Program Information

 

France's Trio Hélios, featuring cellist Raphaël Jouan, pianist Alexis Gournel, and violinist Luka Ispir is known for playing marked by refinement, intensity, and a strong commitment to the piano trio repertoire. The ensemble has appeared at major venues including the Philharmonie de Paris, Salle Cortot, Wigmore Hall, the Lyon Opera House, and Phoenix Hall in Osaka, as well as at leading festivals across Europe and beyond. Its artistry has been recognized through numerous international prizes and through acclaimed recordings including "D’un matin de printemps" and "Bohemia," the latter receiving a CHOC Classica. Trio Hélios is in residence at the Fondation Singer-Polignac and continues to build an international profile on today’s chamber music stage.

Full program information for this concert will follow at a later date.

Artist Biographies

 

Luka Ispir, violin

Supported by the Rotary Club, the Gautier Capuçon Foundation, and the Safran Foundation, Luka Ispir is a laureate of several international competitions: 1st prize at the Rotary Club Soloist Prize, 3rd prize at the Moroccan Philharmonic Orchestra Competition, Grand Prize from the Safran Foundation, 2nd prize and two special prizes at the Vittorio Veneto International Competition…

At the age of 5, he began playing the violin at the Rouen Regional Conservatory. After two years at the Boulogne-Billancourt Regional Conservatory with Christophe Poiget, he was admitted at the age of 16 to the Paris National Conservatory of Music and Dance under Olivier Charlier. He continued his musical studies at the Hanns Eisler School in Berlin in Stephan Picard's class before furthering his training as an Artist in Residence at the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel with Augustin Dumay, pursuing a Master's degree at the Lausanne University of Music with Renaud Capuçon, and completing advanced studies at the Perosi Academy with Silvia Marcovici.

In 2025, he joined the Trio Hélios, with whom he has performed at numerous festivals in France and abroad. He also participated in the creation of the Trio Philia between 2017 and 2020. Luka is regularly invited as a soloist and has performed with the Normandy Orchestra, the Appassionato Orchestra, the Bilkent Symphony Orchestra, the New Europe Orchestra, the Moroccan Philharmonic Orchestra, the Nouvelles Portées Ensemble, the Orchestra of the Accademia di La Scala in Milan, the Hagen Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Le Havre Symphony Orchestra. He has also been invited to perform at the Jaroussky Academy, the Kronberg Academy, the Auvers-sur-Oise Festival, the Salle Cortot Chamber Music Center in Paris, the Pablo Casals Festival, the Menuhin Festival, the Ravel Festival, the Evian Musical Encounters, the Opus Amadeus Festival, the Giverny Festival, and the Hague Festival.

Luka Ispir is a laureate of the Gautier Capuçon Foundation, thanks to which he recorded a duo album with his cellist brother, Léo Ispir, on the Warner Classics/Erato label. In January 2025, the Ispir brothers also recorded an album accompanied by the ORF Radio Symphony Orchestra Vienna, conducted by Howard Griffiths on the Berlin Classics label.

Luka Ispir plays a violin by the luthier Pressenda, generously loaned by the Michael Guttman Collection.

 

Raphaël Jouan, cello

Raphaël Jouan is a young cellist motivated by his love of sharing music. His style is characterised by his curiosity and openness : he is interested in varying repertoires, styles, and music groups. In 2018 he is nominated “Révélation Classique de l’Adami”.

He regularly gives concerts in prestigious concert halls (Philharmonie de Paris, Xinghai Concert Hall, Arsenal of Metz, Lyon Opera House, Wigmore Hall…), on the radio (France Musique), and during various festivals in France and abroad (les Folles Journées de Nantes, Varsovie, Tokyo, Le Festival des Arcs, la Roque d’Anthéron, Via Aeterna, les Rencontres Musicales d’Evian, le Festival Pablo Casals, the YMCG Festival…). He often share the stage with partners like pianist Flore Merlin, accordionist Bruno Maurice, and cellist Thibaut Reznicek.

Passionate about chamber music, Raphaël is a founding member of the Helios Trio with Luka Ispir (violin) and Alexis Gournel (piano). They won several prizes in various International Competitions (Illzach, Bellan, Lyon Chamber Music Competition, Joseph Joachim, Trondheim…). Their first album “D’un matin de printemps” is released in April 2021 for the label Mirare, with trios of St Saëns, Ravel and Lili Boulanger. Their second CD is called “Bohemia”, it presents czech composers Smetana, Novàk & Fibich and won a CHOC de Classica award. They are represented by the Claire Laballery Agency and are “Ensemble en résidence” at the Singer Polignac Foundation.

