Pascal Rophé, born in Paris, studied at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris and won the second prize at the Concours International des jeunes chefs d'orchestre de Besançon (France) in 1988. In 1992, he started working with Pierre Boulez and David Robertson in the Ensemble Intercontemporain that he has conducted many times. In France, he also conducts many national orchestras, in Lyon, Montpellier, Ile de France, as well as the Orchestre National de France.
Abroad, he regularly conducts the BBC Orchestra in London, the Orchestre Philharmonique de Liège, the Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg and many radio orchestras in Europe.
He became a specialist of his generation of the 20th century repertoire and, as he frequently conducts great European Ensembles dedicated to contemporary music, he's been focusing more and more on the great repertoire of the 19th and 20th cenruries' symphonies.
After having been music director of the Orchestre National de Lorraine until 2002, he went back to Montecarlo to conduct the Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo, but also the The Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, the Berlin Comic Opera Orchestra (Bartok, Debussy), The Fenice Orchestra, The Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio-France, etc.
Twice a year at least, he also gets involved in Opera projects; after having conducted Wagner's Flying Dutchman with the Orchestre National d'Ile de France and Ahmed Essyad's Héloïse et Abélard at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris, he performed Le Dialogue des Carmélites at the Budapest Spring Festival (also performed at the Budapest Festival in 2004/05) and the premiere of Michèle Reverdy's Medea at the opéra de Lyon. In 2004, he conducted Le Fou by Marcel Landowski for the Châtelet (Paris), as well as Pelléas and Mélisande at the Glyndebourne Opera.
Most of his recordings have been awarded:
- Eric Tanguy's Intrada with the Orchestre National de France: the French "Choc de la musique" in april 2002.
- Thierry Escaich and the Liège Royal Philharmonic: "Diapason d'or 2002" for contemporary music.
- Pascal Dusapin's Concertos with the Orchestre National de Montpellier: French "Choc de la Musique".
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For many years now, Pascal Rophé has been giving masterclasses about conducting, at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique in Paris.
In September 2014, he will become chief conductor of the Orchestre National des Pays de la Loire.
