States of Mind

Featuring

Michel Supéra
Laurent Petitgirard
Balázs Kántor
Hungarian Symphony Orchestra Budapest

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Composer Biography

Laurent Petitgirard, the composer and conductor, was elected Perpetual Secretary of the Beaux-Arts Academy in February 2017.

Performer Biography

Michel Supéra, the alto saxophonist on this recording, is a versatile performer who regularly appears as a soloist with orchestras worldwide and is also co-artistic director of the European competition ClariSax.

Composer's Artistic Vision

Laurent Petitgirard, the composer, views the saxophone's 'vocal' dimension as a significant inspiration for his concerto, seeing it as a natural culmination of his operatic work.

Composition History

The symphonic poem Le Marathon by Laurent Petitgirard originated from an unwritten opera based on Claude Confortès' play about three men running an Olympic marathon, representing birth, love, and death.

Recording & Production

This album, "States of Mind," marks Laurent Petitgirard's second collaboration with the Hungarian Symphony Orchestra Budapest, following their recording of his second opera, Guru.

Compositional Technique

For his saxophone concerto, Laurent Petitgirard intentionally limited the soloist to a single alto saxophone, believing the instrument's tessitura constraints would stimulate tighter musical speech and define the work's cyclic aspect.