Repeats :

Saturday 14th october – 8.30pm – Theater of Saint-Quentin (France) Sunday 15th october – 4pm – Cité de la musique et de la danse, Soissons (France)

The year 2017 celebrates the hundredth anniversary of the battle of the « Chemin des dames » which occured in the region of Aisne, France, between april and october 1917. This battle has been one of the most bloody of the first World War. It has deeply left marks on the collective memory in this area, where several associations still commemorate this event. In this way, a group of associations in the area has wished to commission a contemporary musical piece evoking this sad episode of our History ; they asked Bruno Messina to benefit from the New Patrons Action. These associations’ goal is to highlight widely, through an artistic creation, the memory of the Poilus, the Senegalese infantrymen involved with the French and the German soldiers who were also mowed down during their adolescence in such an absurd combat (around 500 000 dead persons). The commissioners wish to proclaim a universal symbol of peace which will be performed again and reaffirmed in the world.

After 4 years of work and discussions, this collaboration leads to the creation of the oratorio "Le Front de l'aube", composed by Edith Canat de Chizy, from the original libretto written by Maryline Desbiolles "Ce ne sont pas des fleurs". This symphonic piece with choir and soloist will be performed by the Ensemble Orchestral de la Cité (encounter between the musicians from the orchestra Les Siècles and profesors of the music schools of the area), the choir Spirito, the baritone Vincent Bouchot, conducted by the young maestro Adrien Perruchon.

« Le Front de l’aube » will be performed for the first time on 13th october 2017 during a symphonic concert at the Laon Festival (Aisne, France) ; two other concerts will take place on october 14th (in Saint Quentin) and 15th (in Soissons) in the Aisne area, to allow varied and wide audiences to hear in different places of the area.