To walk through Paris is to absorb the city’s creativity with all the senses: the shimmer of light on the Seine, the hum of conversation in its cafés, and the grandeur of Notre Dame, opera houses and concert halls. Its rich artistic life has shaped the development of many influential styles and composers.

Gabriel Fauré, first a student and eventually a professor and director of the Paris Conservatory, used a lush and chromatic harmonic language that deeply influenced his students and helped pave the way for musical Impressionism, a movement that, like the art of Monet and Renoir, sought to capture color and atmosphere over rigid form. César Franck, central to the Romantic tradition, brought warmth and spiritual depth to Parisian music, while Francis Poulenc, a member of Les Six, infused it with modernity, charm and wit.

Paris also welcomed the genius of visiting masters such as Giuseppe Verdi, whose operas found eager audiences in the city’s grand theaters, and the eccentric brilliance and originality of Erik Satie. Through its respected institutions, composers, and spirit of innovation, Paris became – and remains – one of the world’s great centers for classical music: a living symphony where tradition and imagination meet in timeless harmony.

1.30 h (c/i)