FRENCH-AMERICAN PIANO SOCIETY

in partnership with

THE EMBASSY OF FRANCE IN WASHIGTON D.C.

LA MAISON FRANCAISE

PRESENTs

Claire-Marie Le Guay, Piano

“BACH, UP CLOSE”

2026 Spring Benefit Recital

THURSDAY, MAY 7, 2026 at 7:30PM

LA MAISON FRANCAISE

EMBASSY OF FRANCE, WASHINGTON DC

PROGRAM

Claire-Marie Le Guay, Piano

Performing on the LVMH Steinway Piano

From Orchestra to Keyboard: The Art of Reduction and Transformation

Throughout music history, the keyboard has served not only as an instrument of intimacy, but as a powerful lens through which orchestral and concertante works are reimagined. Long before the age of recordings, transcription was an essential act of transmission—allowing complex, large-scale compositions to circulate, to be studied, and to live beyond the concert hall.

Johann Sebastian Bach elevated this practice to an art form. By reducing concertos originally conceived for violin, organ, or ensemble to the keyboard, he did not merely condense the music; he revealed its inner architecture. Orchestral dialogues are recast into layered counterpoint, rhythmic propulsion is absorbed into the hands of a single performer, and timbral contrasts are translated into touch, articulation, and register. What is lost in color is gained in clarity, structure, and immediacy.

These keyboard transcriptions occupy a unique space between chamber music and symphonic thought. The piano becomes an orchestra in miniature—capable of sustaining cantabile lines, projecting rhythmic vitality, and suggesting multiple instrumental voices simultaneously. Later composers and transcribers, from Romantic virtuosi to contemporary musicians such as Florian Noack, have continued this tradition, expanding its expressive and technical horizons while remaining faithful to the original spirit of the works.

In this program, orchestral and concertante masterpieces are refracted through the prism of the keyboard. Heard in their distilled form, they invite the listener to engage more directly with the compositional core—melody, harmony, rhythm, and form—while celebrating the piano’s extraordinary ability to encompass the breadth of the orchestral imagination within a single instrument.

Bach, Up Close

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750)

Partita No. 1 in B-flat major, BWV 825 

Johann Sebastian Bach

Fantasy and Prelude in A minor, BWV 922

Antonio Vivaldi (1678–1741) / Johann Sebastian Bach

Largo e spiccato from the Concerto in D minor, BWV 596 (after Vivaldi)

Antonio Vivaldi / Johann Sebastian Bach

Concerto in B minor for Four Keyboards — I. Allegro
(transcription by Florian Noack)

Antonio Vivaldi / Johann Sebastian Bach

Largo from the Violin Concerto in G major, BWV 973

Thierry Escaich (b. 1965)

Aria (3’)
Étude baroque No. 2

Johann Sebastian Bach

Italian Concerto in F major, BWV 971 

Claire-Marie Le Guay “organizes her narrative through sweeping gestures, as if skimming the movements of an inner clock hidden beneath the eloquence of the song.” (Pianiste).

A soloist on the international scene and winner of the Victoires de la musique, Claire-Marie Le Guay has performed at New York's Carnegie Hall, the Philharmonie de Paris, Tokyo's Suntory Hall, the Festival de La Roque d'Anthéron and Germany's Klavier-Festival Ruhr. Winner of several international competitions, she plays with the same commitment in recital, chamber music (with François Salque, Amaury Coeytaux, Magali Mosnier or the Modigliani Quartet, among others) or in concerto with numerous orchestras, such as the Bamberger Symphoniker, the Bayerischer Rundfunk in Munich, Camerata Salzburg, Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne, Kremerata Baltica, New Japan Philharmonic, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestre de Paris, Staatskapelle Weimar, conducted by Daniel Barenboim and Louis Langrée, with whom she has recorded Concertos by LISZT, RAVEL and SCHULHOFF.

Her vast discography has been hailed by the critics; the English magazine Gramophone calls it a “masterly contribution”. DECCA has released three boxed sets of her recordings, featuring Haydn, Mozart, Liszt, Ravel, Gubaidulina and Escaich. 

With the release of her recording Joies de l'âme in 2021, Claire-Marie Le Guay has returned to LISZT, whose interpretation made her a household name at just 19 years of age. This is her fourth recording for the Mirare label, following Voyage en Russie, Bach, and Schubert Wanderer with François Salque. 
Her broad repertoire includes the music of her time (Thierry Escaich, of whom she is the dedicatee of several works and one of the most faithful interpreters, Sofia Goubaïdulina, of whom she has recorded piano pieces and the Introitus concerto with the Orchestre de chambre de Lausanne, as well as Guillaume Connesson, Henri Dutilleux and Bruno Mantovani).

Following her studies at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris (CNSMDP), Claire-Marie Le Guay continued her training at the Lake Como Piano Foundation, of which she is a prizewinner, with such musical personalities as Dmitri Bashkirov, Alicia de Larrocha and Andreas Staier, as well as in Berlin with Daniel Barenboim.

Since 2001, Claire-Marie Le Guay has been teaching at the CNSMDP and the Académie de musique française de l'École normale-Alfred Cortot.

Eisenhower Fellow 2015, Artistic Director of the Dinard Music Festival from 2018 to 2023, she collaborated from 2012 to 2020 with the Opéra de Dijon for the development of young audiences.
Claire-Marie Le Guay has been in residence at the Théâtre du Chesnay since 2019. She is the author of two books: La Vie est plus belle en musique (2018) and C'est la nuit qu'il est beau de croire à la lumière (2022) with a preface by Erik Orsenna.

