THE ARTISTS

The artists of the Ensemble Ganymed

Armelle HUMBERT

Soprano

Armelle Humbert initially pursued studies in violin, followed by composition and musicology (awarded first prize in harmony and a master's degree in musicology from the University of Sorbonne). She then turned to singing and obtained the DEM (Diploma of Musical Studies) from the CNR (Conservatoire National de Région) in Aubervilliers in 1996, studying under Daniel Delarue. In 1998, Armelle Humbert was a semi-finalist in the Francophone competition "Voix Nouvelles" and won the unanimous first prize from the jury at the European competition in Picardie. In September 2000, she participated in the Master Class given by Martin Isepp, followed by Rachel Yakar's Master Class at the Royaumont Abbey in 2001.

As a soloist, she has performed various works including Pergolesi's Stabat Mater, Vivaldi's Gloria, Handel's Messiah, Charpentier's Te Deum and Messe des Morts, cantatas, Bach's St. John Passion and Magnificat, Mozart's Coronation Mass, Solemn Vespers of a Confessor, Mass in C minor, and Requiem, Haydn's creation Il Riturno di Tobia, Mendelssohn's Psalms, Brahms' Requiem, Schubert's masses, Fauré's Requiem, Dvorak's Stabat Mater and Mass in D, Poulenc's Stabat Mater, Honegger's King David, Carl Orff's Carmina Burana, as well as several premieres such as "…aum Saum des Gedankes" by Gualtiero Dazzi (with the Octet of Cellos from Beauvais), Los de la Tierra by Pablo de Robertis, and Le Voyage de Tobias by André Bon. In December 2012, she performed as the soprano soloist in Saint-Saëns' Christmas Oratorio with the Luxembourg Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Pierre Cao.

She has also appeared in opera, portraying roles such as the Foreign Woman in Menotti's The Consul, the title role in Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor, Eurydice in Offenbach's Orphée aux Enfers, Naïade in R. Strauss' Ariadne auf Naxos, Galathée in V. Massé's opera, Germaine in R. Planquette's Les Cloches de Corneville, and Belinda in Purcell's Dido and Aeneas.

Armelle Humbert has recorded the complete vocal works of Jehan Alain with the ensemble Sequenza (as soprano 1) and performed the melodies and Dorian vocalise with Marie-Claire Alain on piano and organ. Their recording received the "Choc de la musique" in July 2005 and was elected "Diapason d'or" in 2005. She has also recorded the complete vocal music of Thierry Escaich (Choc de la musique, June 2005), the album "Jeune France" (including Messiaen's Les 5 Rechants, Jolivet's Epithalame, and Daniel Lesur's Cantique des Cantiques) in June 2006, Philippe Hersant's work for voice and viola da gamba in September 2013, and Vocello (creations for 12 voices and cello with Henri Desmarquette) released in March 2017. In May 2010, she participated in a creation by Philippe Régana for soprano, oboe, cello, trombone, percussion, and piano in Nevers, and in June, she premiered a work by G. Dazzi for soprano, clarinet, cello, and cimbalom in Beauvais conducted by Thierry Pécou. In June 2011, she premiered D. Humbert's A corps communs with the Ganymed ensemble (vocal quartet with piano) at the Royal Abbey of Moncel. In August 2011, she participated in the premiere of Philippe Fénelon's Des Portes de Babel for vocal quartet and string quartet with the Manfred Quartet at the Vézelay Festival.

Armelle Humbert also performs in recitals, presenting French melodies, Lieder, songs and arias from American musicals, Russian music, excerpts from operas and operettas, as well as chamber music, including Lieder with instruments and with the Ganymed ensemble (vocal quartet with piano), which she founded in 1998.

