PROGRAM 2025

THE BANCHIES

In Irish mythology, the Banshee is a messenger from another world. The four musicians of The Banshies felt the need to form their own ensemble to create a space of free experimentation. Here, music serves as a bridge—from text to emotion, from the physical to the mystical.
The ensemble evolves like a ball of clay, shaped by the sensitivities of each member and their connections, while abolishing any sense of hierarchy. The violins take turns in the spotlight, supporting the cello or the harpsichord, and sometimes stepping aside to give full attention to a member as soloist. The Banshies’ universe is based on their exchanges—collaborators sharing diverse cultures and passions from broad musical interests to literature, visual arts, and applied arts to which they are deeply attuned. Their programs are built around a central concept: telling a story through the concert. Each performance charts a journey, blending works from the great Baroque repertoire, traditional airs, and transcriptions. They offer programs that transform and adapt, such as “Let thy charms,” an English program first performed with mezzo-soprano, later performed as a purely instrumental program, then without harpsichord, and finally as a violin duet program.
This flexibility allows them to share their musical world in diverse contexts and with varied audiences, including performing in hospitals alongside the “Live Music Now” association.
In September 2024, the ensemble was chosen for a residency at the prestigious Singer-Polignac Foundation, while in the same year joining the European S-EEEMERGING+ program. They have performed in French festivals such as the Ambronay Festival, the Moments Musicaux de Gerberoy, and the Marin Marais Festival, as well as across Europe, from Spain to Croatia. They are currently preparing their first album, which will explore the reciprocal aesthetic influences between Venice and Vienna through the remarkable figure of Antonio Caldara.

free entry