“The classic guitar chose me”

You were born in Djibouti. Has this country left a musical footprint in you?

Not really. I was adopted at the age of 4 months and arrived in Cholet, in Maine-et-Loire. My first childhood images are linked to this region. I have no memories of the country, nor a direct link with its music. That said, a few months ago, I returned there for the first time.

Are your parents musicians?

No way. They were even fairly limited music lovers. On the radio, they mostly listened to rock or French song. I nevertheless remember that when my father bought a hi-fi channel, there was an album, Classic anthology, that he sometimes put and that I loved. This is surely my first contact with the classic repertoire.

Where does this taste for music come from?

My parents tell me that, as soon as I got home, I sang in my cradle. Until I was 18, every night, I sang before sleeping. It was visceral. I also really liked percussion. I followed a workshop at school, which I continued once I got home, tapping on a bucket. Music has always been there, like a natural language.

How has the guitar imposed in your life?

At 6 years old, I begged all those around me to have one at Christmas. I don’t know what fascinated me in this instrument at that time. I know I wanted one, that’s all. I played alone, without knowing what I was doing. She was not even granted. But the director of my primary school was guitarist, and I asked him how to grant the instrument. I was very curious, very attracted.

When did you decided to do your job?

Immediately. At 6, I already said that I wanted to be a professional guitarist, do concerts and travel. It was not an abstract dream but a conviction. At 9 years old, I really started studying the classic guitar at the Cholet Conservatory.

When do your first contact with the public date? What impressions have you kept?

At the Conservatoire, several hearings were made per year. Around 12 years old, I made a real concert. I loved it. There was stress, of course, but it was galvanizing.

Since then, you have worked a lot around the world. Has a scene particularly marked you?

Carnegie Hall, in New York, in 2023. I played there as part of a tour of forty-five concerts in the United States. An unforgettable experience.

And in France?

I was invited to play the crazy day, in Nantes, last January. A festival of which I was a spectator when I was a teenager. Return to it as an artist was a symbolic and very moving moment.

You will participate in the festival via Aeterna. Is it important to you?

I really appreciate this festival, around the Baie du Mont-Saint-Michel. He has a soul, with his heritage dimension and his audience of connoisseurs. It is an honor to be invited. I can’t wait to present my program there.

The general public often associates the guitar with Elvis Presley, Jimi Hendrix, Django Reinhardt … Is it difficult to make the classic guitar exist in the face of these giants?

It is true that, for most people, the guitar is directly associated with these big names in rock and pop music. But the classic guitar has its own story, its own voice.

Has this choice of classic guitar been clear from the start?

In France, when you enter the conservatory, you start with the classic guitar. And, I immediately hung on with the repertoire. It was instinctive. I could have branched off towards other styles, I also listened to it – Laurent Voulzy, Raphaël -, but the classic guitar somehow chose me.

What is its singularity?

It is not amplified, it is acoustic and is played exclusively with the nails. His repertoire is very varied, with schools: Spanish, South American or Balkan. It is sometimes even inspired by folklore, like flamenco. It is a guitar that requires nuance, subtlety. She is more intimate, but just as expressive.

Do you play other types of guitars? Folk, electric?

I tried, of course. But it is not compatible with my repertoire. Metal strings, for example, damage the nails. And the sound does not correspond to what I am looking for. So no, I remain faithful to the classic guitar. Even if I can play some lighter songs with the family. Yes, I can play Happy Birthday (laughs).

In chamber music or large training courses, your instrument remains little present. Do you feel it?

It is true that the guitar does not yet have the same place as the violin or the piano, but it changes. In the 1970s and 1980s, she was very popular, especially in the United States. Then there was a hollow, and today we feel a real comeback. The repertoire widens, new composers write for it.

Are there also adaptations of classic works?

It is an important part of my work. My first album at Deutsche Grammophon was precisely centered on arrangements. Many works of the harpsichord or lute are transposed very well on the guitar. It is an exciting exercise.

What do you find in your latest album, SPANISH SENENADES?

I wanted to build an album around the Confierto de Aranjuez, An iconic work of the repertoire which has always marked me. I added works that I like since childhood, very famous or more confidential, written for the guitar, by guitarists.

I was fortunate to record on 19th century guitars, often kept in private collections or museums. Their stamp is unique, more fragile, but also more intimate. It was a real happiness!

What is your opinion on artificial intelligence. Is it a danger for the future of music?

For composers, yes, that’s for sure. AI can compose, produce, imitate. There is a real challenge there. But like any technological change, you have to adapt. We had the same fears with the internet.

For the moment, the world of classic guitar remains quite conservative, so we are a bit protected. But one day, AI will be able to generate videos of musicians who do not exist. You will have to face it. That said, the human, emotion, living … all this does not imitate so easily.

You embody an original figure in the very coded world of classical music. How do you live this?

It is true that a young black man in classical music, it can surprise. I was often told. But I never felt a gap. I was lucky to have teachers from various horizons, which offered me a form of normality.

You often talk about “”responsibility»». Do you feel invested with a model role?

is not a role that I tried to have, but I know that it exists. If my journey can inspire other young people, so much the better.

Is it for this reason that you engage in social projects?

I discovered this dimension in the United States during a tour in 2018. In particular in Austin (Texas), where the structures in the guitar universe are very socially active. I gave concerts and then conducted workshops in prisons. It was very strong. The detainees were incredibly receptive. I had very rich, very human exchanges. Since then, I have been hosting Master Class on the sidelines of my tours, wherever I play.

Do you also teach more formally?

Yes, but limited. I give a few hours of lessons to the Rennes Conservatory. It is not the heart of my activity.

What advice would you give to a young person who would like to start?

Do not hesitate. The guitar is an accessible instrument that can speak to everyone. She holds in a backpack. Which is practical when you move often (smile). He is a life companion.

With all the success you meet, what is motivating you today?

The desire to surpass myself. Doubt has always been part of me. It’s not always pleasant to live, but I think it’s healthy. It is even essential in an artistic profession. I wish to deepen my relationship to music. Continue to grow artistically.