Philippe Fournier
Administrator – France
An exceptional conductor
A native of the Lyon region, Philippe Fournier had an obsession from the age of 8: to become a conductor. At the age of twelve, he met Roger Cayrol, who took him under his wing and confirmed his vocation. He studied at the Lyon Conservatoire. In 1984, he was unanimously awarded First Prize in the Diplôme supérieur de direction d’orchestre at the École Normale de Musique de Paris.
He enriched his training with numerous conductors: Sébastien Béraud in Strasbourg and Reims, Michel Corboz in Geneva, and in Paris with Dominique Rouits and Pierre Dervaux. The latter named him Laureate of the Yehudi Menuhin Foundation in 1986, enabling him to conduct American and Quebec orchestras at numerous North American festivals.
The originality and outstanding quality of his conducting have led Philippe Fournier to guest conduct symphony orchestras of national and international renown:
Orquesta Filarmónica Nacional (Caracas-Venezuela) – Orquesta sinfonica d’antioqua (Colombia) – Orchestre Symphonique de Shenzhen (China) – Orchestre National de musique traditionnelle de Shangaï (China) – Orchestre National de Lille – Donaue symphonie orchestra (Budapest- Hungary) – Orchestre Philharmonique de Nice – Orchestre Sinfonia d’Montréal – Orchestre des Concerts Pasdeloup et l’Atelier Lyrique de l’Opéra Dijon – Orchestre National de Lille Hungary) – Orchestre Philharmonique de Nice – Orchestre Sinfonia de Montréal – Orchestre de l’Opéra de Dijon – Orchestre des Concerts Pasdeloup et l’Atelier Lyrique de l’Opéra Bastille – Orchestre National d’Ile de France – Orchestre et les Chœurs Colonne – Orchestre de Wallonie (Bruxelles) – Orchestre National de Montpellier – Orchestre de Picardie – Orchestre de Chambre Français – Orchestre des Pays de Savoie – Orchestre Sinfonia de Lausanne.
Acclaimed by artists such as Aldo CICCOLINI, Didier LOCKWOOD, Julia MIGENES and Éric-Emmanuel SCHMITT, Philippe Fournier’s constant desire for musical openness is determined by the same leitmotiv:
SHARING A PASSION, HIGH STANDARDS AND DIVERSITY
CONDUCTOR TRAINING COURSES
Philippe Fournier also regularly organizes and directs conductor training courses in France and abroad. Most recently, the international dimension of this training has expanded to Hong Kong in 2023, in addition to the two annual courses held in both France (July) and Colombia (April).
To find out more about conductor Philippe Fournier’s philosophy and pedagogy, take a look at the website for training courses in orchestral conducting techniques: www.formation-direction-orchestre.com