Aurélie COURTOT

Pianist

Aurélie Courtot received her training in piano and accompaniment at the Conservatoire d'Aubervilliers, where she was awarded first prize in both disciplines in 1992 and 1994. She further refined her skills under the guidance of Pascal Devoyon and Michel Benhaïem, obtaining her Piano Teaching Diploma in 1999. Alongside her instrumental studies, she pursued studies in music history and music analysis at the CNSMP (Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris), as well as composition at the Conservatoire d'Aubervilliers. With a strong desire to deepen her musical knowledge, she also completed a training program in medieval counterpoint at the Conservatoire de Noisiel with Raphaël Picazos.

Her passion for accompaniment has led her to perform with various singers, including Armelle Humbert within the Ganymed quartet, and choirs such as Vittoria and the Paris Maîtrise under the direction of Patrick Marco. She has also participated in musical theater productions, such as Antoinette la poule savante, based on stories by Isabelle Aboulker. In 2015, she recorded a diverse repertoire (opera, art songs, and Armenian music) with Sevan Manoukian. Aurélie Courtot has accompanied dance, cello, and voice classes at the Conservatoire d'Aubervilliers and has been involved in pedagogical entrance exams at the CNSMP. Currently, she works as an accompanist and vocal coach at the Conservatoire de Saint-Ouen.

Jean-Baptiste HUMBERT

Horn player

Coming from a family of musicians, Jean-Baptiste Humbert began his musical training with the piano before starting to play the French horn at the CRR (Regional Conservatory) of Aubervilliers-la Courneuve. Alongside his studies in Musicology at the University of Paris IV Sorbonne, he entered the conservatory of the 19th arrondissement of Paris under the guidance of Bernard Schirrer. He later joined the advanced class of Vladimir Dubois at the CRR de Paris and the orchestral training department.

In 2007, he entered the CNSM (National Conservatory of Music and Dance) of Lyon in the class of David Guerrier, which allowed him to perform with various orchestras such as the Orchestre National de France, Orchestre National de Lyon, Opéra de Lyon, Opéra de Marseille, Orchestre de la Monnaie, Antwerp Symphony Orchestra, and the Chamber Philharmonic, among others. He has also performed with several chamber ensembles such as Concert Impromptu and Ensemble Ganymed, and he is one of the founding members of the ensemble O2.

During his studies, in 2012, he had the opportunity to be admitted to the Erasmus program for one year in the class of Luc Bergé at the Koninklijk Conservatorium Brussel. He then joined the Musique Royal des Guides, the King's special music ensemble. In 2019, he was admitted to the Antwerp Symphony Orchestra.

Charlène DESCHAMPS

Flutist

After completing her brilliant studies at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Lyon under the tutelage of Philippe Bernold, Charlène Deschamps obtained her Master's degree with distinction. As a recipient of the Aïda scholarship, she has collaborated with orchestras such as the Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse, Opéra de Lyon, and Orchestre National de Lyon. In 2011, she was appointed as the second flutist in the Antwerp Symphony Orchestra.

Passionate about chamber music, she is a member of the ensemble Ganymed (vocal and instrumental ensemble) as well as the ensemble O2.

Agathe Delhommeau

actress

Photo : Gilles Desroziers 

Agathe Delhommeau, graduated from the Pierre Debauche and Françoise Danell Higher School of Dramatic Art in Agen, gained her first experiences at the Théâtre du Jour under the direction of Pierre Debauche. As an actress, she worked notably with Françoise Danell, Robert Angebaud (Théâtre du Jour), and Khalid Tamer (Compagnie Graine de Soleil). Agathe also quickly developed an interest in directing and served as an assistant to Pierre Debauche and Carole Bouillon.

As an author, Agathe writes and directs La Montagne des rêves oubliés, a children's play created in 2002 at the Théâtre du Petit Jour in Agen. In 2005, she founded the Bakkaï Company, with Allons voir dehors ce qui s'y passe based on Rufus being the first project, followed by adaptations of the tales Till l'Espiègle and Hansel et Gretel for the stage. As a theater and dramatic arts teacher at the Conservatoire de St Ouen, she is passionate about passing on her love for the arts to younger generations. She regularly collaborates with music ensembles, such as Duo Eclypse, with whom she created Alice au pays des merveilles set to music by Florent Nagel, and Pierre et le Loup, a transcription of Prokofiev's work for piano four hands, as part of various concerts, particularly aimed at young audiences.

