The festival “The voices of the other” sings the Mediterranean

A great success in 2022, the festival “The voices of the other” organized by Bayard and of which La Croix l’Hebdo is a partner, returns on June 10 and 11 to the abbey of Thoronet (Var). A place of choice to celebrate and create a dialogue in music between the Mediterranean peoples.

Piers Faccini, artistic director of the festival, remains in charge for this second edition. The English folk singer of Italian origin has invited many artists from different backgrounds: Italians, Malians, French and Algerians. The program is eclectic, like the civilizations represented during the concerts and musical walks taking place within the abbey.

Musical dialogue around the Mediterranean

Trumpeter Erik Truffaz will open the ball in duet with cellist Vincent Segal on Saturday June 11 with an original creation. The two virtuosos have a habit of mixing genres. Jazz, traditional music, hip-hop and rock, everyone is trying out new styles. Erik Truffaz is a specialist.

In his last album Rollin’, he recorded the song One Silver Dollar with singer Camélia Jordana, after having collaborated in the past with rapper Nya. For his part, Vincent Segal released the splendid album, Les Egarés, in the company of a brilliant set of virtuoso musicians, accordionist Vincent Peirani, saxophonist Émile Parisien, and kora player Ballaké Sissoko.

The latter has also collaborated with Adama Coulibaly, player of donso n’goni (lute of the Malian hunters), also present at the festival. Introduced to this traditional instrument by Sibiri Samake, nicknamed the “hunters’ griot”, he in turn presented it to the public. Soft and rhythmic, the notes of the lute are accompanied by powerful songs that take us on a journey.

The escape will continue with the Italian singer Rachele Andrioli. One of the only women with Mona Boutchebak, Algerian singer specializing in the Judeo-Spanish and Arab-Andalusian repertoire, who will perform at the festival. Also a multi-instrumentalist and songwriter, the Italian is one of the most recognized artists of the new generation from Puglia. Accompanied by tambourines and string instruments, she honors with her vibrant voice the vocal and rhythmic traditions of her region, Salento. His first solo album Leuca, released in 2022, is the perfect example.

The great Mikrokosmos choir and its forty voices

To close the festival, the great Mikrokosmos choir will perform in the abbey on Sunday June 11 at 6 p.m. Its forty male and female singers will have prepared a polyphonic repertoire perfectly adapted to the acoustics of the Cistercian church. Entirely a cappella, the multi-award winning choir directed by its founder Loïc Pierre, carries its creations (film-concerts, hip-hop dance…) by mixing them with other arts.

This final sharer is in the image of the event: facilitating encounters between musical styles. Other artists will participate, including multi-instrumentalists Malik Ziad and Adil Amimi, who will perform with Piers Faccini on Saturday evening. The trio will plunge Le Thoronet into a trance ceremony of the spiritual tradition of Afro-Maghreb Gnawa music.

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