Julien Libeer & Reynaldo Hahn - Marcel Proust Tribute Concert

Music plays an important role in Marcel Proust’s work. Whereas in the first part of his magnum opus, In Search of Lost Time, the narrator’s memory is awakened by a little madeleine cake, the main character Charles Swann is triggered in the same way by a sonata composed by a certain Vinteuil. For decades, literary scholars have discussed who the model for this fictional composer might have been. In honour of the hundredth anniversary of Marcel Proust’s death, the Belgian National Orchestra conducted by Otto Tausk carries out its own investigation.

One of the composers that Proust greatly appreciated was the piano and organ virtuoso César Franck, born 200 years ago. The orchestra performs his Les Éolides, a symphonic poem inspired by the poem of the same name by Leconte de Lisle. The Aeolides are the daughters of the wind god, Aeolus: gentle breezes that bracingly brush past one’s cheeks on a summer evening.

Marcel Proust’s most intimate relationship was with the Venezuelanborn composer Reynaldo Hahn. For some years, they were lovers and they later became best friends. The Belgian pianist Julien Libeer plays Reynaldo Hahn’s only piano concerto, a rarely performed but highly sensitive work. Other composers who were held in high esteem by Marcel Proust included Debussy and Wagner. The orchestra plays excerpts from Debussy’s Pelléas et Mélisande, with parts of Wagner’s Das Rheingold. Which composer ultimately inspired Marcel Proust’s fictional character, Vinteuil? Decide for yourself!

Otto Tausk, conductor
Julien Libeer, piano