Accroche Note
Pioneer Momentum

Interviews 04.03.2021

Creation at all costs: Armand Angster, artistic director of the Accroche Note ensemble, shares his views.

Accroche Note, which has been in existence for 30 years, is, like the Percussions de Strasbourg, a pioneer! This chamber ensemble, from 3 to 8 musicians, has premiered works by Tristan Murail, George Arperghis, Pascal Dusapin, Martin Matalon, Jean-Louis Agobet... and many others!

In 2019, you created 17 pieces: a fine track record!

Creation is the sinews of war, but for a piece to enter the repertoire, it must also be performed again. By the ensemble that created it, but also by others: this is essential. Contemporary music cannot be reduced to a series of premieres. To bring this immense repertoire to life, there's nothing like working with students in composition classes, but not only: future performers too. We have close ties with the composition class at the Strasbourg Conservatory, and we work regularly in the United States with young composers from the University of Iowa. Next year, we'll be criss-crossing the Grand-Est region, with stops at the Metz and Reims conservatories. It's important for ensembles to be present in a composition class: it gives them a foothold and enables young composers to disseminate their music: we play some of their pieces in our concerts. It's anything but easy for young composers to find their place in society.

A new album dedicated to Pascal Dusapin in 2020 to celebrate this passion for creation:

How do you explain Strasbourg's high density of ensembles specializing in contemporary music?

The presence of Musica has a lot to do with it. But it's also thanks to the conservatory. Many composers and performers have graduated from the Haute école des arts du Rhin. All the ensembles in Strasbourg have passed through the conservatory, but despite this common ground, we manage to maintain an interesting diversity in our musical offerings: fortunately! Each ensemble has its own identity and is keen to develop it. Not all these ensembles defend the same repertoire: some are dedicated to gesture, to scenic research, some are directed, others are smaller. Ensemble Linea is a directed ensemble, working on the "classical" repertoire of contemporary music. We at Accroche Note are very rarely conducted: we have, for example, performed Schoenberg's Pierrot lunaire without a conductor. As an ensemble specializing in contemporary music, we feel supported in Strasbourg. When we started out, it was just Les Percussions de Strasbourg. Today, three different generations live together. There are about ten of us in this niche. There are more ensembles, but no more money.

A year 2020, also dedicated to the pleasure of the repertoire with this album:

Do you feel that it's more difficult to get funding for music that's quickly pigeonholed as "elitist"?

Unfortunately, yes. Today, it's harder to be an ensemble that defends our repertoire than it is to be a baroque music ensemble, which can be invited to works councils and which simply scares programmers less! In Strasbourg, public support is stronger than elsewhere, it's the Musica effect. In the département, there's an audience for every ensemble: we need to bring all these audiences together!

Finally, a word about contemporary balls, an intriguing concept...

The contemporary bal consists in asking composers to write dance pieces. It was an old idea from the Musica festival. It's a real ball! There are musicians - orchestra, singers, accordion - and a dance floor * The last edition dates back to 2015: the creations followed one another, the composers were there, the atmosphere was great. We were supposed to do another ball with Sacem in Nantes two or three years ago, but that didn't happen. The budget is high, since we have to place several orders, and the staff is also expensive: in 2015, there was a DJ and a barrel organ!

Interview by Suzanne Gervais.

The d'Accroche Note playlist

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