Andrew Briggs & Isabelle Cottet “A Tale of Two Brothers” | Printempo

Cellist Andrew Briggs has spent the year exploring the music of France. Starting with the brother’s Jean-Louis and Jean-Pierre Duport in the late 18th century, his performances have included French masterworks from the Baroque through the contemporary. For this second concert, Isabelle Cottet joins Andrew in a recital named A Tale of Two Brothers reflecting this incredible year with French masterpieces for cello and piano.

The Program

Claude Debussy (1862- 1918)
Sonata for cello and piano, L.135
I. Prologue
II. Sérénade
III. Finale

Jean-Louis Duport (1749-1819)
Sonata for cello and piano
I. Allegro moderato
II. Andantino grazioso
III. Vivace

Gabriel Fauré (1845 -1924)
Papillon, Op. 77

Francis Poulenc (1899-1963)
Sonata for cello and piano (1948)
I. Allegro – Tempo di Marcia
II. Cavatine
III. Ballabile
IV. Finale

The Musicians

Praised as “an artist with an already expanding reputation and great future” (The Well-Tempered Ear); cellist Andrew Briggs is a world traveler. Recent performances include recitals in Bergen, Netherlands and Narbonne, France; collaborations with the principal cellist of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra (Amsterdam, NL); recital performances in Paul Hall, NYC; with Axiom Contemporary Ensemble in Alice Tully Hall, NYC; and concerto appearances in Wisconsin and Colorado. Last season, Andrew was a member of the Colorado Symphony cello section, principal cellist of the Crested Butte Music Festival, and guest artist on recital series in Chicago, New York City, and Denver. Completing his Masters Degree at The Juilliard School, he recently graduated from the University of Wisconsin with his doctoral project, “Piatti and the Body: An Integrative Approach to Learning the 12 Caprices, Op. 25”, on Youtube. Currently Andrew resides in Paris, France as a recipient of the Harriet Hale Woolley Scholarship from the Fondation des États-Unis, where he is studying and performing works of Duport, Debussy, and Poulenc.

Isabelle Cottet was born in 1990 in Paris. Having both parents pianists, she started playing the piano at the age of 5 and won her first competition three years later. At the age of 11 she was laureate of the Münchner Klavierpodium der Jugend and was offered a first opportunity to play with an orchestra, the Bach Concerto in D minor, BWV 1052.  To this prize were added several more, like Prima la Musica in Austria, the Medoc Aquitaine Competition, the Flame Competition Paris and Kawai Valsesia in Italy. She first studied at the CRR of Paris with Olivier Gardon where she obtained her Diploma of Superior Music Studies degree in 2009. Then, attracted by Berlin’s cultural richness, she decided to pursue her Bachelor and Master studies at the Universität der Künste, in the class of Jacques Rouvier. Beyond the solo repertoire, she plays a lot of chamber music. She has a rich repertoire of diverse ensembles: from duo to quintet with strings or winds players, from piano four hands to 10 pianos. She is particularly passionate about singing repertoire and attends Lied classes with Eric Schneider and with Wolfram Rieger at the Hanns Eisler Hochschule, Berlin. Isabelle has a large repertoire of concertos: Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin, Liszt and Ravel. She made her debut at the prestigious Salle Pleyel in Paris when she played Beethoven’s First Concerto op.15 with the CRR Symphony Orchestra. She also had the opportunity to perform in many other concert halls in Germany, Austria, Spain, France, Poland, Canada. In May 2012 she gave a recital at the Berliner Philharmonie, organized by the Berlin Classic Players program. Furthermore, the Paul Hindemith Foundation and the Gisela und Erich Andreas Stiftung have granted her scholarships. She has volunteered for concerts organized by the Lions Club and the Rotary Club. Finally, she is part of the Yehudi Menuhin Live Music Now organization, which organizes concerts for people staying in hospitals, orphanages and other social institutions. Since 2015, she is the founder and Artistic Director of the Festival Hommage Menuhin in Ville d’Avray, France. Plus, she is working every summer as the Academy Manager of the prestigious Verbier Festival as well.

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