Didier Castell-Jacomin

Didier Castell-Jacomin is a French pianist born in Marseille on 1st May 1970, best known for his work in classical music.

Life in the early years
It was at the age of four that Mrs Ravel was his first music teacher, this was in Nice. She introduced him to her piano and thanks to her encouragement and that of his parents he continued his studies at the conservatoire in Rennes and consequently in Nice.

In Senlis he met Georgy Sziffra when he was only eight. For two years he had the privilege of his tuition.

Catherine Collard came into his life during a summer apprenticeship in Aix-en-Provence in 1978. He could continue to have her education in Nice as well as in St-Maur-des-Fossés. This great artist really taught him the perseverance to overcome the technical problems and to reach for what is called interpretation.

It was, though, in 1989 that his view of playing the piano was completely turned upside down. One day it happened that he was early for his lesson of sight-reading, at the conservatory with Mrs. F. Chaffiaud. So he waited behind the door. He could hear sounds coming from the room where he was to have his lessons. He pricked his ears and to his great surprise he recognized the Fantasy of Schumann, performed in a masterly way. Cautiously he opened the door and he saw his teacher of sight-reading at the piano. His astonishment grew, to see and hear at that very moment a teacher of sight-reading playing so extraordinary! He knew then and there that no one but MrsChaf fiaud could give him the keys to that approach to the piano. She has then taught him privately for a full year. Towards the end of this period she confessed to me that she had her Maestro Fausto Zadra to thank for this approach to music.

Mrs Chaffiaud then introduced Didier to him. He was admitted at the École Internationale Fondation CIEM Mozart in Lausanne in Rome, under the direction of Maestro Zadra. For him this was really both a musical and an emotional turn. This man gave Didier what he was mostly looking for in this world: the means to express himself through music and in particular through the piano. Didier owes everything he knows now to Fausto Zadra and to his assistant Mrs Anne-Marie Tabachnik. After the decease of Fausto Zadra Didier continued his search in the direction Maestro Zadra had pointed out to him, in order to reach as Didier CASTELL-JACOMIN close as possible for the interpretations he wanted to defence, while making a firm stand for each composition he came across.

Music career
Continuing his way he was happy to play in the Berlin Philharmonic, with the soloists of the Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra under the baton of Joris Barth-Buhle; in the New York Carnegie Hall (recitals) and together with the Forte String Quartet in 2008; in the Cooper Great Hall (NYC); Yamaha Artist Services (NYC); Minneapolis-St Paul, (St. Thomas Hall); in the Philharmony of Baden-Baden with the Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Werner Stiefel.

His many contacts took him to the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam; to St. John’s Smith Square (UK); Théâtre de l’Athenée in Paris in 2009, that performance is very dear to him since it was presented by Mrs Eve Ruggieri. Quite recently, 2009-2012, He gave a series of recitals in Derlon Theatre in Maastricht, the Netherlands, in an avant-garde play. This was quite a unique experience; He found himself on stage with actors for six days a week for 6 weeks on end. Various festivals gave him confidence, such as: Gstaad, Switzerland; the summerfestivals in Nice, with the Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Jacques-Francis Manzone; Valencia, Spain; “C’est pas Classique” in Nice, where he was so lucky to play with his friend Liza Kerob, super soloist of the Monaco Phiharmonic Orchestra, to mention a few.

He also gives as many Master Classes as possible, depending whether he meets the right people. This brought him around to teach students at Duke University, New York and at St. Thomas in Minneapolis.

He once took advantage during a tour in the USA, even before he played his interpretation of Schumann’s Carnaval, the most important work of his impressive repertoire, to elucidate the meaning he wanted to give this work, though standing firm for the values indicated by Schumann. Of course it was self-evident for him that he wanted to record a selection of the repertoire.

He gave everything for his first CD which was released by CALLIOPE in 1999, the contents of this CD was dedicated to the divine Mozart (Concerti K.414 and K.415) with the quartet consisting of soloists of the Chamber Orchestra of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. This recording was the outcome of his notions after having studied for ten years next to Maestro Zadra, the unsurpassed Mozart interpreter. This CD was awarded the prize of the TV channel “Muzzik”.

