with the Orchestre National de Lille, conducted by Roberto Rizzi Brignoli.

“I chose vocal music as the theme for the album, taking the melodic line from opera arias to jazz standards and musicals, because I always aim to play the trumpet as if I were singing,” she said about her debut, which will feature Handel’s Eternal source of light divine (with countertenor Christophe Dumaux) and Bellini’s Casta Diva alongside orchestral arrangements of jazz standards and hits from musicals created especially for Lucienne, such as Rodgers and Hammerstein’s My Favourite Things. The young trumpeter also pays tribute to her idol in a new version of My Funny Valentine. “Chet Baker is a god for me,” explains Lucienne. “He played it and sang it, the perfect blend of voice and trumpet; I can listen to him over and over again and the way he plays touches me enormously. This arrangement is my homage to Chet.”

Jean-Philippe Rolland, Executive Vice-President International A&R and Business Development of Warner Classics & Erato, said of the signing: “At just seventeen years old, Lucienne Renaudin Vary already had complete mastery of her instrument, with a singing legato and a warmth in her sound that perfectly matches her personality. Curious about all repertoire, equally at ease in classical and jazz, Lucienne is a rare polyglot of the trumpet, making her versatility her greatest strength. She is a complete artist: the new voice of the trumpet.”

Lucienne Renaudin Vary is already in demand as a soloist internationally; she will be introduced to British audiences this week at the invitation of Classic FM when she performs at a Christmas charity concert hosted by the University of Aberdeen at St Marylebone Parish Church in London. With funds raised supporting research into dementia, the concert will be broadcast on Classic FM on 23 December, ahead of Lucienne’s official UK debut at Cadogan Hall with the London Chamber Orchestra in May 2017.

“Lucienne’s animation – often seeming to almost dance along with the liveliest parts of the concerto – was perhaps a product of her youth, while her confidence and expressive interpretation certainly belied it.” (Cambridgenews)

“She has an incredible talent, she is small, but when she comes on stage, the stage is completely filled. Classical and Jazz – she can have the cake and eat it too.” (Weingarten Musiktage)

"To have the kind of maturity and insight Lucienne has as a trumpet player, you would have to be 40 years old.” (Philippe Duchemin, Jazz pianist)

TRACKLIST
01. Les filles de Cadix (Arr. for Trumpet & Orchestra)
02. The Sound of Music: My Favourite Things (Transc. Lehn for Orchestra)
03. Don Pasquale, Act 2: "Povero Ernesto" (Ernesto) [Arr. for Trumpet & Orchestra]
04. Variations on Casta Diva (from the Opera "Norma") [Transc. Milone for Orchestra]
05. 15 Songs for Voice and Piano: X. Malinconia, Ninfa gentile (Arr. Sadin for Orchestra)
06. Les Contes d'Hoffmann, Act 4: "Belle nuit, ô nuit d'amour" (Arr. for Trumpet & Orchestra)
07. Ode for the Birthday of Queen Anne, HWV 74: I. Eternal source of light divine (Arr. for Trumpet & Orchestra)
08. Over the Rainbow (From "The Wizard Of Oz" musical) [Arr. for Trumpet & Orchestra]
09. The Man I Love (Orch. Daly)
10. Giustino, RV 717, Act 1: "Vedro con mio diletto" (Transc. Nakamura for Orchestra)
11. Summertime (Transc. Berisch for Orchestra)
12. Les Soirées Musicales: VIII. La Danza (Arr. For Trumpet & Orchestra)
13. 12 Romances, Op. 21: VII. Zdes' khorosho (How Fair this Spot) [Arr. for Trumpet & Orchestra]
14. Eugene Onegin, Op. 24, Act 2: "Kuda, Kuda" (Arr. for Trumpet & Orchestra)
15. 3 Songs, Op. 7: I. Après un rêve (Arr. for Trumpet & Orchestra)
16. Babes in Arms: My Funny Valentine (Transc. Walter for Orchestra)

PERSONNEL
Rolando Villazon, tenor
Christophe Dumauz, counter-tenor
Lucienne Renaudin-Vary, trumpet
Erik Truffaz, trumpet
Orchestre National de Lille
Roberto Rizzi Brignoli, conducto