Over the years, Raphaël has become more interested about improvisation and world music. He has worked with some of the best jazz cellists and world music artists (Vincent Ségal, Mike Block, Stephan Braun and several members of the “Silk Road Ensemble”) in Germany, China and at the Global Musician Workshop in the US. He has played in several jazz clubs and festivals in France (Sunset-Sunside, Café de la Danse, Festival Jazz Contreband…)

Raphaël first completed his grades at the Metz conservatoire with Jean Adolphe, before continuing at Boulogne Billancourt where he studied under Xavier Gagnepain. He then entered in the Conservatoire Supérieur de Paris (CNSM) where he got his master degree in 2017 in the class of Michel Strauss and Guillaume Paoletti. He also studied piano with Zhu Xiao-Mei, the baroque cello with Bruno Cocset, and has been advised during master classes and academies by Gary Hoffman, Jérôme Pernoo, Jean-Guihen Queyras, Gustav Rivinius, Jens Peter Maintz, Lynn Harell, Yo-Yo Ma…

In 2017, Raphaël has been selected for the prestigious Classe d’Excellence de Violoncelle of Gautier Capuçon at the Louis Vuitton Fondation. He then finished his studies in the Artist Diploma Degree at the Paris Conservatoire and in the Soloist Master Program of the UdK in Berlin with Danjulo Ishizaka.

Raphaël plays an exceptionnal cello of Matteo Goffriller (Venise, 1700-1710), previously in the possession of Antonio Meneses, and a bow Lamy Fils, both graciously provided by the company CANIMEX INC., from Drummondville (Quebec), Canada.

His first CD, “Sérénade” (Initiale), with the pianist Flore Merlin, was released in 2020 and was critically acclaimed (Diapason, Classica, Pizzicato Award, ICMA nomination...). In 2025 he is recording a new CD for La Dolce Volta, playing as a soloist with the Orchestre National de Metz (dir. David Reiland).

 

Alexis Gournel, piano

Renowned for his refinement as a chamber musician, Alexis Gournel performs regularly in some of the world’s most prestigious venues, including the Salle Cortot, the Philharmonie de Paris, Wigmore Hall, and the Tokyo International Forum, as well as festivals such as La Folle Journée, the International Piano Festival of La Roque d’Anthéron, the Easter Festival of Aix-en-Provence, La Grange de Meslay, and the Rencontres Musicales d’Évian.

Founding member of the Trio Hélios in 2014, with whom he pursues an international career, he is also the pianist of the Acte Six Ensemble, contributing actively to the creation of innovative and original artistic projects. His discography includes several acclaimed recordings for Oktav Records, notably the double album Un lieu à soi (Diapason d’Or, Choc Classica), devoted to twentieth-century English music, and the triple album Musiques interdites (Diapason d’Or, 4T Télérama), which revisits works censored under the Third Reich. He has also recorded La Follia Nuova with saxophonist Antonio Garcia Jorge for IBS Classical, as well as a french mélodies album, Voir le jour, with mezzo-soprano Anaïs Bertrand for Oktav Records.

Born in Normandy, Alexis Gournel began his musical training at the Conservatoire of Caen before entering the class of Hortense Cartier-Bresson at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris (CNSMDP). Holding three master’s degrees—in piano performance, chamber music, and pedagogy—he further refined his artistry through masterclasses with Zhu Xiao-Mei, Bruno Rigutto, François-René Duchâble, and Pascal Devoyon. Deeply committed to contemporary creation, he collaborates regularly with composers such as Kaija Saariaho, Nicolas Bacri, Fabien Touchard, and Tristan Murail.

 

About Trio Hélios

Surrounded by Chamber Music since their youngest age, Luka Ispir (violin), Raphaël Jouan (cello) and Alexis Gournel (piano) have been exploring with passion the gorgeous repertoire for piano trio.

After meeting at the Conservatoire National Supérieur in Paris, they founded the Hélios Trio in 2014. They have had the opportunity to play in different venues such as the Philharmonie de Paris, Wigmore Hall, Salle Cortot, the Phoenix Hall in Osaka... They are regularly invited to numerous festivals such as the Festival de la Roque d'Anthéron, the "Folles Journées" (Nantes, Tokyo, and Warsaw), Festival Pablo Casals in Prades, Rencontres Musicales d'Evian, Choriner Musiksommer Festival, Cecilia Concerts, Festival d'Auvers-sur-Oise… They have toured in many countries (Japan, China, Morocco, Canada, Spain, Germany, Poland, etc.). and have been broadcasted on medias such as Medici.tv and radios France Musique, Radio Classique, Musiq3 (Belgium), Kulturhaus Radio (Austria)…

Since 2016, the trio had the opportunity to perform Beethoven’s Triple Concerto several times in Paris, Rennes, Lyon and Metz, as well as during a tour in Northern Germany with the Philharmonisches Orchester Vorpommern.

