The Delaunay

The Delaunay

The Delaunay is a Parisian ensemble and cabaret collective known for reviving Belle Époque chanson alongside jazz, classical salon, and theatrical repertoire. Founded in the early 2000s, the group blends influences from Maurice Chevalier, Édith Piaf, Yves Montand, Cole Porter, and Kurt Weill with arrangements referencing Duke Ellington, Claude Debussy, Igor Stravinsky, and Astor Piazzolla. The Delaunay has performed at venues such as Opéra Garnier, Royal Albert Hall, Carnegie Hall, and festivals including Montreux Jazz Festival, Edinburgh Festival Fringe, and Glastonbury Festival.

History

The Delaunay emerged in Paris amid a resurgence of interest in period cabaret led by producers and venues like La Nouvelle Eve, Le Caveau de la Huchette, and the Théâtre du Châtelet. Founders included impresarios with backgrounds at Comédie-Française, Conservatoire de Paris, and Bateaux-Mouches cruise productions, who sought to synthesize works associated with Maurice Ravel, Francis Poulenc, Jacques Prévert, and Boris Vian. Early collaborations featured directors and choreographers linked to Nederlands Dans Theater, Pina Bausch, and Sasha Waltz, and attracted guest artists from Nouvelle Vague, Pink Martini, and Les Arts Florissants. Touring in the 2000s and 2010s brought the ensemble to cultural institutions such as Tate Modern, Musée d'Orsay, Berlin Philharmonie, and residencies at Lincoln Center and Sydney Opera House. The Delaunay's programming often intersected with commemorations of figures like George Gershwin, Irving Berlin, Marcel Proust, and events including Bastille Day celebrations and retrospectives at Musée Carnavalet.

Architecture and Design

The Delaunay's stagecraft references the visual and spatial idioms of Belle Époque salons and Art Nouveau interiors by architects such as Hector Guimard and designers like Émile Gallé and Alphonse Mucha. Sets draw on motifs from Palais Garnier foyers, La Samaritaine department store ornamentation, and the decorative schemes of Le Train Bleu restaurant. Lighting designs have been created by collaborators who worked at Royal Court Theatre, Opéra-Comique, and with lighting designers associated with Wooster Group and Robert Lepage. Costume designers include alumni of Christian Lacroix, Yves Saint Laurent, and the costume houses of Comédie-Française, producing wardrobes that evoke Jean Cocteau, Coco Chanel, Sonia Delaunay, and Paul Poiret. The ensemble’s visual identity has been exhibited alongside collections from Victoria and Albert Museum and Musée des Arts Décoratifs.

Musical Genre and Repertoire

The Delaunay specializes in a repertoire spanning French chanson, Weimar cabaret, American jazz standards, and salon arrangements of Debussy and Satie. Typical programs juxtapose works by Édith Piaf, Charles Trenet, Serge Gainsbourg, Jacques Brel, and selections from Bertolt Brecht/Kurt Weill with instrumental pieces by Django Reinhardt, Stéphane Grappelli, Thelonious Monk, and Billie Holiday covers. The ensemble has commissioned new arrangements from contemporary composers connected to Michael Nyman, Max Richter, Caroline Shaw, and Arvo Pärt, and staged song cycles informed by poets and librettists like Paul Verlaine, Arthur Rimbaud, Guillaume Apollinaire, and Marcel Proust. The Delaunay often integrates choreography referencing the repertories of Martha Graham and Isadora Duncan and collaborates with multimedia artists from TeamLab and Ryoji Ikeda for cross-disciplinary events.

Notable Members and Alumni

Principal singers and directors have included performers trained at Conservatoire de Paris, Royal College of Music, and Juilliard School, and alumni who later worked with institutions such as Opéra National de Paris, Glyndebourne Festival Opera, Metropolitan Opera, and companies including Cirque du Soleil and Cirque Éloize. Notable soloists and collaborators have been associated with Sting, Sinead O'Connor, Norah Jones, Jamie Cullum, Annie Lennox, Emeli Sandé, Bryan Ferry, and Jools Holland. Conductors and arrangers have ties to Gustavo Dudamel, Sir Simon Rattle, Valery Gergiev, Daniel Barenboim, and John Eliot Gardiner. Instrumentalists include alumni of Paris Conservatory, former members of Django Reinhardt's Quintette du Hot Club de France’s legacy ensembles, and soloists who later joined London Symphony Orchestra, NHK Symphony Orchestra, and Orchestre de Paris.

Recordings and Legacy

The Delaunay’s discography spans studio albums, live recordings, and collaborations released on labels linked to Deutsche Grammophon, ECM Records, Pias Recordings, and boutique imprints associated with Blue Note Records and Nonesuch Records. Landmark releases featured reinterpretations of Édith Piaf standards, a Weill/Brecht anthology, and a crossover album of salon pieces and jazz standards that received attention from critics at The New York Times, The Guardian, Le Monde, and BBC Music Magazine. Their recordings have been licensed for film and television projects by directors and producers such as Wes Anderson, Jean-Pierre Jeunet, Sofia Coppola, Baz Luhrmann, and Pedro Almodóvar. The ensemble’s archival material and set designs have been acquired by the collections of Bibliothèque nationale de France, Victoria and Albert Museum, and archives at Harvard University and Yale University, cementing The Delaunay’s influence on contemporary revivals of cabaret and salon culture.

Category:French musical groups Category:Cabaret ensembles