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Poulenc's tomb

Jean-Christophe Cholet : Piano, compositions

Alban Darche : Saxophones, compositions 

Matthias Rüegg : compositions

Nathalie Darche : Piano

Pascal Vandenbulcke : Flutes

Jean-Louis Pommier : Trombone

Matthieu Donarier : Saxophones, Clarinets

Olivier Laisney : Trumpet

Marie-Violaine Cadoret : Violin, Alto

Mathias Quilbault : Tuba

Stéphane Kerecki : Double bass

Christophe Lavergne : Drums

"le Tombeau de Poulenc" is a music piece written by French composers Jean-Christophe Cholet and Alban Darche, with the complicity of Matthias Rüegg, leader of Vienna Art Orchestra
Jean-Christophe Cholet and Alban Darche have had for long the idea of working together for a common project in big line-up. Festival "Presence" at Radio France gave them the opportunity to think about it from 2010. The project became real in 2015 with the creation of "Le Tombeau de Poulenc", gathering musicians form their respective bands: Diagonal and Orphicube. The name of this new line-up is "la Diagonale du Cube".
Their common idea for this project was to create an original work that would be inspired by Francis Poulenc. The instrumentation chosen for La Diagonale du Cube enables to sound like a jazz orchestra as well as to recreate a concertino in order to develop a line-up that echoes Poulenc's work: the concerto for 2 pianos and orchestra. 
Mathias Ruëgg (leader of Vienna Art Orchestra) accepted with great pleasure to take part in the musical writing as co-composer. 
The fragrance, the spirit of Poulenc are here, but the project and its frame are free. The point is not to walk in the master’s footsteps, but to become imbued with his whole work in order to create a modern and original music, free from any codes and strongly bolstered by the influences nourishing the 3 composers. The idea is not to juxtapose the 3 distinct suites of each composer, but to alternate their music, thanks to a scenario built as a concerto grosso. 

"Freely inspired by the work by Francis Poulenc without ever trying the smallest adaptation, "Le tombeau de Poulenc" is an exquisite encounter between French classical music of the beginning of the 20th century and the influences of jazz.' (translated from) Jean-Jacque Birgé, Médiapart, Jan 2018

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"The fusion of these 2 orchestras in big format is one the most exciting of France" (translated from) Franpi Barriau, Citizen Jazz, Nov 2017

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"Stimulated by the project and by the challenge, the three composers remarkably complete each other, while they keep their identities. Not to mention that they have here a wonderful big ensemble, a meeting of strong personalities who are doing their best as usual" (translated from) Culture Jazz, 2018

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