When Berthe Meets Pauline – A Bougival Salon
Presentation
From Berthe’s brushstrokes to Pauline’s scores, a musical dialogue between painting and Romanticism. Sundays in Bougival regain their former brilliance.
One Sunday per month, from November to April, the salons of Villa Viardot come back to life with the music that once animated 19th-century soirées.
In Bougival, the salons of Berthe Morisot and Pauline Viardot once echoed with melodies by the great composers of the Romantic era. The Association des Amis de Georges Bizet pays tribute to this artistic effervescence through a series of exceptional concerts, in homage to the repertoire cherished by both artists: Rossini, Chabrier, Chausson, Debussy, Saint-Saëns, and Gounod.
Each performance offers an immersion into the spirit of the salons of the Third Republic — spaces of creation, freedom and inspiration, where painters, writers and musicians gathered around the great female figures of their time, including Berthe Morisot and Pauline Viardot. The 2025–2026 edition will highlight the violin of Julie Manet, operatic paraphrases, French melodies, and rare trios performed on period instruments, including the magnificent 1898 Érard piano.
In Bougival, the salons of Berthe Morisot and Pauline Viardot once echoed with melodies by the great composers of the Romantic era. The Association des Amis de Georges Bizet pays tribute to this artistic effervescence through a series of exceptional concerts, in homage to the repertoire cherished by both artists: Rossini, Chabrier, Chausson, Debussy, Saint-Saëns, and Gounod.
Each performance offers an immersion into the spirit of the salons of the Third Republic — spaces of creation, freedom and inspiration, where painters, writers and musicians gathered around the great female figures of their time, including Berthe Morisot and Pauline Viardot. The 2025–2026 edition will highlight the violin of Julie Manet, operatic paraphrases, French melodies, and rare trios performed on period instruments, including the magnificent 1898 Érard piano.
Programme
- Sunday, November 9, 2025: Chabrier, Déodat de Séverac, Debussy – Delphine Bardin, Érard piano (1898)
- Sunday, December 7, 2025: The Poem of Love and the Sea by Ernest Chausson – Jean Miannay, tenor; Ayaka Niwano, piano
- Sunday, January 11, 2026: Tribute to the violin of Julie Manet and Paul Viardot – Naaman Sluchin, violin; Eloy Orzaiz, Érard piano (1898)
- