Ensemble Contraste

Albane Carrère, mezzo-soprano
Arnaud Thorette, alto
Rémy Poulakis, tenor & accordion

In “my little cabaret,” we’ve gathered our treasures. There, we’ve brought together our memories, songs that have been with us for a long time, unexpected encounters, and a few dreams gathered along the way. We’ve also opened the doors to our imaginations, to the unknown, and to travel.

As the program unfolds, boundaries fade away. The viola, the accordion, and the voices create a unique blend of sounds where opera, operetta, French chanson, tango, Broadway, and popular melodies intersect.

The music speaks of love, of course—happy, impossible, passionate, or melancholic loves—but also of the passage of time, memory, exile, dreams, and freedom. From Naples to Buenos Aires, from Paris to Berlin, from opera stages to smoky cabarets, this journey spans eras and continents, blending famous masterpieces with lesser-known gems.

So, for one evening, let’s raise the curtain on this little cabaret together. Behind it await stories to sing, emotions to share, and, perhaps, a few memories to rediscover.

Program:

Claudio Monteverdi (1567-1643)
Pur ti miro (L’Incoronazione di Poppea)

Gaetano Donizetti (1797-1848)
Una furtiva lagrima (L’elisir d’amore)

Jacques Offenbach (1819-1880)
Ô mon cher amant (La Périchole), Ah ! que j’aime les militaires (La Grande-Duchesse de Gérolstein)

Georges Bizet (1838-1875)
Habanera (Carmen)

Francesco Paolo Tosti (1846-1916)
traditionnel napolitain « O sole moi »

Franz Lehár (1870-1948)
L’Heure exquise (La Veuve joyeuse)

Giacomo Puccini (1858-1924)
Nessun dorma (Turandot)

Carlos Gardel (1890-1935)
Milonga sentimental

Kurt Weill (1900-1950)
Je ne t’aime pas

George Gershwin (1898-1937)
Summertime (Porgy and Bess)

Édith Piaf (1915-1963)
Mon homme

Francis Poulenc (1899-1963)
Les Chemins de l’amour

Astor Piazzolla (1921-1992)
Oblivion

Barbara (1930-1997)
La Solitude

Serge Gainsbourg (1928-1991)
La Javanaise

Dalida (1933-1987)
Histoire d’un amour

John Kander (1927-) & Fred Ebb (1928-2004)
Willkommen, Bienvenue, Welcome (Cabaret)

Marilyn Monroe (1926-1962)
Some Like It Hot