Pascal Contet
Pascal studied in Freiburg (Switzerland), the Musikhochschule in Hanover, the Royal Conservatory in Copenhagen and the Akademie der Künste in Graz. Winner of the Cziffra Foundation (1983) and Menuhin Foundation (1986), he was awarded the Bleustein-Blanchet Foundation Prize in 1989. In 2012, the first accordionist, he was nominated for the Victoires de la musique classique (“Solo instrumentalist of the year” and “Recording of the year” categories). From 1993 to the present day, he has had to his credit about 300 performances by influential composers such as C. Ballif, F. Bedrossian, L. Berio, E. Canat de Chizy, B. Cavanna, J.P. Drouet, P. Eötvös, I. Fedele, S. Gubaïdulina, P. Hurel, B. Mantovani, S. Rivas, Y. Robin and others.
He has played with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, the Orchestre National de l’Opéra de Paris, the Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne, Les Siècles under the direction of D. Masson, P. Boulez, E.P. Salonen, J.C. Casadesus, S. Mäkkli, F.X. Roth, D. Kawka in about 57 countries, among others, at the Gulbenkian Foundation in Lisbon, Victoria Hall in Geneva, Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires, Cité de la Musique in Paris, Stadthalle in Wuppertal, Timisoara, Berkeley University, Shanghai Opera, Tokyo, Seoul Arts center, Yangon (Goethe Institute of Burma), Mexico Unam, Cervantino Festival, Tashkent, Almata, Bogotà (Sala Arango), eleven countries in West and Central Africa, Helsinki, Copenhagen, Berlin, Hannover… Permanent member of the 2e2m and Ars Nova ensembles, he also performs with the Court-circuit and Ensemble Modern and has the clarinetist P as a partner in chamber music. Meyer, cellist O. Gaillard, Diotima and Danel String Quartets.
With Les Siècles, the Ensemble Orchestral Contemporain, the Orchestras of Picardie, Brittany, Strasbourg, Auvergne, Lorraine, Mulhouse, Bratislava, Pascal Contet performs accordion concerts dedicated to him by Jean Françaix, Bernard Cavanna, Bruno Mantovani (2018). Composer and performer, he collaborates with M.C. Barrault, A. Alvaro, F. Melquiot, F. Marthouret and D.Niangouna (Avignon Festival at the Cloître des Célestins). He is preparing for a play with the actress S. Ferrer.
He has been collaborating for 25 years with the double bass player J. Léandre (Choc de Jazz Magazine for their record 3). Since 2003 he has been performing and recording with the famous mouth organ player Wu Wei. He has collaborated with M. Chevalier and T. Coduys, O. Duboc, M. Coquempot, F. Lamoureux, L. Touzé, L. Sémonin (La Madeleine Proust), D. Galas, D. Niangouna (Les Inepties volantes), Le Vent des Anches, France 2 and France 3, F. Marthouret, for Delle Piane, A. Margot (Télévision Suisse romande), Credits of the Belfort Film Festival, Canal+ and the haute couture designer F. Sorbier (autumn-winter 2016).
