Ariane Brisson & Philip Chiu
Biography Ariane Brisson & Philip Chiu
Ariane Brisson
Carving a unique path with her sincere musicality and refined interpretations, flautist Ariane Brisson captivates audiences and critics, and has been selected as « Découverte de l’année » at the 24th Prix Opus Gala and Grand Prize winner of the Prix d’Europe competition.
In recent seasons, Ariane Brisson has been invited to perform as a soloist with the Trois-Rivières and Drummondville Symphony Orchestras, I Musici and with the Neues Zürcher Orchester (Switzerland), performing varied works from Johann Sebastian Bach to Guillaume Connesson with enthusiasm and ease.
The fluidity and sensitivity of her playing and the richness of her sound motivated the musicians of Pentaèdre to invite Ariane Brisson to join the ensemble in 2016. Since 2019, she has also served as Pentaèdre’s Artistic Director. Her personal reflections on transverse flute performance and pedagogy led to obtain in 2022 a doctoral diploma at the Faculty of Music of Université de Montréal under the tutelage of Jean-François Rivest and Michel Duchesneau. In May 2022, Ariane Brisson and pianist Olivier Hébert-Bouchard’s first album with ATMA Classique, Mythes, proposing original transcriptions from the flutist, has been launched.
As Principal Flute with the Grands Ballets Canadiens Orchestra and the Orchestre symphonique de Drummondville, and as a regular collaborator with Les Violons du Roy chamber orchestra, she has performed throughout North America as well as in Europe and Asia. Ariane Brisson is also a dedicated flute teacher and joined the UdeM music faculty with enthusiasm in 2019.
Ariane Brisson wishes to extend special thanks to the Prix d’Europe Foundation, the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec (CALQ), the Sylva-Gelber Foundation, the Observatoire interdisciplinaire de création et de recherche en musique (OICRM), and to the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) — all of which have proven essential to her ambitions and various artistic projects. Ariane plays both a Yamaha transverse flute made of grenadilla wood, as well as a Powell 10K flute graciously loaned by Canimex Inc. (Drummondville, Canada), property of the patron Roger Dubois.
Philip Chiu
More than a summation of technical and musical abilities, pianist Philip Chiu has become one of Canada’s leading musicians through his infectious love of music and his passion for communication and collaboration. Lauded for the brilliance, colour and sensitivity of his playing, he is particularly noted for his ability to connect with audiences on and off-stage.
“… a pianist-painter who turns every musical idea into a beautiful array of colors.” La Presse
“Pianist Philip Chiu played with striking precision and subtle poetry.” The Gazette (Montréal)
An exceedingly sociable pianist, Philip concertizes extensively as one of Canada’s most sought-after chamber musicians. He has appeared in recitals with leading musicians of the world stage, including James Ehnes, Raphael Wallfisch, Patrice Fontanarosa, Regis Pasquier, Matt Haimovitz, Radovan Vlatkovic, Stefan Dohr, Philippe Bernold, Alex Klein, and Eugene Isotov. He performs regularly with principal members of Canada’s leading orchestras and ensembles, including Toronto Symphony Orchestra concertmaster Jonathan Crow, l’Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal concertmaster Andrew Wan, and Pascale Giguere of Les Violons du Roy. Along with pianist Janelle Fung, he forms one of Canada’s most exciting piano duos, the Fung-Chiu Duo. He has toured numerous times with premier touring organizations, Jeunesses Musicales Canada, Prairie Debut, and Debut Atlantic, and will be touring again soon with Jeunesses Musicales (2014/2015, 2015/2016) and Prairie Debut (2014/15).
Dedicated to elevating the standard and art of collaborative piano, Philip is the creator and director of the new Collaborative Piano Program at the Domaine Forget International Festival and Academy. He is an acclaimed accompanist/coach based at McGill University, has been an invited professor-accompanist for the Conservatoire de musique de Montreal, and regularly accompanies at l’Universite de Montreal. He travels regularly across Canada and the U.S. to accompany for national and international competitions.
Philip is extremely grateful for the support of the Sylva Gelber Music Foundation, Canada Council for the Arts and Jeunesses Musicales in his various pursuits. He can be heard/seen on Classical 96.3 FM, Australia’s ABC Radio, CBC Radio, and Radio-Canada.
