Letter from Thiré

In the Vendée, 100 km south-east of Nantes, France lies an enchanted garden in the town of Thiré. It is both vast and intimate, surprisingly wild but meticulously tended, and for the last two weeks of August, music arises from every thicket along its pathways. I had the privilege this past summer to visit this idyllic spot during the “Festival dans les Jardins de William Christie” and I am still under its spell.

This rural area on the west coast of France has survived tumultuous times. From the Hundred Years War of the late Middle Ages to the Vendée uprising during the French Revolution, the region has been a battlefield for much of its history. It has also inspired operas such as Meyerbeer’s Les Huguenots, Massenet’s Thérèse and Hérold’s Le pré aux clercs. Today, the echoes of battle have subsided in this pastoral paradise, and a new musical destination has emerged.

In 1971, the American-born-century composer Marc-Antoine Charpentier, stands emblematic of Christie’s humanistic, artistic and musical ambitions.