Paul Meyer
- Conductor
- Wind Instrument
ProfileProfile
Paul Meyer made his debut in 1982 by winning the prestigious Eurovision Competition at just 17 years old. He was appointed Solo Clarinet at the Lyon Opera Orchestra in 1983, then at the Ensemble Intercontemporain in 1984 and at the Paris Opera in 1985. Very quickly, he left the orchestra for an international soloist career with performances in major international venues with world renowned orchestras (Orchestre National de France, Orchestre de Paris, Koninklijk Concertgebouworkest, BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, WDR Rundfunkorchester Köln, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Tonhalle Orchester Zürich, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, NHK Tokyo, Russian State Orchestra, …) and alongside the world’s finest musicians such as Benny Goodman, Isaac Stern, Mstislav Rostropovitch, Jean-Pierre Rampal, Martha Argerich, Yuri Bashmet, Gidon Kremer, Yehudi Menuhin, Yo-Yo Ma or Emmanuel Ax.
Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg, Orchestre Philharmonique de Nice, Orchestre symphonique de Mulhouse, Orchestre de l’Opéra de Marseille, Orchestre de Bordeaux, Orchestre du Capitole de Toulouse, Orchestre de Bretagne, Ensemble Orchestral de Paris, Orchestre National d’Ile de France, Orchestre des Concerts Lamoureux, Orchestre Philharmonique de Liège, Symfonieorkest Vlaanderen, Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, China Philharmonic Orchestra, Shanghai Philharmonic Orchestra, Taipeh Symphonic Orchestra, Orchestre Symphonique de Taïpeh, Sinfonia Varsovia, Copenhagen Philharmonic Orchestra, Orquestra Sinfonietta de Lisboa, Orcestra Giuseppe Verdi di Milano, Russian National Orchestra, Belgrade Philharmonic, Prague Symphony Orchestra, Armenian Philharmonic Orchestra, Hamburger Sinfoniker, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Bilbao Orkestra Sinfonikoa, Graz Symphony Orchestra, … .
English Chamber Orchestra, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Zürcher Kammerorchester, Stuttgart Kammerorchester, Kammerakademie Potsdam, Münchener Kammerorchester, Orchestre de chambre de Genève, Prague Chamber Orchestra, Stockholm Chamber Orchestra, … .
He rapidly oriented himself towards orchestra conducting, while pursuing his performance skills which have won him a unique role as world-famous clarinetist. After founding the Orchestre de Chambre d’Alsace, Paul Meyer became in great demand as conductor. He studied with Charles Bruck at the Pierre Monteux School in Maine, John Carewe (professor of Sir Simon Rattle and Daniel Harding amongst others) whom he assisted at the Northern Junior Philharmonic, and enhanced his conducting skills working over several seasons and taking advantage of the advices of major conductors such as Marek Janowski he assisted at the Philharmonic of Radio France, Emmanuel Krivine and Myung-Whun Chung.
Appointed Associate Conductor of the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra by Myung-Whun Chung in 2006, he conducted there over three seasons and contributed to the establishment of an Orchestral Academy aimed at preparing young musicians for the orchestral discipline.
In 2009, he was appointed Principal Conductor of the Kosei Orchestra in Tokyo, with which he explored contemporary repertoire and gave concerts in Tokyo (Tokyo Opera City), as well as touring in Japan and abroad.
In 2018, he became Principal Conductor of the Mannheim Chamber Orchestra.
His recognition as a conductor, based on a profound understanding and experience of orchestral work, rapidly led him to conduct major chamber and symphony orchestras amongst which the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg, Orchestre Philharmonique de Nice, Orchestre Symphonique de Mulhouse, Orchestre de l’Opéra de Marseille, Orchestre de Bordeaux, Orchestre du Capitole de Toulouse, Orchestre de Bretagne, Ensemble Orchestral de Paris, Orchestre National d’Ile de France, Orchestre des Concerts Lamoureux, Hamburger Sinfoniker, Staatskapelle Weimar, Würtemberg Philharmonie, Schleswig Holstein Festival Orchestra, Stuttgarter Kammerorchester, Kammerakademie Potsdam, Münchener Kammerorchester, Tonkünstler Niederösterreich, Brussels Philharmonic, Royal Flemish Philharmonic, Symfonieorkest Vlaanderen, Orchestre Royal de Chambre de Wallonie, Bilbao Orkestra Sinfonika, Sinfonia Varsovia, Prague Philharmonic, Belgrade Philharmonic, Zürcher Kammerorchester, Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne, Orchestre de Chambre de Genève, Copenhagen Philharmonic Orchestra, Danish Symphony Orchestra, Stockholm Chamber Orchestra, Russian National Orchestra, Tokyo Metropolitan, Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, China Philharmonic Orchestra, Shanghai Philharmonic Orchestra, Taipeh Symphonic Orchestra, Royal Oman Symphony Orchestra, Sydney Omega Ensemble, Orquesta Filarmonica de Bogota, Orquesta Sinfonica de Sao Paulo. …
Paul’s recording career consists of over 50 works with major labels such as DGG, Sony, RCA, EMI, Virgin, Alpha and Aeon which have won numerous awards (Fono-Forum, Diapason d’Or, Choc du Monde de la Musique, Gramophon, Grammy Awards).
His latest recordings with the Mannheim Chamber Orchestra feature Mozart with Selim Mazari as soloist, as well as to the concertante symphonies and clarinet concertos by Karl Stamitz. The CD Music for Dreaming published by Alpha has racked up over 4 million plays on Apple Music.
In autumn 2023, new releases include Sonatas by Brahms and Reinecke (Sony Classical) and Four Seasons by Felicien David (CPO).
Passionate with chamber music, he has founded the ensemble Les Vents Français and is co-founder with Eric Le Sage and Emmanuel Pahud of the Festival International de Musique de Salon de Provence.
For his contribution to the Arts in France and throughout the world, Paul Meyer has been awarded Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres, France’s highest cultural honour.
Official homepage：https://www.paulmeyer.fr/
DiscographyDiscography
2020.6.5
