Professor of violin and chamber music at the Conservatoire national supérieur de musique de Paris from 1985 to 2011
Viola
“…Régis Pasquier played… with an old-world virtuosity, great breadth, a generous and smooth sound that floated powerfully through space and projected with ease…”
Peter McCallum, Sydney Morning Herald, November 3, 2003
Born into an illustrious family of musicians, Régis Pasquier was immersed in music from a very young age. This early connection was immediately fruitful, earning him First Prizes in violin and chamber music at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris at the age of 12, and two years later, he flew to the United States.
The trip would prove decisive: he met Isaac Stern, David Oïstrakh, Pierre Fournier, and Nadia Boulanger. Impressed by his playing, Zino Francescatti invited him to join the prestigious American concert agency Columbia Artists Management Inc.: Régis Pasquier was quickly sought out as a soloist by all the major North American orchestras, notably the Cleveland Orchestra, conducted by George Szell and then considered the finest orchestra in the world, and the Pittsburgh Orchestra. A few years later, Zino Francescatti invited Régis Pasquier to record Bach’s Concerto for Two Violins with him for Deutsche Grammophon. His reputation extends far beyond the United States, and “His frank and ample sound, his scrupulous attention to phrasing, his remarkable technical ease, his total accuracy” (Le Figaro) are qualities that quickly distinguish the greatest orchestras, which invite him to France, Japan, Germany, Hungary, the Czech Republic, and more. Régis Pasquier performs under the direction of the most prestigious conductors: first and foremost Lorin Maazel, with whom he toured the United States, but also Georges Prêtre, Leonard Bernstein, Alain Lombard, Michel Plasson, Jean-Claude Casadesus, Jean Fournet, Marc Soustrot, Rudolf Baumgartner, George Szell, Matthias Bamert, Edo de Waart, Michael Tilson Thomas, Charles Dutoit, Tamas Vasary, Yoël Levi, Seiji Ozawa, Louis Langrée, Neeme Järvi, Eugen Jochum, Emmanuel Krivine…
His renowned chamber music partners include Isaac Stern, Mstislav Rostropovich, Menahem Pressler, Leonard Rose, Jean-Pierre Rampal, Murray Perahia, Paul Tortelier, and others.
In addition to the recognition of his peers, he also garnered public acclaim: in 1991, he was voted “Best Soloist of the Year” at the Victoires de la Musique awards and received the Special Prize from the Nouvelle Académie du Disque.
The disc is indeed a testament to his strong presence, particularly in the field of chamber music. After concert works with the Orchestre National de Bordeaux Aquitaine under Alain Lombard, and the Berg and Bartók Concertos with the Hungarian Radio Orchestra under Erich Bergel, Régis Pasquier recorded the Prokofiev and Brahms Concertos. He has also recorded the complete Caprices of Paganini (Auvidis).
His recording of the Mozart Concertos with the Liège Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted
by Pierre Bartholomée (an Auvidis recording that was widely acclaimed by the press), precedes that of the Beethoven Sonatas for Violin and Piano, recorded with his longtime colleague
Jean-Claude Pennetier, and awarded a second “Victoire de la Musique” (Music Victoire).
For Calliope, he recorded the Beethoven and Tchaikovsky Concertos with the Baltic Chamber Orchestra under Emmanuel Leducq-Barôme.
Also released by Assaï is a CD recorded with the Orchestre de Picardie, conducted
by Edmon Colomer: Bernstein’s Serenade and Kurt Weill’s Concerto for Violin and Wind Instruments. With the Pennetier-Pasquier-Pidoux Trio, a beautiful recording devoted to Ravel was released
on Saphir Productions, followed by another dedicated to Rachmaninoff.
Far from being overwhelmed by this success, and concerned with the transmission of his knowledge and the training
of younger generations, Régis Pasquier taught violin at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris from 1985 to 2011.
Régis Pasquier regularly undertakes a “musical world tour,” performing both chamber music (and more particularly with the Pennetier-Pasquier-Pidoux Trio)
and with orchestras in Australia, Japan, Canada, the USA, Central America, South America, New Caledonia, Russia, and throughout Europe: Finland, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Germany, Spain, Portugal, Sweden, etc. Régis is also passionate about jazz and has been invited by Stéphane Grapelli to participate in several jazz concerts with his band.