Johan Farjot | Piano
Contributing as a pianist to the Ensemble Contraste which he created and which he now co-directs with the violinist and violist Arnaud Thorette, Johan Farjot has built a solid discography (over thirty CDs praised by critics, with some of them distinguished by the titles “Diapason d'or”, “Choc Classica”, etc.) and performs with prestigious musicians in numerous festivals and concert seasons in France and abroad.
Among these recordings, one may retain a CD dedicated to Bruch's music (Diapason d'Or) released in 2009 by Cyprès, three Brahms >sonatas for violin and piano with Geneviève Laurenceau recorded in 2010 for the label Zig-Zag Territoires, as well as a CD of Fauré’s music including his First Piano Quartet and i>La Bonne Chanson, recorded with Ensemble Contraste and Karine Deshayes (Diamant from Opéra Magazine). Finally, let us mention a monographic CD dedicated to Onslow (Choc Classica), recorded in 2010 with Initium Ensemble and released by Timpani. In 2012, Farjot released a CD dedicated to Charles Koechlin with the same musicians.
Farjot’s other achievements are a Bach CD (Dolce Volta/Harmonia Mundi) recorded with Ensemble Contraste, and a Schumann CD (Cyprès) made in collaboration with Jean-Luc Votano and Arnaud Thorette. In 2015, two CDs were released by Aparté: After a Dream, a collection of mélodies françaises interpreted by the mezzo-soprano Karine Deshayes and unanimously acclaimed by critics (Choc Classica), and Into the Dark, containing works for string orchestra composed by Karol Beffa and recorded with Karine Deshayes, Arnaud Thorette, Emmanuel Ceysson and the enlarged Ensemble Contraste, directed by Johan Farjot (Click on Classique News, Grand Prix des Lycéens).
As a performer, Johan Farjot always remains closely connected to the world of contemporary music: he premiered a number of works and several composers dedicated their pieces to him (Karol Beffa, Philippe Hersant, etc.).
As a pianist, Johan Farjot has always been close to the world of jazz and has collaborated with many great jazz performers such as Anne Paceo, Hugh Coltman, Daniel Humair, André Ceccarelli, etc. Ever since March 2016, alongside the saxophonist Raphaël Imbert, Farjot is the artistic director of an on-going series of concerts “Les 1001 Nuits du Jazz” that take place in Bal Blomet, a historic jazz club located in the 15th arrondissement of Paris (Farjot and Imbert organize two concerts per month featuring many guest stars). One of such concerts has been immortalized in the form of a live CD in the spring of 2020 (Les Mille et une Nuits du Jazz. Johan Farjot, Raphaël Imbert and Guests released by MDC/Pias).
Musical coordinator at the University of Paris Sciences et Lettres, where he also conducts a university orchestra and choir, Johan Farjot is the guest conductor of several ensembles in France and abroad: National Orchestra of the Capitole of Toulouse, Bratislava Radio Orchestra, Durban Philharmonic Orchestra, Marseille Opera Orchestra, National Orchestra of Auvergne, Jan Talich Orchestra of Prague, Berolina-Orchester/Berliner Symphoniker Orchestra, etc.