The Chamber Music Festival : the hidden treasure of montreal

Founded in 1995 by Denis Brott, one of Canada’s greatest musicians and cellists, the Montreal Chamber Music Festival will hold its 29^th edition from June 13 to 23 in Bourgie Hall and Place des Arts. Explore this unique event with a mission to make the finest chamber music accessible to as many people as possible. 

Denis Brott, crédit : Victor Brott

A festival fuelled by passion 

“I can’t believe we’ve been doing this for 29 years already!” immediately answers Denis Brott—who also serves as the festival’s artistic director—when asked about the magic formula behind the event’s longevity. For him, the persistence fuelled by his great passion for chamber music explains everything. “I fell in love with this music around the age of 19 or 20 and I’ve built a career as a chamber musician ever since,” says the musician. 

Drawing him to this style of music is what he calls “functional democracy,” which is the basis for creating chamber works. “Each musician has their own voice and contributes to the music in their own way. There is no conductor giving orders; everyone needs to be involved in the creation and musical direction,” he explains. 

Taking over Place des Arts 

The founder of the Montreal Chamber Music Festival says there is another aspect at the heart of his passion: the close, essential relationship between the audience and the musicians. This is why Denis Brott and his team have completely taken over the Maison symphonique at Place des Arts for the Festival’s closing concerts, celebrating Bach this year. “When chamber music was created, it was played at home. We didn’t have CDs to hear the music, so people had to make it themselves!” he says, explaining how chamber music requires a proximity with the audience to take on its full meaning. 

“So we came up with the idea of creating a room within a room,” says Denis Brott. This is achieved by arranging the Maison symphonique’s some 450 seats at the back of the stage, facing the audience’s usual seating position. The musicians, meanwhile, have their backs to the room, and instead face this ingenious audience arrangement. The lighting provides the final touch, creating an intimate and enveloping atmosphere. 

An exclusive program 

True to its mission, the Montreal Chamber Music Festival will present exclusive thematic concerts for its 29^th edition, bringing together promising new talents and some of the world’s greatest chamber musicians. “The goal is always to offer a unique experience for the public, with shows that people wouldn’t be able to see elsewhere,” says Denis Brott. Such is the case for the show Les passions de Clara, taking place on June 16, which plays with the theme of the love triangle between Clara and Robert Schumann and their protégé Johannes Brahms. You don’t need to be a chamber music expert to appreciate it. “That's the beauty of music, especially chamber music: it’s a language of emotions, and everyone understands emotions,” Brott maintains.