Cellist Gautier Capuçon, acting as ‘godfather’ through the foundation he established in early 2022, presents three outstanding young musicians: the Italian pianist Martina Consonni, the French violinist Sarah Jégou-Sageman, and the South Korean cellist Jeein You.
Consonni performs Robert Schumann’s Papillons, then joins Jégou-Sageman for Schumann’s Sonata No 1 for violin and piano, and You for Poulenc’s Sonata for Cello and Piano. All three musicians come together for Cécile Chaminade’s Piano Trio No 1, a work dating from 1880 when the composer was just 22 years old. It was praised by the critics of the time for its “firm and confident hand, revealing profound and abundant knowledge,” with a Scherzo (the third of its four movements) “notable for its original shape … [and] freshness of ideas”.
Speaking of his foundation, Gautier Capuçon says: “This philanthropic project is close to my heart and extends my long-standing commitment to music education and charitable endeavours. I know how difficult it is to start a career as a classical musician and the pandemic we went through has only made things worse. This is why I wanted to go even further to help young, gifted musicians in making their dreams come true.”
The aim of the Fondation Gautier Capuçon is to support exceptional young musicians in France and around the world during their studies and in the early stages of their careers. It has been established under the aegis of the Fondation de France, the leading philanthropy network in the country.
Pianist Martina Consonni has already won more than 50 first prizes in national and international competitions and has performed in such venues as the Teatro La Fenice in Venice, Teatro alla Scala in Milan, and the Royal Albert Hall in London. She is a participant in two prestigious piano programmes in Germany: The Sir András Schiff Performance Program in Kronberg and the Barenboim-Said Academy in Berlin.
Violinist Sarah Jégou-Sageman’s competition prizes include second prize in the 2017 Ginette Neveu competition. She has performed at such venues as the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris and Victoria Hall in Geneva (with the Seiji Ozawa Academy), and with the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, established by Daniel Barenboim. She is a student in Paris at both the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique and (studying literature) the Sorbonne nouvelle.
Cellist Jeein You, another international competition-winner, studied with Myung-wha Chung at the Korea National University of Arts and entered the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique in Paris at the age of 13. The laureate of Gautier Capuçon’s Cello Class of Excellence at the Fondation Louis Vuitton for three seasons (2019-2022), she appeared as a member of the seven-cello Capucelli Ensemble on Capuçon’s best-selling 2022 album Sensations. Her 2022-23 schedule includes concerts in South Korea and in Europe, including visits with Capuçon and the Capucelli Ensemble to such venues as the Vienna Konzerthaus, the Fondation Louis Vuitton (Paris), the Salle Métropole (Lausanne), and the Victoria Hall (Geneva).
