Toolkit
Damien Wigny
President
Etablissement public Salle de Concerts Grande-Duchesse Joséphine-Charlotte
Your Royal Highnesses,
Your Majesty,
Presidents,
Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
And you, Madam, who have given your name to this hall and who are present among us tonight.
The Philharmonic Hall is the splendid outcome of a policy desired and realised by our successive governments, both in a national and also regional and European perspective.
This extraordinary building, which truly transcends the ordinary, built by Christian de Portzamparc, will contribute to the fame of the Grand-Duchy in Europe and in the world. Brunelleschi’s Duomo is the symbol of Florence, while Rome is heavily indebted to the genius of Bernini and Sydney to Horn Utzon, and Frank Ghery has given new life to Bilbao. Your Hall, M. de Portzamparc, alongside Mr. Pei’s Museum, will appear like poetic guidelines to locate the Grand-Duchy on a map. Christian de Portzamparc loves to build for music, but here in Luxembourg, he has furthermore perfectly understood the genius of the surroundings. In this hall, which is the heart of the building, these towers that surround us, are the reinterpreted souvenirs of the Italian places that Christian de Portzamparc loves so much; however, it also reminds me of our castles of old, while in the foyer, the masses of concrete evoke the rocky cliffs that overlook so many of the pathways in our forests. As for them, they are admirably symbolised by the light and yet dense colonnade that surrounds the building. I could also evoke the play on the different levels, the footbridge, which is so lofty that it appears to defy gravity itself, and to deliver us from the balances of reason, while it is, just like the rest of the building, the actual
result of the most controlled thought there is. The result? It is in marvellous conformity to the words of Philippe Sollers for whom "great architecture proceeds from an enchanted vacuum".
Ladies and gentlemen ministers, and particularly Ms Erna Hennicot-Schoepges, who have taken the responsibility for this building, let me thank you!
Let me also thank the administrations concerned, and all those who, in one way or another, have participated in the realisation of this project: thanks to you, we live in art.
It is now up to us, as those responsible for the management of the Philharmonic Hall, to make from this cultural infrastructure a place of life and discoveries. I am proud of the team, which is small but very competent and enthusiastic, which is constituted around Matthias Naske. I have no doubt as to the success of this opening week. As for the programme of next season, it was commented upon in a very laudatory manner when it was presented. But our role does not stop there. We have to be guides, awakeners, mediators, in the noblest sense of the word, between artists, composers, performers, and you, the public. In the respect of everyone’s freedom, without imposing our views, without letting our cultural action serve some wayward cause, we shall endeavour to develop what Paul Valéry named "a politics of the mind".
We shall not have the pretension to say that the public must listen, but we would like to share with you our discoveries. Independently from the expected encounters with great works, great orchestras and great performers, we will attempt to present composers, performers and works which you do not know yet, we will invite you for more or less demanding musical walks. The programmes and subscriptions which unite these, will be very diversified: while always of high quality, they will be presented, introduced and commented upon. Let me thus tempt you by these rounds which allow for the unexpected and will make for some interesting discoveries. Your response, which means to say your repeated presence, will let us know whether we have accomplished our mission. Tonight, in conformity with that which I have just said, we shall make a first discovery; namely that of the oeuvre of Penderecki especially ordered for this inauguration.
In the name of the CA, I wish you an unforgettable evening.