Jeremy Jouve

Jeremy Jouve

This Mel Bay DVD, featuring 2003 GFA winner Jeremy Jouve, was recorded live in September 2009 at Eybens, a small town not far from the capital of the French Alps, Grenoble, where Jeremy was born.

Over the past few years Jeremy's concert program has become oriented towards 20th century European music. With this particular concert Jeremy has endeavored to illustrate his interest in this music by performing works from four European composers of different nationalities.

The first composer, Joaquin Rodrigo, is famous the world over for his solo guitar works. Seldom performed, they are little-known but deserve to be presented to a wider audience. For some time now Jeremy has included in his repertory Rodrigo's music in homage to the rich and diverse Spanish culture. The Sonata - Ommaggio a Boccherini, fruit of the prolific collaboration that took place at the turn of the 20th century between the Italian composer Mario Castelnuovo Tedesco and Andres Segovia, is performed here in the recently re-edited version which is much closer to the original manuscript.

In the 2nd part of the concert the inspiration changes with a work by Benjamin Britten, Nocturnal after John Dowland. The composer was a close friend of Julian Bream and here he offers a truly great musical masterpiece. A true psychodrama, he takes us through the various emotions encountered while sleeping, exaltation with a Passacaglia leading to and finishing on John Dowland's inspirational theme as dawn finally brings the reassuring light of day.

Jouve concludes the recital with the Jazz Sonata by the composer Dusan Bogdanovic, who, with great spirit, explores the musical horizons of Jazz and music from his native Balkans.

Finally, an allusion to France with one of my Jouve's native country's greatest popular singers of the 20th century, Edith Piaf and her L 'Hymne ? l'Amour, with, as a bonus, Erik Satie's first Gnossienne, both arranged by Roland Dyens.