A Pantoum is a poetic form of Malaysian origin that arrived in France in the 19thcentury with the orientalist artistic movement, in which two ideas, one picturesque anddescriptive, the other intimate and sentimental, are constantly intertwined.
This literary and artistic movement greatly influenced French music at the turn of the 20th century (so much so that the second movement of Ravel's trio, entitled 'Pantoum', is directly inspired by its formal and thematic rules). In 2016, Hugo Meder (violin), Bo-Geun Park (cello) and Virgile Roche (piano) founded the Trio Pantoum while still in their first year at the Paris Conservatoire, and it has since established itself in Europe and beyond as one of today’s best young chamber music ensembles.
Rapidly developing an exceptional symbiosis both on and off stage, these brilliant young musicians pursued their shared passion for chamber music, seeking the ideal balance between cohesion and individual expression. They embarked on a thorough study of the chamber music repertoire for strings and piano at the Paris Conservatoire, in the prestigious masterclasses of the Trio Wanderer, Claire Désert and François Salque. Since 2022 Hugo, Bo-Geun and Virgile are Artists in Residence at the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel in Waterloo (Belgium) under the direction of Miguel Da Silva, Corina Belcea and Jean-Claude Vanden Eynden.
Hugo, Bo-Geun and Virgile have also received advice from many internationally renowned musicians such as Günter Pichler, Irvine Arditti, Alasdair Tait, Mathieu Herzog, Alexis Galpérine, Emmanuel Strosser, Jonas Vitaud, and Xavier Gagnepain (among others), and have met prominent members of the Ébène, Modigliani and Diotima Quartets during masterclasses at the Paris Conservatoire and at the Music Chapel. Under the auspices of the ECMA (European Chamber Music Academy) programme, they have also worked with Hatto Beyerle (Alban Berg String Quartet), Johannes Meissl (Artis Quartet), Antonio Meneses (Beaux-Arts Trio), Patrick Jüdt, Avedis Kouyoumdjian, Louise Hopkins, and members of the Talich, Meta4 and Škampa Quartets... In 2021, the trio became an Ensemble of the ECMA, which led to further training opportunities with the greatest European teachers, and to performance opportunities in some of the continent's most prestigious venues such as MIRY Conzertsaal in Gent.
The trio was awarded first prize and two special prizes at the ‘Trio di Trieste’ International Chamber Music Competition 2022, first prize at the Joseph Haydn International Chamber Music Competition 2023, first prize and two special prizes at the Lyon International Chamber Music Competition 2023, second prize at the Osaka International Chamber Music Competition 2023, second prize at the Melbourne International Chamber Music Competition, third prize (first prize not awarded) at the Joseph Joachim International Chamber Music Competition 2022 in Weimar, first prize at the FNAPEC European Chamber Music Competition, and the ‘Prix d’Honneur’ at the Léopold Bellan International Competition in 2021, second prize at the International Chamber Music Competition of Illzach in 2019… In 2023, the Trio Pantoum is also a laureate of the Banque Populaire Foundation.
The trio has performed at the Philharmonie de Paris (Grand Salle Pierre Boulez) and in many Parisian and French concert halls, but also at the Festival International de Piano de la Roque d'Anthéron, at the Festival des Arcs, at the Festival de la Chaise-Dieu, in Italy (Trieste, Bologna, Treviso, Gorizia, Spoleto…), in Belgium (Flagey in Brussels, Gent, Waterloo, Hoeilaart…), in Japan at Sumitomolife Izumi Hall in Osaka, in Australia at Hawthorn Arts Center in Melbourne, in Norway as part of the Trondheim International Chamber Music Festival, in England, in Switzerland, in Germany, in Austria... The Trio was broadcasted live on ABC Classic, the Violin Channel, Rai 3, Ö1, France Musique, SBS… and appears in medias like the Strad, ClassikON, Limelight, Archi Magazine, Télérama… The trio performed alongside artists such as Pierre Fouchenneret (violin), Miguel Da Silva and Paul Zientara (viola), Ann Lepage (clarinet), Aleksandra Dzenisenia (cimbalom), the Nerida Quartet…
The Trio Pantoum are Artists in Residence at the ProQuartet – European Chamber Music Centre for the 2021-2022 season.
Hugo Meder and Bo-Geun Park both play French instruments, a ‘Gand et Bernardel’ violin from 1884 and the Bernardel ‘Ex-Navarra’ cello from 1861, kindly lent by the Zilber Vatelot Rampal Foundation. The trio is generously supported by the Safran Foundation for Music, the Peters Foundation, the Singer-Polignac Foundation and the Société Générale’s Musical Patronage.
In 2023, the Trio Pantoum recorded its first CD for the French label Mirare, dedicated to Haydn, Beethoven and Henze. The trio will also perform many times in France, Italy, Belgium, Austria, Switzerland, Germany… and take part in Classeek’s « Ambassador Programme » for career development.
