French harpist Anaëlle Tourret releases her second studio album, Perspectives concertantes, on Feb. 28. The recording features a concerto by Reinhold Glière, a concertino by Ernst von Dohnányi, and two dances by Claude Debussy. According to a press release, the title Perspectives concertantes speaks to Tourret’s desire to promote new possibilities for the harp. “There’s this image of a harp, a ‘salon’ instrument, as something out of a fairy-tale,” Tourret says. “It’s true, and it’s part of our history, but it’s not just that. I’d like to widen this perspective.” Tourret carries this artistic theme forward from her first album, Perspectives, which focused on works for solo harp and received a nomination for the International Classical Music Award 2023 as well as a 10-star CD review from Harp Column’s recording reviewer Alison Young.
Tourret characterizes the Harp Concerto in E-flat major, op. 74, by Reinhold Glière as “a living homage to the Slavic soul and romanticism.” The Concertino op. 45 by Hungarian composer Ernst von Dohnányi is rarely performed but technically demanding, and Tourret says it is musically innovative, a “bold reinterpretation of the concert harp repertoire—a thoroughly modern and visionary work.” On the other hand, Claude Debussy’s Danses sacrée et profane has become a staple in the harp repertoire, but Tourret’s recording is meant to capture a closer perspective to Debussy’s. She received input on her interpretation from Nicolas Tulliez, who studied with the French harpist and music educator Pierre Jamet and gained insights from Jamet’s personal experience working with Debussy on the Danses.
Tourret recorded the two chamber orchestra works by Dohnányi and Debussy together with the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra conducted by Bar Avni. For Glière’s harp concerto, she worked with her own orchestra, the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra, conducted by Vasily Petrenko.
Since 2017, Tourret has been the principal harp of the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra in Hamburg, where she also holds a teaching position at the local music college. She won second prize at the 19th International Harp Contest in Israel in 2015 and won the Berenberg Culture Prize in 2019. She studied with Xavier de Maistre and has performed in concert halls around the world from Lucerne to Berlin to Tokyo. Learn more on Tourret’s website.
