L'Académie

The second Academy with Les Passions de l'Âme was held from September 12^th to 17^th 2022 under the motto «Practice makes perfect». This year, the academy in historically informed performance practice with teachers from the orchestra was aimed at instrumentalists: Younger, older and timeless amateurs, students and professionals.

Baroque instruments were preferred, but players of modern instruments were also welcome. Without fear of contact, we dived side by side into practical performance questions, whether in individual or chamber music lessons and at our orchestra as well.

In 2023, «L’Académie des Passions» will be held from September 11^th to 16^th 2023. Inscriptions are possible as of now. Please send the completed registration form for individuals or groups to academie@lespassions.ch.

MERET LÜTHI

Violin • Viola • Chamber Music • Conducting

Meret Lüthi, violinist and artistic director of Les Passions de l'Âme, celebrates highlights throughout Europe with her orchestra. As a lecturer for baroque violin and historically informed performance practice, she teaches at the Bern University of the Arts. In 2017 she received the Music Prize of the Canton of Bern and in 2020 the Culture Prize of the Bürgi-Willert Foundation. Her artistic work is documented on Sony, Ramée and Dynamic and has been awarded Diapason d'or, OPUS KLASSIK and Premio Abbiati.

SABINE STOFFER

Violin • Viola • Chamber music • Orchestra coaching

In addition to her active concert activities in Switzerland and abroad (Duo Libro Primo, Les Passions de l'Âme, Ensemble Meridiana, Rachel Podgers Brecon Baroque, Ensemble Otium, Le Concert de la Loge and others), Sabine Stoffer is also a teacher and organiser. She teaches baroque violin at the Musikschule Konsi Bern and is a regular chamber music lecturer at the Dartington Summer School. She was awarded the «Coup de Cœur» prize of the Canton of Bern.

LINDA MANTCHEVA

Violoncello • Chamber Music • Orchestra coaching

The Bulgarian cellist Linda Mantcheva grew up in a family of musicians. Her music studies led her to Sofia, Cologne and Berlin. Since 2002, her interest has focused on historically informed performance practice, with postgraduate studies in baroque cello and baroque chamber music in Cologne and Berlin. She has received awards at chamber music competitions in Germany, Italy and Bulgaria. She has played for many years in ensembles such as Les Passions de l'Âme, Continuum, L'arte del mondo, Musica sequenza, Berlin Baroque, with whom she performs worldwide. Linda Mantcheva teaches violoncello and orchestral playing in Berlin and is regularly sought after as a guest lecturer at the Orchesterzentrum NRW in Dortmund, where she works with students from universities in NRW.

ANNE PARISOT

Historic transverse flutes and woodwinds • Chamber music • Orchestra coaching

Anne Parisot studied modern and historical flutes in Paris, Germany and Switzerland with P. Gallois, R. Aitken, K. Kaiser and M. Hantaï. She performs with Les Passions de l'Âme, the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra, Le Cercle de l'Harmonie, Les Siècles, Ensemble Pygmalion, Ensemble Ausonia, Les Musiciens du Prince and others.

She has also participated in several CD productions for Deutsche Grammophon and Harmonia Mundi. As a professor for historical flutes, she teaches at the Conservatoire in Avignon.

MATTHIAS MÜLLER

Viola da gamba • viola da gamba consort • violone • lira da gamba • orchestra coaching

Matthias Müller began playing the treble viol at the age of 5. Since then, his instrumentarium has expanded to include the entire viola da gamba family, including various types of violones and the lira da gamba. He studied in Freiburg im Breisgau, where he has lived ever since. As a sought-after continuo player, his special love, in addition to chamber music, is 17^thcentury vocal music. He performs extensively with various renowned ensembles and has participated in over 100 CD productions.

IEVA SALIETE

Harpsichord solo • Correpetition

Ieva Saliete was born in Riga. She received her musical education first as a pianist, before she encountered the harpsichord at the Latvian Academy of Music. This was followed by studies of historical keyboard instruments with Prof. Dr. Robert Hill at the Staatliche Hochschule für Musik Freiburg i. B. and further training at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis with Jörg Andreas Bötticher. Since then, she has performed as a harpsichordist with international ensembles and orchestras. She now also teaches harpsichord at the Jāņa Ivanova Rēzeknes mūzikas vidusskola. In 2018, she received the highest award in Latvian musical life for her musical activities: the Grand Music Award.