"What I like about the Côte d'Azur is that things aren't compartmentalized": this Monday in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, trumpeter Romain Leleu never tires of playing on the region's stages

Few can boast of belonging to this very exclusive circle: that of the greatest trumpeters on the planet. Romain Leleu is one of them. Whether with his sextet, as he will be performing this Monday evening at the Villa Éphrussi de Rothschild in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, in a duo with his brother, the equally talented tuba player Thomas Leleu, or as a soloist with an orchestra, this artist consistently excels.

Four albums in one year

And also shows a certain Stakhanovism, having recorded no less than four albums over the past twelve months: Piano, Trumpet & Strings with Frank Braley and the Orchestre Royal de Chambre de Wallonie released by XXI Music, Folies Parisiennes with Julien Gernay by Harmonia Mundi, Virtuosi with his brother Thomas on tuba ( La Dolce Volta ) and Nuit fantastique with his sextet under his own label RL Records, which he created this year.

Accompanied by his sextet, formed fifteen years ago, Romain Leleu plays a repertoire tailor-made by one of the ensemble's violinists. In the setting of the Villa Ephrussi in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, where he will perform for the first time, the sextet will present a program entitled… Nuit fantastique . " This program," he reels off , "represents the various emotions of the nocturnal universe . Starting with Schubert, with The Erlking. We then really move from one emotion to another, from dreams to fear to death, without forgetting the party, with The Ox on the Roof by Darius Milhaud. There will be a bit of film music too, with a piece by Ennio Morricone or Bernard Herrmann [who acquired an international reputation thanks to the music he wrote for Hitchcock's films, editor's note] for strings. And it will go as far as a tribute to the great trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie, with Night in Tunisia. "

"On the Côte d'Azur, things are not compartmentalized"

Dizzy Gillespie, one of the legendary figures of the Grande Parade du Jazz de Nice, whose silhouette was displayed as the logo of the Nice festival. Thus contributing to making the Côte d'Azur capital a place steeped in music and art, something Romain Leleu readily admits: "Precisely, what I like about the Côte d'Azur is that things aren't compartmentalized. There have been so many exchanges, since the last century, that it's a place where you feel like you're immersed, precisely, in Le Bœuf sur le toit from the 1920s in Paris. I really enjoy coming here and participating in festivals like the one in Menton in particular. Enjoying the very often magnificent locations."

Antique instruments from 1889 to the 1950s

Speaking of time travel, this lover of old instruments has resurrected some of them for his album, Folies parisiennes: "I was lucky enough to have access to the collection of the Musée de la musique, made up of incredible instruments, from Antiquity to the present day, remarkably preserved. For this album , I focused on a rich period, which goes from the Universal Exhibition of 1889 to the beginning of the 1950s. A pivotal period, during which instrument making evolved a lot, first on the cornet, then on the trumpet. And this gave rise to instruments with a brighter, more resonant "French" sound. I chose the last cornet of Jean-Baptiste Arban, our Paganini, and I played with this last instrument, donated by one of his nieces to the museum before its creation. The curator, who has been the same since the opening, 35 years ago, had never heard this instrument. A great emotion!"

“It’s a little freer, we can allow ourselves to explore other styles.”

And how does he view the evolution of his instrument? "When I started as a concert soloist, about twenty years ago, I threw myself into this project with a lot of passion, pleasure, and motivation. Today, it's getting emulated, and there's less judgment. Before, people used to say that the trumpet was the orchestra, except for a great figure like Maurice André and others. Now, it's a little freer; you can allow yourself, if you want, to explore other styles, even if you play classical music. I find that rather positive. As long as it's done seriously, with sincerity, that's what matters most to me."

Romain Leleu sextet. This Monday, August 11, from 8 p.m. to midnight. Prices: from 20 to 35 euros. Free for children under 7. Information: 04.93. 01.33.09. www.villa-ephrussi.com