The 28th edition of the classical music festival La Folle Journée, dedicated this year to Schubert, will take place in Nantes from January 26 to 30 in a reduced format due to the health crisis.
190 concerts will be held at the Cité des Congrès and at the CIC Ouest space, instead of the 220 initially announced.
The artistic director of La Folle Journée, René Martin, said he was “
happy and relieved
” to have been able to maintain the festival, a “
strong signal sent to all cultural events in France. The musicians and the public should obviously not run any risk. We are opening at the cost of a strict protocol
,” he told
AFP
. The gauge was limited in mid-January to 80% of the reception capacity and all the free concerts planned in the great hall of the Cité des Congrès were canceled in order to avoid crowds. In May 2021, the festival had already suffered the consequences of the health crisis: although delayed by several months, only 24 concerts out of the 150 planned had been maintained.
Read alsoLa Folle Journée de Nantes: an extraordinary festival unanimously adopted by the public
After a 27th edition devoted to Bach and Mozart, La Folle Journée 2022 will have Schubert the traveler as its theme.
“
Schubert composed much of his work in taverns, where he played for his friends and surrounded by singers and poets.
There is a conviviality there that we are impatient to rediscover
", explains the artistic director, proud of this "
symbolic
in times of pandemic.
The 2022 edition will present the complete chamber music of Schubert and in particular all his string quartets, as well as four symphonies.
La Folle Journée aims to make classical music accessible and known to a wide audience with concerts lasting an average of 45 minutes, sold at attractive prices.
Each year, several thousand concert tickets are reserved for schoolchildren.
Due to the health crisis, the sessions concerned have however been postponed to June 13.
