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The ACF London is delighted to welcome internationally acclaimed piccolo virtuoso Jean-Louis Beaumadier and celebrated pianist and composer Véronique Poltz for a unique and vibrant evening of music. Renowned for his dazzling technique and musical sensitivity, Beaumadier has elevated the piccolo to new artistic heights on the world stage, while Poltz’s multifaceted artistry as performer and composer has earned widespread recognition.

This special concert will feature the UK premiere of Véronique Poltz’s Étincelles for piccolo and piano, alongside a richly varied programme showcasing composers such as Reichert, Woelfl, Andersen, Bartók, Saint-Saëns and Brahms.

The recital, journeying through eras, aesthetics, and styles, intimately combines delicacy, joy often nuanced with melancholy and the happiness of playing and sharing music. Clarity, grace, feelings evoked more than asserted, and the finesse of Véronique Poltz’s arrangements (Brahms, Andersen) - all contribute to making this program a treat for all audiences.

Join us for an engaging and captivating concert, highlighting the full expressive range of the piccolo and piano.

Jean-Louis Beaumadier began studying flute at the Marseille Conservatoire with Joseph Rampal and then continued at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris with his son, Jean-Pierre Rampal. Awarded prizes at international competitions in Geneva and in Paris (Guilde des Artistes Solistes), piccolo soloist for twelve years at the Orchestre National de France, he then became one of the best piccolo players in the world, renowned through his discography (Grand Prix of the Académie Charles Cros), his concerts in Europe, USA and the Far East, and his piccolo score collection published by Billaudot Editions.

His avid interest in the piccolo, and in wooden instruments in general, dates from his youth when his family bought him a magnificent French ebony “Bonneville” piccolo. For some years, he has studied in depth the art of the piccolo in order to make it better known and to share his passion. As piccolo soloist in the Orchestre National de France, he performed under the direction of famous conductors: Sergiù Celibidache, Karl Böhm, Leonard Bernstein, Seiji Ozawa, Riccardo Muti, Lorin Maazel, Wolfgang Sawallisch, Georg Ludwig Jochum, Kurt Masur, Kurt Sanderling, Nello Santi, Claudio Abbado, Pierre Boulez… and also worked with other orchestras around the world, such as the Saito Kinen Orchestra conducted by Seiji Ozawa.

His discography is abundant (Skarbo, Calliope–Harmonia Mundi, Classic-Talents, Lyrinx, Rodolphe, Nouveaux Horizons, Saphir, Naïve, Indésens). He has recorded thirty CDs, including the International Grand Prize Winner of the Charles Cros Academy for his disc The Golden Age of the Piccolo, featuring works of Eugène Damaré (1840–1919) (Calliope Records 9869 Harmonia Mundi). Regarding this recording, Aurèle Nicolet wrote: “Beaumadier’s record is marvelous in sound, in technique, and above all in elegance and charm. It is a true delight!”

His CD Piccolo Concerto with Prague's Radio Symphony Orchestra conducted by Vahan Mardirossian, including six concertos for piccolo and symphonic orchestra, is a world premiere.

All this brings him the recognition of many flautists and invitations all over the world to flute conventions and festivals: Japan, USA, UK, Netherlands, Brazil, Costa Rica, Austria, Slovenia, Ecuador, Venezuela… In addition, he performs numerous concerts throughout the world: France (Paris Radio France and Salle Cortot), Israel, Ireland, Belgium, Germany, Senegal, China, Croatia, USA (NY Carnegie Hall), Austria, Slovenia, Spain, the Netherlands, Finland (Helsinki Sibelius Academy).

He has performed piccolo concertos with many orchestras: Orchestre National de France, Simon Bolivar Orchestra in Caracas (Sistema), Wiener Konzert Verein, New York Soloists, Brussels Chamber Orchestra, National Orchestra of Costa Rica and Ecuador, Orchestre Philharmonique de Marseille, Orchestre d’Auvergne, Orchestre de Bohème, Quito Chamber Orchestra, San Jose Chamber Orchestra, I Musici di Vivaldi, Orchestre de Cannes, Orchestre de l’Université Claude Champagne (Montréal), Orchestre de Chambre d’Alsace, Les Musiciens de France, Kairo Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra Camera Musicae in Catalonia, Orchestre de Chambre de Genève, Taïpei Philharmonic Orchestra (Taiwan), Twin Cities Orchestra of Minneapolis, Prague Radio Symphony…

Jean-Louis Beaumadier teaches masterclasses in renowned musical institutions throughout the world.

Véronique Poltz
Of Hungarian origin through her grandparents, Véronique Poltz began her piano studies at the Conservatoire à Rayonnement Régional d'Aubervilliers, where she obtained three first prizes in piano, accompaniment, and chamber music. In 1982, she was awarded the Ministry of Culture medal. She continued her training at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris in the classes of specialized music theory and writing (harmony, counterpoint, fugue, instrumentation, and orchestration), where she was awarded a first medal and three first prizes. She perfected her piano skills in Paris at the École Normale de Musique A. Cortot, and at the Mozarteum in Salzburg with Paul von Schilhawsky, and obtained a first prize in accompaniment from the City of Paris.

Regularly solicited as a chamber musician, Véronique Poltz plays in sonatas and trios. She performs with Jean-Louis Beaumadier, piccolo player, in various programs: Back to Bach (sonatas by J.S. Bach), Piccolo Virtuoso (original works from V. De Michelis to E. Damaré), French Music (works by G. Auric, D. Milhaud, H. Tomasi, and Fl. Mulsant, who dedicated her Sonata to them), in concerts given in Split, Toulouse, Aix-en-Provence, Arles, Marseille, Reims, Paris, Providence, Boston, New York, Milan, Venice, Györ, Porto, Liège, Taïpei, Tsingtao, Tokyo, Alessandria...

Véronique Poltz has composed pieces for solo instrument (piano, cello), numerous duets for instrument and piano, for harp, as well as works for symphony orchestra (Jardin des ombres) and wind band (Les Belles et la Bête). She has made arrangements of J. Brahms' Hungarian Dances for two piccolos and piano, which she performed in Tokyo, and orchestrated J. Andersen's Moto perpetuo, which Jean-Louis Beaumadier played in New York and Nice. Véronique Poltz wrote Midnight with Pan, a trio for piccolo, flute in G, and piano, premiered in England in August 2014, and Icosa Rhapsody for piano four hands, commissioned for the 2nd International Piano Four Hands Competition in Monaco (2014). She recently composed 38 in the Clouds for piccolo, flute, and piano four hands, premiered in March 2018 in Paris and Tokyo, and Kilumac Concertino (2019) for piccolo and orchestra, recorded on the latest CD of Jean-Louis Beaumadier (Piccolo Concertos – World Premiere), for whom the piece was written.

Véronique Poltz is a professor of Writing and Orchestration at the Conservatoire à Rayonnement Régional P. Barbizet in Marseille.