The following year, also with CALLIOPE, He wanted to record a recital of various pieces of Mozart, the famous Sonata in Do Majeur, as well as the two Fantasies. He was so lucky to play with the Quartet Joaquim, with whom he had played de Concerti K.414 and K.415 in the original version in the mediaeval University Centre of Nice.

From here, the label CRISTAL RECORDS CLASSIC has given him confidence in the course of his travels and in 2009 he recorded a Chopin recital, (POLONIA).

In 2010 the annual magazine PIANO (by La lettre du musicien) offered him to record a CD solely dedicated to Russian composers (TENDRESSE RUSSE) and to be inserted in the 2011 edition. He did accept that proposal with pleasure.

In 2010 he got the idea to record a CD with only music from female composers, thus he could now record at the famous TELDEX studio in Berlin. The label INTÉGRAL CLASSIC recently sent him the papers to sign for this recording, which will be released in October 2012 and which he shall present in France in November next in Salle Cortot. This program drew the attention of concert organizers and will travel among others to Berlin, Hamburg, Paris, Nice, Toulouse, Maastricht, New York and Tokyo. It is with a great pleasure and modesty that today, he proposes to you to (re)discover these women of exception through this sound testimony.

Concerts and tour
Below You'll find the concerts of Didier Castell-Jacomin given in 2012:
 * March - Auditorium Noureev (female composers program)
 * June - Pesthuys Podium Maastricht
 * June - Pesthuys Podium Maastricht
 * July - Royal conservatory Bruxelles (festival "les midis/minimes")

Discography

 * 2000 Concerti of Mozart K.414 and K.415 Mozart (calliope)
 * 2001 Mozart recital (sonatas, fantasies, Adagio) (Calliope)
 * 2009 recital Chopin Album "Polonia" (Crystal Records Classic)
 * 2010 recital of Russian works, Album "Russian love" (Crystal Records Classic)

Tendresse Russe
 * 1) Lyrical Thoughts op.11 No. 1 G Major
 * 2) The Seasons op.37 bis "June" G minor
 * 3) Romantic Waltz op.51 No. 6 F minor
 * 4) Lyrical Thoughts" op.11 No. 5 A Major
 * 5) The Seasons op.37 bis "October" D minor
 * 6) Nocturne "The Separation" F minor
 * 7) A Tear G minor
 * 8) 2nd Nocturne A Major
 * 9) Lyrical Thoughts" op.11 No. 2 E minor
 * 10) Musical Moment op. 16 No. 3 D Minor
 * 11) The Seasons" op.37 bis "January" A Major
 * 12) Romantic Waltz C minor

Frederic Chopin - Polonia
 * 1) Polonaise n°1 en la majeur, Op. 40
 * 2) Mazurka n°4 en la mineur, Op.67
 * 3) Mazurka n°1 en la mineur, Op.24
 * 4) Mazurka n°4 en fa mineur, Op.68
 * 5) Mazurka n°1 en si bémol majeur, Op.7
 * 6) Mazurka n°4 en la mineur, Op. 17
 * 7) Prelude n°20 en ut mineur, Op.28
 * 8) Prelude n°4 en mi mineur, Op.28
 * 9) Prelude n°15 en ré bémol majeur, Op.28
 * 10) Nocturne en ut dièse mineur, Op.posthume
 * 11) Nocturne n°1 en sol mineur, Op.37
 * 12) Valse n°1 en la bemol majeur, Op.69
 * 13) Polonaise n°1 en ut dièse mineur, Op.26

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Concerto N13 Do Majeur K.415, Concerto N12 La Majeur K.414 Concerto N13 Do Majeur K.415
 * 1) Allegro
 * 2) Andante
 * 3) Rondeau: allegro

Concerto N12 La Majeur K.414
 * 1) Allegro
 * 2) Andante
 * 3) Rondeau: allegretto

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Fantaisies KV. 397 & 475, Sonates KV.311 & 545, Adagio Kv. 540 Sonate n16 en ut majeur "facile" KV.545 Sonate n9 en re majeur KV.311
 * 1) Fantaisie en ut mineur KV.475
 * 1) Allegro
 * 2) Andante
 * 3) Rondo
 * 4) Adagio en si mineur KV.540
 * 5) Fantaisie en re mineur KV.397
 * 1) Allegro con spirito
 * 2) Andante con espressione
 * 3) Rondo. Allegro