Les Trois Concerts

Among the many pleasures of Paris are the abundant classical music offerings. The big concert halls -- Salle Pleyel and Théâtre des Champs-Élysées for example -- draw world famous artists and orchestras. Often, however, the true delights are found in the smaller venues, especially churches, large and small. Last night, we attended a piano recital at L'Église Saint-Ephrem. Tucked behind the Pantheon in the 5th Arr., this small church is named for the Syrian founder of an Eastern Orthodox Catholic sect in the 4th century AD. The liturgy celebrated in the church today dates back to the 6th century Jerusalem-Antioche, and is presented in Syrian Aramaic.

With its outstanding acoustics, the church is also a regular venue for recitals given by talented young musicians, all from the National Conservatory of Music of Paris. Last night's performer was a very beautiful 25 year old -- Elodie Meuret -- who entertained us by candlelight with works of Mozart (Sonata in D major), Beethoven (Sonata opus 81b "Les Adieux") and several pieces by Chopin in honor of the 200th anniversary of his birth. Really sublime and I think Madeleine Vionnet would have approved of her elegant gown!

Last week, thanks to a tip from an Inverness friend, we found ourselves at Le Temple d'Oratorio du Louvre in the 1st Arr. It, too, is steeped in history. One side faces the rue de Rivoli, across the street from the Louvre, and features an elegant 19th century statue of Gaspard de Coligny (1519-1572), a leading Huguenot Protestant leader who was assassinated in the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre whilst attending the marriage of Henri of Navarre and Marguerite de Valois. Eventually, the church became part of L'Église Réformée de France, a center for the Protestant faith.

It wasn't exactly history that drew us there last week, however, but our very own San Francisco-based Chanticleer, who were performing there as part of their European tour! They gave a stunning performance of works by Roland de Lassus ("Tous les Regretz", "Miserere mei Deus" and "Laudate Dominum de caelis"). Roland de Lassus, by the way, lived at almost exactly the same period as the poor murdered Gaspard de Coligny, so it all tied in rather well. After the concert, members of Chanticleer mingled with the audience. The two we spoke with were pretty astonished and very delighted to learn where we were from, and that their CDs are played frequently on KWMR's classical programs.













Our final concert had a very special personal connection. In 2003, Matthew worked on a screenplay (Le Concert) with a French filmmaker friend. The story follows the madcap but also very emotional adventures of a group of former stellar Russian musicians, fired by Brezhnev from the Bolshoi Orchestra back in the 70s, who come together under their old conductor, get themselves to Paris, and pass themselves off as the current Bolshoi Orchestra, performing at Théâtre Châtelet. It took many years, but the film finally went into production, and has become a huge hit here in France. It just received 6 César nominations (think Oscars), and the Weinstein Company will distribute it in the States. If you look very carefully at the second photo in the first long line of text at the bottom, you'll see Matthew's name. And the movie is just wonderful, climaxing with a performance of Tchaikovsky's violin concerto. I was sobbing by the end, along with everyone else in the theatre!

À bientôt!

Sales Fever vs. Haute Couture

In Paris, the month of January is all about "les soldes" the sales. The first week, the words "première démarque" (first reduction) blaze out in bright colors on the store windows. Second and third weeks follow with "seconde et troisième démarques" overlapping the previous week's sign. Inside the shops, bright colored dots indicate 30%, 40%, 50% off. Today, the start of the final week, it's all about "les dernières démarques" and the discounts climb to 70% and more. Needless to say, every time we step out, we find ourselves strolling through shop after shop, pawing through the merchandise, looking for that special bargain. With some success, too, I'm glad to say!

Meanwhile, for pure, classic Parisian couture, on Friday, we were lucky enough to step back in time and catch an extraordinary exhibition about Madeleine Vionnet at the Decorative Arts Museum, closing this week. We knew nothing about Madame Vionnet, but we quickly learned that from 1912 until 1939 she was the doyenne of "la mode". The first woman couturier to achieve fame, she moved her entire operation into an impressive mansion on the Avenue Montaigne just off the Champs Élysées, in 1922, employing some 200 people. As the little brochure says, the mansion became a temple of fashion, and here she lured and conquered an international clientele. When she showed her latest collections, instead of live models, the exquisite gowns were displayed on articulated mannequins, all of them about a size 4 in today's measurements! (This was a shrewd move because, in fact, women's bodies were definitely chubbier in those days, so live models would not have shown the garments off quite to the same level!) The exhibition comprised the donation Mde Vionnet made to the Union Française des Arts du Costume sometime in the 1950s. The gowns are exquisite, displayed, as she would have wished, on articulated mannequins, in subdued lighting to preserve the colors and fabrics: crèpe de chine, silk, velvet, organza, gold lamé, silver lamé. The structure and decoration of each item was fantastic, she cut and sewed a great deal on the bias, so the drape of the garment was perfect, as you can see. Madeleine Vionnet closed her business just as WWII broke out, although she lived well into her eighties.

The hushed world of haute couture at that time is hard to imagine in today's frantic paced whirl of instant consumer gratification! But I expect we will be out tomorrow, checking for those final bargains in "les soldes"

À très bientôt!

Le Parking in Paris

They really don't want you to drive a car in Paris. Since the arrival of the wonderful Velib bicycle program, the number of traffic lanes for cars has been drastically reduced, giving priority to buses, taxis and bicycles. As a result, the number of parking spots has also diminished. Of course, Parisians don't care (je m'en fou, they say), but sometimes they pay the price. We watched this car being towed outside a little cafe where we were having lunch today with our friend Edouard. Within less than ten seconds of the tow truck leaving with its prize, another "victim" parked in the same spot....

By chance, we were lunching across the street from Optique Vivienne, on the rue Vivienne (2nd arrondissement), where more than ten years ago we both bought our current eyeglass frames from Monsieur Boudart, who has now, alas, retired. Over the years, he checked our eyes quite regularly and whenever my new lenses arrived and he put them into my frames, he would always very politely ask me to sit for a moment in his shop whilst he crossed the street to Debauve et Gallais -- one of the great chocolate shops in Paris --where he would buy me a little box of chocolates.

Yum!

Paris Essentials

January 19, 2010

There are some things that make life in Paris feel like life in Paris should feel. Here are three of them: the Navigo card (center) that takes you on the Metro, on the Bus, and gives you access to the Velib bicycles; the Library card (left) that you can use in any municipal library in the city; AND the HSBC Carte Bleue with the "puce" -- your very own secret code -- that works the same way debit cards do in the States, and can be used in supermarkets, stores, restaurants, pretty much everywhere.

Armed with these three Paris essentials, we are ready for action!

Five days in, though, we are still jetlagged, glassy-eyed all day long, perky and energetic right about now (7:30 pm) until the small hours. Eventually we will adjust, but, meanwhile, we are enjoying reconnecting with family (our niece Juliette and her family live in Paris) and friends. We are in the same lovely apartment as last year. When we walked in the door, it felt as though we had just stepped out for a coffee and not at all as though a year had passed.

My French is lurking somewhere in the back of my brain, but day by day it will re-emerge and get better. I'm looking into a "review conversation" group that a friend has recommended to jump start the neurons.

The pantry is getting stocked and, believe it or not, I have a boeuf bourguignon simmering on the stove, which I need to attend to so it doesn't end up like Julie's in Julie & Julia.

Au revoir pour le moment!