Pierre Dervaux

Pierre Dervaux is a French conductor and composer, born January 3, 1917 in Juvisy-sur-Orge and died February 20, 1992 in Marseille.

Pierre Dervaux was born on January 3, 1917 in Juvisy-sur-Orge in a family of educators and musicians. He studied music at the Paris Conservatory in the piano classes of Isidor Philipp and Yves Nat.

He began his career as a musician as a timpanist with the desire to move towards a career as an orchestra conductor. In 1945, he conducted his first concert with the Orchester Pasdeloup. In 1947, he was appointed conductor at the Opéra-Comique, where he remained until 1953. From 1956 to 1972, he was permanent conductor at the Paris Opera, where he made his debut with the Rigoletto by Giuseppe Verdi, then sung in French. From 1968 to 1975, he was artistic and musical director of the Orchester symphonique de Québec. In 1971, he became the first director of the Orchester national des Pays de la Loire, then musical director of the Nice Philharmonic Orchestra from 1979 to 1982. He also directs the NHK Symphony Orchestra, the Lamoureux Orchestra, the Orchestra of the Société des concerts du Conservatoire, the Orchestra of the RTF, the Radio-lyric Orchestra but above all, for more than thirty years, from 1958 until his death in 1992, the Orchester des Concerts Colonne.

He was also conducting professor at the École normale de musique de Paris from 1964 to 1986 and at the Conservatoire de Montréal from 1965 to 1972. Jean-Claude Casadesus, Sylvain Cambreling, Dominique Rouits, Adrian McDonnell, Georges Aperghis, Patrick Juzeau, Patrick Botti, Pascal Muller Van Haeren, Jean Leccia and Jean-Pierre Wallez were his students.

A great defender of French music, he contributes to making composers such as Vincent d'Indy or Gabriel Pierné known through a large discography. He is, with Georges Prêtre, the favorite conductor of Francis Poulenc (it was he who conducted the French premiere of his Dialogues des carmélites in 1958). He participates in the creation of the opera by Valérie Soudères, That my joy remains, inspired by the text of Jean Giono

He also composes two symphonies, two concertos, a quartet, a trio and some melodies.

He died on February 20, 1992 in Marseille at the age of 75. He is buried in the Père-Lachaise cemetery (10th division). His tombstone bears the words “Concerts Colonne”.