Les Idées Heureuses: New Artistic Ideas

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After 37 years, Geneviève Soly is retiring as artistic director of the early-music chamber ensemble Les Idées Heureuses (LIH), but concertgoers need not worry as Soly’s former student-turned-colleague, Dorothéa Ventura, is excited to be stepping into the role.

The goal of LIH is to combine all aspects of early music-making and encompass the entire artistic spirit that accompanies the period. This often includes baroque dance and historically accurate and informed performance, but Ventura hopes to include acting and visual art in an effort to provide greater appeal to audiences and to capture the cultural essence of what artistic performance looked like.

Each season includes a diverse program of concerts, again seeking to encapsulate the multifaceted nature of music from this time period. The season opener on Sept. 24 will feature recorder player Vincent Lauzer in a program that consists of various concerti from 18th-century Naples. Ventura describes the program as “sunny, glorious music” and speaks highly of Lauzer’s style and technique.

The second concert will be offered online, and consists of 10 different musical settings of a hymn centring on the Virgin Mary. The musical works range from the 13th- to 21st-centuries and showcase the development of the baroque style. The concert was recorded in 2020 when LIH was still under Soly’s direction, but the vocalists they collaborated with are from Ensemble Alkemia, an a-cappella group under Ventura’s direction. This amalgamation of two groups serves as a fitting bridge for Ventura’s debut season; she says the nuances of each setting lend itself to a unique yet unified musical experience.

In February, LIH will present “Chaconne et Chocolat.” The chaconne is a favourite genre of Ventura and many of the ensemble’s regular performers. The concert will feature chaconnes from various composers in and around the baroque canon. The music will surely be as decadent as the treats presented with it.

The season will close with a Good Friday concert directed by Soly that centres on the cantatas of Christoph Graupner, whose music has been a longtime focus of Soly and the ensemble. She will return annually to present a concert of his music.

LIH has held a commitment to performing early music in a historically informed fashion. Ventura looks forward to maintaining the core values of LIH while expanding what she calls the “baroque spirit” to include more of “her own colour” in the concerts. Overall, Ventura was happy to call LIH a “collaborative environment where everyone hired has the opportunity to bring something personal to the shows.” LIH is a healthy environment for music and creativity, and Ventura hopes to continue to foster these values.