Samuel Jean
Since his appointment as Principal Guest Conductor of the Orchestre Régional Avignon-Provence in January 2013, Samuel Jean has actively contributed to the revival and reemergence of this established orchestra both in the eyes of the general public but also specialists.
With his orchestra, he has conducted the world premiere of Peter Pan by Olivier Penard, the recording was released in November 2012; Bizet’s Docteur Miracle released in 2013 (awarded with Choc Classica, Clef Resmusica, 4 Diapasons); L'Amour Masqué by Messager, released in January 2014 under the label Actes Sud; Belle Epoque with the harpist Emmanuel Ceysson (Naïve 2015) ; and more recently, SADMP by Louis Beydts and the world premiere of Homériades by Martin Romberg with the actor Robin Renucci forthcoming in 2016.
After a rich experience of chorus master and assistant in houses such the Opéra National de Paris, the Théâtre du Châtelet, the Festival d’Art lyrique d’Aix-en- Provence or the Grand Théâtre de Genève, Samuel Jean decided to devote himself to orchestra conducting in 2006. Winner of the young conductors' contest of the Orchestre National d’Ile-de France in 2006, he has collaborated with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio-France, Orchestre National de Montpellier, Orchestre National d'Ilede-France, Orchestre National des Pays de la Loire, Orchestre of the Rouen opera house, Orchestre de Cannes PACA, La Verdi di Milano Orchestra, Orchestre Lamoureux, Orchestre Pasdeloup, among others.
On lyric stages, Samuel Jean is a regular guest of the Théâtre Royale de la Monnaie where he conducted Cendrillon, Rigoletto and Béatrice et Bénédict. He also conducted at the Théâtre du Châtelet (On the town), at the Opéra Comique (La Périchole, La Veuve Joyeuse), at the Opéra National de Bordeaux and the Opéra de Marseille (Orphée aux Enfers) but also at the Opéra de Rouen, Saint-Etienne, Toulon and Dijon.
At the opera and in concerts, he collaborates with stage directors and artists such as Laurent Pelly, Olivier Py, Jérôme Savary, Emilio Sagi, Nicholas Angelich, Bertrand Chamayou, Emmanuel Ceysson, Nora Gubish, Elina Garanca, to name a few. Beside his recording activity with the Orchestre Régional AvignonProvence, Samuel Jean recorded a critically acclaimed recording dedicated to Massenet's Melodies with soprano Sabine Revault d’Allones (5 Diapasons, 4 stars from Classica Magazine, «ffff» from Télérama Magazine) and another one dedicated to Pierné’s Melodies with baritone Thomas Dolié (4 stars from Classica, 4 Diapasons). He was awarded with the Orphée d'Or for best musical accompanist and for best record initiative by the Lyrical record academy for these recordings.
He recorded also, with the Orchestre National de Lille, the first album of soprano Julie Fuchs, « Yes » for Deutsche Grammophon, acclaimed by the press (Diapason d’or of the year, Choc Classica, nominated in the category of the "Best recording of the year" at the Victoires de la Musique Classique 2016).
Samuel Jean's contract as principal guest conductor of the Orchestre Régional Avignon-Provence was extended for the next three seasons. His forthcoming engagements include concerts with the Orchestre Philharmonique Royal de Liège, the Orchestre National de Lille, the Orchestre Symphonique de Mulhouse, the Orchestre de Picardie, the Orchestre Pasdeoup at the Philharmonie de Paris, but also performances of Anna Bolena and Dialogues des Carmélites at the Opéra d’Avignon and Aïda at the Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie.
Born in 1973, Samuel Jean studied the piano and musical accompaniment at the CRR of Boulogne-Billancourt, where he was accompanist during 10 years,choir direction then at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris where he graduated in 2002. He is professor of the vocal ensemble class of the Conservatory between 2005 and 2013.