Orchestre National de France Opens First U.S. Tour Since 2016 at Mechanics Hall, Presented by Music Worcester

Music Worcester will host the opening concert of Orchestre National de France’s (ONF) first U.S. tour in nearly 10 years on Friday, November 7 at Worcester’s historic Mechanics Hall. ONF Music Director Cristian Măcelaru will lead the orchestra performing with GRAMMY® Award–winning pianist Daniil Trifonov in a program comprising all French repertoire. Tickets and information for the entire Music Worcester season can be found at musicworcester.org.

The orchestra will perform Saint-Saëns’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in G Minor, along with Elsa Barraine’s Symphony No. 2 and two works by Ravel: Concerto in G and Daphnis et Chloe: Suite No. 2 – with Trifonov as soloist on both of the program’s concertos. This U. S. tour continues Saturday, November 8 at Tilles Center in Brookville, NY; and on Sunday, November 9 at Carnegie Hall’s Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage in New York City.

“The mission of the Orchestre National de France is to be the premier ambassadors of French music and French culture,” Măcelaru said, “and it is so important and vital to who we are that we can share the beauty and the extraordinary artistry of composers like Maurice Ravel, whom we are celebrating this year. Having performed with Daniil Trifonov for more than ten years, it’s a special joy to have not just a friend on stage with me, but truly one of the greatest artists alive today.

“As I’ve said many many times,” he continued, “I was attracted to this orchestra by their understanding of what we call the ‘French sound.’ The composers of French heritage were able to create music that speaks through colors and gestures, surrounding us with this sound that is very beautiful and fleeting, and at the same time transparent and changing constantly. It’s a wonderful opportunity to bring this orchestra to the US and allow its music lovers to embrace this very unique, honest, and truthful presentation of the music.”

Founded in 1934 and prized as France’s leading orchestra, the Orchestre National de France first toured in North America in 1948. The orchestra last performed at Carnegie Hall in 2016. They previously collaborated with Trifonov in December 2022 for a German tour of the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg, the Philharmonie in Cologne, the Isarphilharmonie in Munich, and the Philharmonie in Berlin.

The orchestra and Măcelaru recently released an album of Ravel’s symphonic works on the Naïve label, celebrating this quintessential French repertoire on the 150th anniversary of the composer’s birth.

“Music Worcester seeks to bring the world’s greatest artists to our community to activate its renowned concert venues,” said Executive Director Adrien Finlay. “Presenting one of the world’s leading orchestras on its first North American tour since 2016, especially when combined with the presence of the extraordinary Daniil Trifonov, fully reflects this commitment to artistic excellence. The performance on November 7 will serve as a truly unique opportunity to hear leading interpreters of French composers perform works showcasing the virtuosity of the full orchestra.”

About Orchestre National de France (ONF)

The Orchestre National de France is both an established authority and a dynamic force in the interpretation of French music. Its international tours have made it a flagship for French culture across the world, while its presence throughout France, reinforced by vibrant educational programs, has cemented its relationship with a diversity of national audiences.

A Radio France ensemble, the Orchestre National de France was founded in 1934 as the country’s first full-time symphony orchestra. Its mission to serve the symphonic repertoire was furthered by radio broadcasts of its concerts, and it soon achieved an enviable reputation.

In the course of the 20th century the Orchestre National de France gave the premieres of a number of major works, including Le Soleil des eaux by Boulez, Déserts by Varèse, Messiaen’s Turangalîla Symphony (French premiere), Xenakis’s Jonchaies and the majority of Dutilleux’s large-scale compositions.

Cristian Măcelaru and the Orchestre National de France recently appeared at the Paris 2024 Olympics Opening Ceremony, which was broadcast to 1.5 billion viewers worldwide.

About Danill Trifonov

GRAMMY® Award-winning pianist Daniil Trifonov (dan-EEL TREE-fon-ov) has made a spectacular ascent of the classical music world, as a solo artist, champion of the concerto repertoire, chamber and vocal collaborator, and composer. Trifonov won the Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Solo Album of 2018 with his Liszt collection Transcendental. Named Gramophone’s 2016 Artist of the Year and Musical America’s 2019 Artist of the Year, he was made a “Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres” by the French government in 2021.

Trifonov has won medals at three of the music world’s most prestigious competitions, taking Third Prize in Warsaw’s Chopin Competition, First Prize in Tel Aviv’s Rubinstein Competition, and both First Prize and Grand Prix – an additional honor bestowed on the best overall competitor in any category – in Moscow’s Tchaikovsky Competition. In 2013 he was awarded the prestigious Franco Abbiati Prize for Best Instrumental Soloist by Italy’s foremost music critics.

Born in Nizhny Novgorod in 1991, Trifonov began his musical training at the age of five and went on to attend Moscow’s Gnessin School of Music as a student of Tatiana Zelikman, before pursuing his piano studies with Sergei Babayan at the Cleveland Institute of Music. He has also studied composition, and continues to write for piano, chamber ensemble, and orchestra. When he premiered his own Piano Concerto, the Cleveland Plain Dealer marveled: “Even having seen it, one cannot quite believe it. Such is the artistry of pianist-composer Daniil Trifonov.”

About Cristian Măcelaru

GRAMMY® Award-winning conductor Cristian Măcelaru is also the new Music Director of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Artistic Director of the George Enescu Festival and Competition, Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the Interlochen Center for the Arts’ World Youth Symphony Orchestra, Music Director and Conductor of the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music and Distinguished Visiting Artist at The Shepherd School of Music at Rice University.

Măcelaru was born in Timișoara, Romania and comes from a musical family. As the youngest of ten children, all of whom received instrumental lessons at an early age, Măcelaru excelled on the violin. His studies took him from Romania to the Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan, University of Miami in Florida and Rice University in Houston, where he studied conducting with Larry Rachleff. He then deepened his knowledge at Tanglewood Music Center and Aspen Music Festival in masterclasses with David Zinman, Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, Oliver Knussen and Stefan Asbury.

Măcelaru was the youngest concertmaster in the history of the Miami Symphony Orchestra and made his Carnegie Hall debut with that orchestra at the age of 19. He also played in the first violin section of the Houston Symphony for two seasons. His international career was launched in 2012 when he was asked to step in for Pierre Boulez with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. During that same year, he received the Solti Emerging Conductor Award, followed by the Solti Conducting Award in 2014.

Music Worcester has been bringing world-renowned musicians and ensembles to Central Massachusetts since its founding in 1858. Today, the organization regularly presents world-renowned orchestras, soloists, and ensembles from the worlds of classical, jazz, folk, world music, and dance to audiences of all ages and backgrounds.

In 2024, Music Worcester launched THE COMPLETE BACH, an 11-year project to present live performances of all J.S. Bach’s known works. Music Worcester’s education and outreach initiatives include in-school workshops and masterclasses, and the availability of free and reduced-price tickets. In 2026, Dr. Everett McCorvey will serve as the Artist-in-Residence, a bi-annual program that establishes deep community relationships with an individual artist.

Music Worcester presents Orchestre National de France on Friday, November 7 at 8 pm at Worcester’s historic Mechanics Hall, 321 Main Street, Worcester, MA Tickets and information can be found at musicworcester.org