We are grateful to our 2025 patrons and partners:

THE YOUNG PIANISTS SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM

The Young Pianists Scholarship Program, spearheaded by the French-American Piano Society, is a distinguished initiative aimed at nurturing the next generation of French piano virtuosos for U.S. audiences. This program offers exceptional young pianists an invaluable opportunity to advance their international presence and experience. Selected scholars from the Conservatoire National de Paris benefit from access to world-class performance venues at the Consulate of France in New York and the Embassy of France in Washington, D.C., where they are exposed to and meet curious and supportive U.S. audiences.

THE LVMH PIANO

At its inaugural recital on November 16 2023, S.E. Laurent Bili, Ambassador of France in the United States of America, in the company of S.E. Philippe Etienne, Former Ambassador of France, Anish Melwani, Chairman and CEO of LVMH USA and Dr. Mathieu Petitjean, Founder and President of the French American Piano Society inaugurated the LVMH Piano. Pianist Helene Tysman, in a highly attended recital, breathed life into the instrument.

A plaque with the following statement is located on the cover of the piano:

THE FRENCH-AMERICAN PIANO SOCIETY

RECOGNIZES THE GENEROUS DONATION OF LVMH AND FIFTY PATRONS

WHO CONTRIBUTED TO THE ACQUISITION OF THIS PIANO

HERE IN NAMED IN THEIR HONOR

THE LVMH PIANO

In August 2022, a gathering of representatives from the Albertine Cultural Services of the Embassy of France and the French-American Piano Society converged in Washington. Their purpose was to collaborate with Ambassador Philippe Etienne and craft a visionary plan for the renovation of La Maison Francaise's recital hall and cultural program. Buoyed by a decade of success in New York, marked by the acquisition of a Steinway grand piano, the awarding of 17 scholarships to young French pianists, and over 40 memorable recitals, the team aspired to extend this triumph to the heart of Washington. This endeavor, infused with a profound sense of revival after three years of pandemic-induced silence, became a poignant expression of resilience.

The dream that unfolded encompassed the acquisition of another Steinway grand piano and the launch of a four-year cultural program featuring recitals, scholarships, and exchanges. Its essence aimed to elevate and spotlight French pianists and the rich repertoire of French piano music in the United States. United by this ambitious vision, the team coalesced with fervor, raising the required funds in record time.

At the core of this transformative project stood LVMH, a crucial catalyst swiftly joined by Levine Music and fifty passionate patrons who became part of the "88 Keys" program, where each key was sponsored. The success of the fundraising campaign culminated in a jubilant celebration in December 2022, marked by a high-profile recital featuring Maestro Pascal Roger and his accomplished duo partner, Barbara Binet.

Fast forward to May 2023, a pivotal moment unfolded in collaboration with Steinway & Sons. Maestro Jean-Yves Thibaudet and Artistic Director Matthieu Cognet meticulously selected the LVMH piano at the Steinway & Sons Factory in New York. Though the choice among five concert pianos might typically be an intricate decision, in this case, it evolved into a "love at first sight" narrative. The piano, distinguished within a mere 30 minutes, was then showcased through an impromptu recital, revealing its delicate, rich, and colorful sonic palette.

The culmination of this journey arrived in June 2023 when the LVMH piano found its new home at the Embassy of France. A momentous inauguration followed on November 16, 2023, as pianist Helene Tysman, in a highly attended recital, breathed life into the instrument. This event not only marked the inauguration of the LVMH piano but also the birth of the French-American Piano Society, celebrated in its inaugural recital at the Consulate of France on April 15, 2014, under the enchanting fingers of Helene Tysman.

LEADERSHIP BENEFACTOR

LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton

FOUNDING DONORS CIRCLE

$20,000 and above

The Levine Music

$10,000 and above

Dr. Helene Petitjean and Dr. Mathieu Petitjean

$5,000 and above

The Staff of the Embassy of France

Archimed

Mrs. Calvin Cafritz

Doria And Calavino Donati, Tipple And Rose Tea Parlor Princeton

Harald Greve and Janis Sell

$2,000 and above

Anonymous

The Bristol-Myers Squibb Employee Giving Program

Patricia and Philippe Etienne

Rhona Wolfe Friedman, Esq. and Donald J. Friedman, Esq.

Dr. David Kosutic

David M. and Susan S. Thoms

Maggie Hua et Stanislas Vilgrain

$1,000

Gregory Bernstein and Anna Katalkina

Olivier Bogillot

Alexandra de Borchgrave

Larry Chertoff

Louis Dillais

Edwige Dorel-Torgue

Jeannette Abécassis-Elmalem

French-American Chamber of Commerce, Washington D.C.

Stephen and Laure Fuller

Garnier-Thiebaut USA

Tamara Haddad

Marianne J. Hart and Colin R. Hart

Kimberley A. Heatherington

The Hitchcock Hoagland Foundation in honor of Ambassador Phillippe Etienne

Resources USA Inc.

Judy and Peter Blum Kovler Foundation

Jack and Ellette Kozak

Bénédicte and Jean-Philippe Krukowicz

Alexander Wolf Levy

Jodie McLean and Pierre de Lucy

Thais Mark and Sasha Mark, MD

Roxana Nikdjou-van der Mensbrugghe

Farha Mir, MD and Mitra Dowlatshahi, MD

Claire Mittaud | Theodore Pary

Nina Pillsbury

Cedric Sage

Thomas and Deborah Silverstein

Annie Simonian Totah, Founder & President of the Sami and Annie Totah Family Foundation

Michael L. White

Michel and Lucie Wormser

Marie Hélène et Daniel Zavala

Code of Conduct

It is the policy of the French-American Piano Society that all attendees of Society hosted recitals, events, and associated activities are expected to exhibit respectful, and ethical behaviors.

Please review our Code of Conduct Policy here.

Report Violations of the Policy here