Le Salon De Musiques’ chamber-music series in La Jolla is distinctive for the soiree-style setting, the buffet and champagne and the opportunity to talk to the performers.
The monthly concerts are distinctive for another reason. Le Salon’s founder, pianist Francois Chouchan, spends many hours researching so that he can feature works by little-known composers from the past.
La Salon de Musiques founder Francois Chouchan speaks at a concert in La Jolla.
(Courtesy of True Photography)
On June 25, Le Salon de Musiques will close its second season at the La Jolla Woman’s Club with an evening devoted to female composers. Two pieces will be U.S. premieres.
“There was an impressive number of women who were unable to get their work appreciated,” said Chouchan, who recently transported his unique series to La Jolla after 10-plus successful years in Los Angeles. “Many of these women wrote chamber music and symphonic pieces — all kinds of repertoire.”
A case in point: Fanny Mendelssohn wrote around 500 musical pieces, but most are only in manuscript form and have rarely been heard. The German composer was overshadowed by her younger brother, Felix, a prominent force in classical music’s early romantic era. Fanny Mendelssohn’s Piano Trio in D Minor will be played at Le Salon June 25.
Amanda Maier, another composer to be featured at the concert, wrote music in the late 1800s. Born and raised in Sweden, the multi-instrumentalist married Julius Röntgen, a German-Dutch composer and moved with him to Amsterdam.
Chouchan discovered Maier when he was researching Röntgen, who is not as well-known as his friends and contemporaries, Liszt, Brahms and Grieg. After Maier married, she stopped her public performances, but continued composing throughout her life.
A past concert in Le Salon De Musiques’ chamber music series in La Jolla.
(Courtesy of True Photography)
Croatia’s Dora Pejačević was not related to a famous musician but had some success as a composer in her own right. A countess, she is now considered the founder of Croatian chamber and orchestral music, but her works were largely ignored, particularly in America.
Chi-Jo Lee is the pianist in the trio performing these works at Le Salon. Now pursuing her master’s of music degree in piano performance at the Colburn Conservatory of Music, she emailed from her home country of Taiwan, where she was visiting family.
“I am not at all familiar with the repertoire of this concert!” Lee wrote.
“This is very refreshing. I am very curious and happy learning and researching about the pieces we are playing. I am really enjoying the slow movement of Pejačević’s piano trio. It is warm and beautiful, and I am so grateful to be introducing it to the audience.
“I am having a lot of fun working on Fanny Mendelssohn’s piano trio as well. It’s an underrated piece, while the two trios by her brother, Felix Mendelssohn, are extremely popular. I see a bit of similarity in their musical languages, but there are a lot of unique moments in Fanny Mendelssohn’s trio,” she said.
Chouchan has assembled a trio of young musicians for the program. Playing with Lee will be violinist Gallia Kastner and cellist Allan Hon.
Hon joined the Long Beach Symphony Orchestra as associate principal last year and is in L.A.’s Zelter String Quartet. Kastner, a recent Colburn graduate, is also part of the Zelter quartet. This will be his third Le Salon concert. He’s also set to play twice next season.
Chouchan, who is a French-American concert pianist, works with Colburn to recruit talented players like Kastner and Lee, to play alongside more experienced performers.
“When I was in France, we had problems going out of the conservatory because of the lack of boosters for the young generation of musicians,” said Chouchan, who lives in La Jolla with partner, John, and son, Adrian, 3.
“These talented people deserve to be heard and to shine. We need to give opportunities to the new generation. And it attracts young people to the music.”
During Le Salon de Musiques’ second year, Chouchan found that little-know works were especially popular with his audiences. He’s planned five U.S. premieres and two San Diego premieres for the nine concerts in the upcoming 2023-24 season.
“Next season took me a year to plan,” noted Chouchan, who will be at the piano for the November and January concerts. “First researching, then choosing the pieces. When I select something by a forgotten composer, it has to be in the same style and express the similar harmonic and emotional feelings as the others.”
At the intimate soirees, musicologist Kristi Brown-Montesano explains the program and guides the question-and-answer session. Catering is provided by The French Gourmet, just blocks away from The La Jolla Woman’s Club.
Sunday’s concert is Le Salon’s first to feature pieces by all-female composers. Lee is pleased to be a part of it.
“I believe it’s our duty — especially as a female musician myself — to discover and popularize the works we think deserve to be heard more,” she said. “I admire Francois’s efforts of programming these little-known women’s works.
“It’s an example of a great curator who not only cares about music but is also willing to take action to bring these pieces to life for the audience.”
Le Salon de Musiques season finale
When: 4 p.m. June 25
Where: The La Jolla Woman’s Club, 7791 Draper Ave., La Jolla
Tickets: $45-$95
Phone: (310) 498-0257
Online: lesalondemusiques.com
Wood is a freelance writer.