Schumann, Jean-Philippe Collard

JEAN-PHILIPPE COLLARD

One might say that music hovered like a fairy godmother over Jean-Philippe Collard’s

cradle. Raised in a large, music-loving household, the little boy from the Champagne

region was quick to fall under the spell of the magical ritual of chamber music in the

family circle. So much so that, at the age of ten, he left his home town to go up to the

capital, without fully realising what awaited him there: the Conservatoire National

Supérieur de Paris, the international competition circuit, eight years of study under the

enlightened yet demanding tutelage of Pierre Sancan, before being propelled to the

forefront of the international scene . . .

But the French pianist is not the kind of person to thrust his diplomas and his patrons

under your nose as evidence of his talent: at most he will make no more than passing

mention of the firm friendship that bound him to Horowitz in those crucial years when

one’s artistic maturity is forged. It is to the Maestro that he owes the secret of the deep-

seated, sustainedmelody that makes hima virtuoso of subdued lyricism, with a vibrant,

warmly confidential tone.

Nowadays, with a discography of more than fifty titles under his belt, Jean-Philippe

Collard is a regular visitor to the foremost musical venues of the old continent and the

other side of the Atlantic – from Carnegie Hall to the Teatro Colón by way of the Théâtre

des Champs-Élysées and the Royal Albert Hall. Awell-known figure to the French public,

a great favourite with audiences in the United States, he could boast of having played

with the top conductors and orchestras all over the world.

Yet the bright lights don’t seem to have dazzled this eminent pianist. Still as unaffected

as ever, direct and jovial, he’s more likely to talk of his private happiness than his public

successes: a fulfilling family life alongside his wife and five children, with close and

loyal friendships . . . A nature lover, a do-it-yourself enthusiast in his spare time, this

gentleman pianist cultivates more than one secret garden.