Cello8

Cello8 is an offshoot of the organization Talents & Violon'celles, which seeks to give young musicians performing opportunities and to promote contemporary French stringed instrument manufacturing. The group released its debut album, Ode à la nuit, in 2023. Talents & Violon'celles was formed in 2010 by cellist Raphaël Pidoux, a soloist, a member of Trio Wanderer, and a professor of cello at the Conservatoire de Paris (CNSMD). He has stated that the organization was born out of his experiences as a musician and teacher, pointing out that the period between the end of young musicians' studies and the beginning of their performing careers is a delicate one. Accordingly, he noted (in the booklet to Cello8's debut release, Ode à la nuit) that "they must be able to rely on an instrument of very high quality." Thus he conceived of an organization with dual, mutually supportive goals: to give young musicians performing opportunities and to promote the work of French stringed instrument manufacturers. Musicians would be provided with newly made instruments. By 2022, the organization had been able to provide more than 100 young musicians with instruments, most of whom would not have been able to afford instruments of this caliber. Through an endowment fund, Pidoux's group managed more than 70 violins, violas, and cellos, including 24 that were newly commissioned from 17 makers. At that point, Talents & Violon'celles was ready to move into new areas. Pidoux established master classes with orchestra, an international violin-making competition that held its first event in 2022, and finally, Cello8, consisting, as promised, of eight cellos. The octet format was chosen in order to showcase a large group of young cellists, and Pidoux began to arrange music for the ensemble. He also served as artistic director and was a member of the group; the inaugural class also consisted of cellists Raffaèl Arreghini, Yanis Boudris, Albéric Boullenois, Noé Drdak, Léo Ispir, Eliott Leridon, and Soni Siecinski. Cello8 released its debut album, Ode à la nuit, in 2023. The group was also heard that year on the children's album Chut! La nuit me protège.
© James Manheim /TiVo