Over the past years, they have gained visibility through several international prizes such as their 2nd Prize at the Lyon International Chamber Music Competition in 2018, as well as their Special Prize at the Liszt Competition and 2nd Prize at the Trondheim International Chamber Music Competition in 2019, and the KammerMusik Preis (2018), Klavierkammermusik Preis and Wiener Klassik Preis (2019) at the Isa Festival in Reichenau, Austria. In 2024, they were awarded the Kammermusikpreis Hasselburg by the Stahlberg Foundation.

Their first CD “D’un matin de printemps” was released in 2021 with the label Mirare. With an all french program (Ravel, Saint-Saêns, Boulanger), the album was critically acclaimed, and in 2023 the Trio released their second album “Bohemia”. This time with a czech program (Smetana, Novàk, Fibich) they have been awarded the CHOC Classica.

They studied at the CNSMD of Paris (Bachelor & Master’s degree then Artist Diploma) and are ECMA alumnis (European Chamber Music Academy). They have received the teachings of Johannes Meissl, Patrick Jüdt, Trio Wanderer, Hatto Beyerle, Avedis Kouyoumdjian...

The Trio is “Ensemble en résidence” at the Fondation Singer-Polignac, and is represented by the Claire Laballery Agency.

Frequently Asked Questions

 

How will I receive my tickets?
Electronic tickets are emailed immediately after purchase to the email address used at checkout. Please keep your tickets handy on your smart phone or bring a printed copy with you to the concert so we can scan them at the door. If you do not receive your tickets, please check your spam or junk folder, as ticket emails are sometimes blocked or filtered by email providers. You may also wish to search your inbox for “Cecilia Concerts” or your order confirmation. If you still cannot find your tickets, please contact the Cecilia Concerts office before the concert and we’ll be happy to help. Rest assured, if you purchased tickets, your name will also be on our guest list at the door.

What time should I arrive?
Doors open at 7:00pm, and the concert begins at 7:30pm. We recommend arriving a little early so you have time to have your ticket scanned, find a seat, and get settled before the performance begins.

Can I arrive late?
Latecomers will be seated at an appropriate break in the performance, when possible. To avoid disruption to the artists and audience, we recommend arriving before the concert begins.

How long is the concert?
The approximate running time is 1 hour and 45 minutes, including a 15-minute intermission.

What is the seating like?
Tickets are general admission. The Stage at St. Andrew’s has unassigned seating, with chairs on the main floor and pews in the balcony. Seats are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Bravo Premium subscription holders have reserved access to seating within the first five rows. Please note that the balcony is accessible by stairs only. Wheelchair-accessible seating and companion seating are available on the main floor. If you have an accessibility-related seating need, please let us know when you arrive.

Are children welcome?
Yes, children are always welcome. Please keep in mind that this is a full-length concert in a traditional concert setting. Families may wish to choose seats close to a door in case a quick exit is needed during the performance.

What should I know about concert etiquette?
If you are new to classical concerts, you are very welcome. We simply ask that audience members help create a quiet and respectful environment for the artists and those around them. Please silence your phone before the concert begins, avoid talking during the performance, and wait for pauses between pieces to move around when possible.

When should I clap?
It is always fine to clap when a full piece has ended. Some longer works have several movements, with short pauses in between, and audiences usually wait until the entire work is finished before applauding. If you are unsure, it is perfectly okay to wait and follow the rest of the audience.

Can I use my phone during the concert?
Please silence your phone before the concert begins. We ask that phones and bright screens not be used during the performance, as they can be distracting to artists and audience members.

Can I take photos or videos?
Photos are welcome before or after the concert. Unless otherwise announced, photography, audio recording, and video recording are not permitted during the performance.

What accessibility features are available?
The Stage at St. Andrews is wheelchair accessible and includes accessible washrooms with ramp access. Companion seating is available if required. If you have a specific accessibility question before attending, please contact us and we’ll be happy to help.

Is the venue scent-sensitive?
To help make the concert comfortable for everyone, we ask guests to avoid wearing strong scents or fragrances.

Is there parking or public transit nearby?
The Stage at St. Andrews is located on the corner of Robie Street and Coburg Road. There is no parkade at the venue, but street parking is available in the surrounding area. The venue is also located near major South End Halifax Transit routes.

What happens if there is a storm?
If a storm may affect a performance, ticket holders are encouraged to call the Cecilia Concerts office at 902-423-0143 for a recorded concert update. Updates will also be posted on the Cecilia Concerts website and social media channels.

What happens if a concert is changed, postponed, or cancelled?
Concert schedule changes are very rare, but storms or other unexpected circumstances may occasionally require us to make adjustments. If a concert is changed, postponed, or cancelled, ticket holders will be contacted as soon as possible with available options. Depending on the circumstances, you may choose to attend the rescheduled concert, receive a credit toward a future Cecilia Concerts performance, request a refund, or convert the value of your ticket into a charitable donation tax receipt.