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Elie Jolliet interview by Nayoung Kim Millius, April 2023
Could you tell us about your encounter with the organ? How did you decide to pursue the path of a professional musician?
I was introduced to music at the beginning of primary school through recorder lessons. At the age of 9, I began piano lessons, followed by clarinet lessons.. Although I grew up in a family who went regularly to church, I wasn’t particularly interested in the organ at first. One day a friend of the family gave me a practice organ as a gift and I was asked to play the organ in a mass. I was 15 then and quickly fell in love with this instrument and started taking organ lessons. When I graduated from high school, I could have chosen many other paths but there was no question that I would pursue a musical career even without thinking much about what my professional future would be.
What is the greatest beauty of the instrument for you?
For me, the beauty of the organ dwells in its diversity: each instrument is unique, designed for the place in which it is destined to sound. Not all instruments are of the same excellent quality or blend perfectly with the acoustics that surround them, but it doesn't matter. I always manage to find a “register”, a color of sound, which particularly moves me – for example a singing Flute* or a roaring Reed* – or a unique mixture which calls for creativity.
*Organ register name (sound timbre)
Tell us a bit about your program for the AOA concert, does it imply a particular meaning that you wish to share with the audience?
When I have enough time to visit the instrument in the concert venue in advance, I like getting to know the organ before choosing my program. I was able to visit the Auditoire de Calvin and spent a morning playing the Aubertin organ a few weeks before submitting my program. I tried several pieces by many composers with various registrations*, listening to the way this organ sounds in the church. It is also important to me to take the time to find the style or compositions that blend best with the instrument. Then I decide on the sound palettes that will be the best match. In the end, I chose Bach for the leitmotif of my program. Bach's music also touches me personally. He is a composer who offers so many varied styles and genres. I have created a program that I hope will shows the rich diversity and the many facets of his talent.
*Registration: choice of combination of stops for a passage, in the organ play
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ⒸPHOTOPCH
What is your opinion on the role of organists and musicians for the younger generations? What would be, in your opinion, the impact of your musical activities?
For me, music and culture in general offer quality of life: through moments of relaxation, emotions, questions and even perplexity ; it can invoke, intellectual stimulations - but also and above all through the social aspect when attending a concert or playing music with other people.
This is what I see when I conduct a choir, composed of a group of people from different backgrounds, interests, beliefs, family situations, life philosophies etc. all united in the desire to sing together. That’s enough to unite them. If only the leaders of politics took the time to sing together once in a while! By making music together, you learn to know both the importance of your own inner voice and the importance of the interaction that allows your voice to blend with others.
That said, I particularly enjoy playing where I can have eye contact with the audience: it helps me to be able to look at them and feel in touch with the people I play for. This also makes the concert more appealing to the public, which is not always possible, in other situations, without the help of big screens. Recently I have been able to work a lot with the children of my parish as Cantor (Church Music Director) in Bern. Often, all you have to do is listen to them and put yourself in their shoes to find a real moment of conviviality. Cultural mediation is also a very good way to broaden these experiences, in particular through larger projects.
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ⒸPHOTOPCH
A last word for the public of the Festival Souffle de Printemps?
Bach is immortal and his music timeless!