Concert for All Ages

Mère Royaume
Commissioned by the Orchestre des Nations

During that famous night in 1602, it’s often unclear what belongs to legend and what to reality. We know it took place on December 12th, that Mother Royaume became a symbol of the city of Geneva, that the attackers came from Savoy, and that Jeanne Piaget had barricaded herself by moving her massive wardrobe. What is less known is that, on the contrary, Piaget had opened a passage allowing for a surprise counterattack, that the attackers were mercenaries from Piedmont and Spain, that Catherine Royaume was from Lyon, and that everything actually took place on December 22nd.
This is an opportunity to bring these centuries-old personalities back to life through music, not forgetting Mercier, Theodore Beza, the tin pot that became a chocolate pot, and the anonymous inhabitants who improvised a fight for their freedom, in their pajamas.