If the general public doesn't go to classical concerts, the music should go to them! Based on this simple idea, pianist Gisèle Magnan had the idea to create the Concerts de Poche (Pocket Concerts) in 2002. The principle: to organise short concerts with a great repertoire, in simple and friendly venues, with internationally renowned musicians. All for less than the price of a cinema ticket.
Town hall, village hall, vocational school: while the concert venues may be unusual, the musicians taking part are renowned artists: violinist Nemanja Radulovic, soprano Caroline Casadesus, the Modigliani quartet, pianists Michel Dalberto and Jean-François Zygel, among others.
Every year, some 1,700 workshops and around 100 concerts are scheduled. The association's work, which in 2013 covered six regions in the North and East of France, now covers the entire country. The Concerts de Poche are indeed increasingly in demand among local authorities. They help rebalance the cultural offer in the regions. 50% of the projects take place in rural areas and 50% in the most deprived urban districts.
We have been supporting Concerts de Poche since 2007.