In this recording, clarinettist Beatrice Berne and accordionist Vincent Lhermet, both gifted performers, well-known internationally and presented with many awards, mix popular adn scholarly types of music. The two artists wanted to approach the works soberly, in order to highlight the magic and expressiveness of the melody. This approach remains that of classical musicians paying homage to orally transmitted (i.e.non-written) music, adapting it to their own instrumentation and styles.

Beatrice Berne designed this programme, entitled Winds from Ireland and Elsewhere, as an invitation to travel, a discovery of the Irish musical heritage, a testimony of the daily life and activity of this nation, together with echoes of its Scottish and English neighbours. This concert stands at the crossroads of varied musical influences and orientations, either classical or contemporary or traditional, without loding the purity and originality that are typical of each of these aesthetic choices. It pays homage to the dances and cultures of the three nations, from country to court. These Winds tell tales of legends or stories spread by anonymous musicians or famous composers, all in love with the magnificent themes created by Celtic culture. The brilliant and personal interpretation of both musicians stresses the originality of the content of the musical pieces that map out the route of a journey starting with a Homage to St Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland.

Listeners will discover classical pieces by Hardebeck and Chadwick, followed by adaptations of traditional themes by Beethoven and Dvorak that show how thin the boundary between popular and scholarly music is.

This rich selection of colourful works, spanning the centuries, presents a new version of Onshore, a contemporary duet for clarinet and accordion, composed by Beatrice Berne and inspired by the landscape and shores of the Celtic world.

The instruments, brought to perfection by the two sensitive and inventive players, slowly help us become absorbed in the vivid recollection of a musical inspiration that has constantly woven its threads from age-old folklore to the most learned and innovative conceptions.

Our main need, in these troubled times, is to find ourselves again "by being strangers to our own roots", as Paul Ricoeur wrote, but music is the sweetest road that all of us can take to get a hold on ourselves.

And now, let the Berne-Lhermet duo, whose creation was commissioned by Arcane 17 for the ninth season of the "Festival de Bourgogne du Sud", guide you through this vibrant concert!

Martine CHIFFLOT-COMAZZI
Artistic director of the "Festival de Bourgogne du Sud"

In this programme, Beatrice Berne and Vincent Lhermet with highlight the influence that oral music has had on classical composers. Traditional music is indeed a source of expressive themes as it stimulates musical imagination. Conversely, a few written melodies have been able to find their way into oral music. There have been constant and fruitful exchanges between popular and scholarly types of music.

In this recording, clarinettist Beatrice Berne and accordionist Vincent Lhermet, both gifted performers, well-known internationally and presented with many awards, mix popular adn scholarly types of music. The two artists wanted to approach the works soberly, in order to highlight the magic and expressiveness of the melody. This approach remains that of classical musicians paying homage to orally transmitted (i.e.non-written) music, adapting it to their own instrumentation and styles.

Beatrice Berne designed this programme, entitled Winds from Ireland and Elsewhere, as an invitation to travel, a discovery of the Irish musical heritage, a testimony of the daily life and activity of this nation, together with echoes of its Scottish and English neighbours. This concert stands at the crossroads of varied musical influences and orientations, either classical or contemporary or traditional, without loding the purity and originality that are typical of each of these aesthetic choices. It pays homage to the dances and cultures of the three nations, from country to court. These Winds tell tales of legends or stories spread by anonymous musicians or famous composers, all in love with the magnificent themes created by Celtic culture. The brilliant and personal interpretation of both musicians stresses the originality of the content of the musical pieces that map out the route of a journey starting with a Homage to St Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland.

Listeners will discover classical pieces by Hardebeck and Chadwick, followed by adaptations of traditional themes by Beethoven and Dvorak that show how thin the boundary between popular and scholarly music is.

This rich selection of colourful works, spanning the centuries, presents a new version of Onshore, a contemporary duet for clarinet and accordion, composed by Beatrice Berne and inspired by the landscape and shores of the Celtic world.

The instruments, brought to perfection by the two sensitive and inventive players, slowly help us become absorbed in the vivid recollection of a musical inspiration that has constantly woven its threads from age-old folklore to the most learned and innovative conceptions.

Our main need, in these troubled times, is to find ourselves again "by being strangers to our own roots", as Paul Ricoeur wrote, but music is the sweetest road that all of us can take to get a hold on ourselves.

