Ambroisine Bré - Psyché (2022) Hi-Res

On February 11, we will have the pleasure of discovering Psyché, the first solo album by the young and talented mezzo-soprano Ambroisine Bré. For this first opus, which will be released by 440Hz, she surrounds herself with the fine flower of young French musicians: pianist Ismaël Margain, flautist Mathilde Calderini, harpist Anaïs Gaudemard, tenor Julien Dran and the Hanson Quartet. Without forgetting the participation of Gérard Depardieu!

A real surprise for the ear, it is with a reading of the famous French comedian that the ball of listening opens. Presented as a kind of "omniscient oracle", he guides Psyche towards her destiny and "his bewitching murmur subtly marks the key stages of the young heroine's initiatory journey". Baudelaire's poem La Beauté thus initiates "the imaginary opera around the mythological story of Psyche, according to the chronological order of the fable", divided into four sections. The first encompasses the first three pieces (the song “Viens une flûte invisible” by André Caplet, “Psyché” by Emile Paladilhe and L’Île Joyeux by Debussy) to evoke the fortuitous meeting of Eros and Psyché. Mathilde Calderini's light flute twirls around while Gérard Depardieu's voice disappears and that of Ambroisine Bré awakens, creating an auditory fade-out effect, like a veil lifting over the story. The listener will note from the beginning the varied character of the instrumentation: after the flute comes the piano of Ismaël Margain, always in the softness of the accompaniment, before the piano develops the joy of the island depicted by Debussy .

Lili Boulanger's "Reflections" and Guillaume Lekeu's "Nocturne" open the second section, that of the "mysterious beginnings of love, the eroticism of waiting in this quivering nature where Psyche wanders". The Hanson Quartet is heard for the occasion, while Julien Dran lends his voice to Aeneas in the duet “Night of drunkenness and infinite ecstasy”, taken from Berlioz’s Les Troyens. The voices mingle like the bodies of lovers, and the solar character of the tenor's voice echoes the nocturnal character of the mezzo-soprano. The magic of the moment is total and sensual, carried by the two singers but also by the musical accompaniment worked for the occasion. Both intimate and universal, the tune is one of the most striking passages on the record. As Psyche's adventure continues, with her lover's disappearances and returns, and as she ends up breaking her promise by lighting up Eros's face, leading him to leave forever, the listening moves forward. also to reach the third section.

It opens with a Psyche at the height of despair and Chausson's "Chanson Perpétuelle". The throbbing pain of the character shines through without difficulty through the noble cries of the vocals and the strings, supported by a piano which is akin to the shoulder on which to pour out. The deep sadness continues with Bizet's "Farewell to the Arab Hostess", with a very different atmosphere since acceptance seems to emerge from the music. Ambroisine Bré plays a particularly clear vocal line, offering a beautiful amplitude, traveling from bass to treble while the heroine's thoughts seem to run in the recesses of her mind. Resignation finally sets in with Duparc's "Chanson triste" before the aria from Desdemona (Otello, Rossini), "Assisa a pie d'un salice" closes this section. The moment is then divine. In the softness of the harp of Anaïs Gaudemard, the voice of Ambroisine Bré unfolds its amber reflections and its shimmering colors, delivering a suspended moment.

Finally, the final section of this imaginary opera brings together "Psyché" by Manuel de Falla, the sublime "A Chloris" by Reynaldo Hahn and "La Capinera" by Julius Benedict. Here, the love of the two lovers is sealed and we revel in the soft and discreet ecstasy that is depicted, before the final aria emerges in a joyful finale. The voice of Gérard Depardieu also returns to tell us about this happy ending, which finds its epilogue in "Our memories that sing" by Poulenc. " All's well That ends well ".

The program is thus efficiently and judiciously constructed. The listener has no trouble following the plot, all the more so with the help of the booklet in which the mezzo-soprano explains her project and its origins. The varied accompaniment takes us out of the traditional piano/voice recital without depriving us of it, and the work created here is nourished by the diversity of the instruments offered. Each then brings his talent – ​​undeniable – to give life to this Psyche embodied by Ambroisine Bré.