Alexis Descharmes

Alexis Descharmes
 
    Chosen by Diapason magazine to represent the French cello along with about ten colleagues of his generation, Alexis Descharmes is an active ambassador of numerous cello repertoires. Born in 1977 and trained at the Paris Conservatoire (classes of Michel Strauss and Philippe Muller), he was the winner of several prizes (Valentino Bucchi – 1997, Avant-Scènes – 1999, Fondation Meyer – 2000, Fondation Natexis – 2002). He has worked with the Ensemble Intercontemporain, Ensemble Alternance and Ensemble Court-circuit and collaborates regularly with IRCAM. Dedicatee of some fifty contemporary works, concertante and solo alike (Durieux, Fedele, Francesconi, Hervé, Hurel, Imai, Lanza, Levy, Mantovani, Matalon, Nillni, Pesson, Posadas, Reynolds, Saariaho, Schoeller, Solbiati, Stroppa…), Alexis Descharmes’s discography consists of some twenty recordings, in solo or with the aforementioned ensembles with which he has appeared at numerous festivals in some thirty countries. For the æon label, he has released Kaija Saariaho, Franz Liszt, Franz Schubert and Klaus Huber cello anthologies, with his faithful partner Sébastien Vichard. Alexis Descharmes joined the Orchestra of the Paris National Opera in 2006. Since 2004, he collaborates regularly with French Embassy in Washington DC for the Contemporary Music Series of La Maison Française. He also joined the NGA New Music Ensemble in 2010.