And now, let the Berne-Lhermet duo, whose creation was commissioned by Arcane 17 for the ninth season of the "Festival de Bourgogne du Sud", guide you through this vibrant concert!

Martine CHIFFLOT-COMAZZI
Artistic director of the "Festival de Bourgogne du Sud"

In this programme, Beatrice Berne and Vincent Lhermet with highlight the influence that oral music has had on classical composers. Traditional music is indeed a source of expressive themes as it stimulates musical imagination. Conversely, a few written melodies have been able to find their way into oral music. There have been constant and fruitful exchanges between popular and scholarly types of music.



Vincent Lhermet belongs to the most remarkable accordionists of his generation. A graduate from the Helsinki Sibelius Academy (Mster's Degree in music in Matti Rantanen's masterclass and holder of a Teaching Diploma), he became well-known on the international stage when, aged 19, he won the International "Gaudeamus Interpreters" Competition, considered as one of the greatest prizes open to all instruments in contemporary music.

He also followed the teachings of Claudio Jacomucci, Stefan Hussong, Jacques Mornet, Janne Rattya and Olivier Urbano.

Convinced that theoretical knowledge plays an essential part in musical interpretation, he studied musicology at Paris-IV Sorbonne University, completed a course in harmony, counterpoint, analysis, music history, and learnt conducting, the piano and the art of basso continuo.

Vincent Lhermet gives public performances in the whole world, either as a soloist or with orchestras or various chamber ensembles, in prestigious concert houses like the Amsterdam Muziekgebouw and the Helsinki Music House, were he can show the inventiveness of the accordion in a repertory ranging from the Renaissance to these days. Quite a few of his concerts were broadcasted by Finland's national public-broadcasting company (YLE).

He also appeared in many festivals (Musica Nova, Musiques Demesurees, Rencontres Contempraines) - because of his passion for contemporary music - and he does his utmost to extend the accordion repertory by creating for the first time the works of such composers as Jukka Tiensuu, Matti Murto...

For the quality of his artistic work, Vincent Lhermet has been supported by the Paulo Foundation, the Sibelius Academy, the Foundation for the Promotion of Finnish Music (LUSES), the Rotary International Foundation and the Banque Populaire Foundation.



Clarinettist Beatrice Berne, after getting her conservatoire prizes, won many awards in various international competitions (Guerande, Vierzon, Bayreuth, Sevilla, Caltanissetta). She was supported by Michel Portal at the French "Jeune Virtuose" competition. As a soloist and chamber music interpreter, she now appears with many orchestras (Lyon National Opera Orchestra, Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra, Auvergne National Orchestra, etc), ensembles (Quatuor Sanel, Quatuor d'Auvergne, etc.) nd musicians (Serge Collot, Laurent Martin, Julie Guigue, Angelique Pourreyron, Wilhelm Latchoumia...)

Thanks to her passion for contemporary music, she premiered various pieces (by Ivan Jevtic, Peter Eotvos, Josheph Reveyron, Danieal Meier, Gilles Raynal, Jean-Marck Jouve, Pascal de Montaigne,etc). She also took part in concert shows (Lumieres d'Orient by Martine Chifflot-Comazzi with the ARCtheatre company, Dance in Progress with Danse Actuelle, etc.) and performed in several festivals (Loire-Forez, Musiques Demesurees, Rencontres Contemporaines, Festival de Bourgogne du Sud, etc,).

She was often invited outside France to tour several countries (Egypt, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Rumania, Turkey, etc. In 1991, she was deeply honoured to play for H.H. Pope John Paul II in Castel Gandolfo. The concert was recdorded by the 3rd French Channel FR3.

After obtaining a Bachelor's Degree in musicology, she managed a music school for eight years.

In 1996, she was appointed tenured Professor (C.A.) in the clarinet class at the Clermont-Ferrand National Conservatoire and has taught there since. The French Ministry for Culture and other conservatoires often ask her to sit on a board examiners.

As part of the Festival de Bourgogne du Sud and its cycle, Terres en Joie, created by Martine Chifflot, Beatrice Berne did research on the relations between written music and traditional music in order to show how classical composers drew their inspiration from the immaterial heritage of oral music. Together with such theoretical studies and along the same lines, she worked out arrangements, compositions and concert programmes like A tous Vents, Musiques d'Armenie, Vents du Sud, Vents de Finlande, etc.