Laurent BOURDEAUX

Baritone

He obtained the 1st Prize of the City of Paris and studied singing with Ana-Maria Miranda, Udo Reinemann, and Gabriel Bacquier, as well as choral conducting with Valérie Fayet and Didier Bouture. After starting his professional career by singing in several ensembles, including the Chœur des Musiciens du Louvre.Grenoble, the Chœur de Radio France, Pygmalion, Aedes, or one voice per part ensembles such as Sequenza 9.3 (conducted by Catherine Simonpietri), les Jeunes Solistes (conducted by Rachid Safir), and Musicatreize (conducted by Roland Hayrabedian), he dedicates himself more to a solo career. He has notably performed Brahms' Requiem, Duruflé's Requiem, Handel's Messiah, Rossini's Petite Messe Solennelle, and numerous works by Bach (cantatas, St. John Passion). His lyrical repertoire is very diverse: he embodies the gamekeeper in Janacek's The Cunning Little Vixen directed by Louise Moaty, Germont in Verdi's La Traviata, Ubalde in Lully's Armide directed by Pascal Rambert, Belcore in Donizetti's L'elisir d'amore, Schaunard in Puccini's La Bohème, Papageno, and many other roles in Offenbach's operas with companies such as les Brigands, Opéra Nomade and Opéra du jour.

Committed to contemporary music, he has premiered numerous works such as Bernard Cavanna's Raphaël, reviens! with ARCAL, Jean-Pierre Drouet's Vertiges II with Ars Nova and 2e2m, Benoît Menut's La Sône, Olivier Penard's Ficciones del tiempo, Aurélien Dumont's Le fils de Prométhée, Philippe Hersant's Kafka dans les villes, Nicolas Frize's Embrassades Insensées, and Pierre-Yves Mace's Kind des Faust. He premiered Michel Fano's Repli mobile at the Messiaen Festival 2021, conducted by Bruno Mantovani.

He has performed at the Opéra de Nantes et d'Angers, the Grands Théâtres de Limoges and Reims, in numerous festivals (Aix-en-Provence, Salzburg, Berlioz Festival...), at the Kampnagel in Hamburg, the Abbaye de Royaumont, the Concertgebouw in Bruges, the Konzerthaus in Berlin, the Comédie Française, and the Théâtre du Soleil...

Isabelle GUERIN

Harpist

After studying at the CNR d'Amiens (1st prize in harp, chamber music, and music history), she was unanimously awarded the regional prize at the national level. She then furthered her studies with Pierre Jamet, former professor at the CNSM de Paris and a great specialist in French Impressionist music, and worked with renowned pedagogues in numerous masterclasses, including Véra Dulova, Fabrice Pierre, and Marie-Claire Jamet.

Today, she is a harp professor at the Conservatoire de Compiègne and performs as a soloist and in various ensemble formations, both small groups and orchestras. As a member of the Duo Isaïade (violin and harp), she also has an interest in composition, having recorded works by Daniel Humbert in 1992 and Bernard Fleurette in 2007. She participates in various events such as the Festival des Forêts, the Nuit des Musées, the étés de Gargilesse, and the rendez-vous de Septembre in Senlis.

Juliette JACQUES

Harpist

Born in 2001, Juliette studied harp at the Conservatoire de Compiègne under the guidance of Isabelle Guérin, where she obtained her DEM (Diplôme d'Études Musicales) in 2019. She also studied for 2 years under Aurélie Saraf at the CRD (Conservatoire à Rayonnement Départemental) in Bobigny and attended a masterclass with Frédérique Cambreling at the Gargilès Harp Festival in 2018. Juliette regularly performs in concerts with orchestras, chamber music ensembles, and in voice and harp recitals in France and Italy. She also participates in various events such as weddings, birthdays, church services, and dinners. In March 2020, she won the "Note per Beatrice" competition in Italy.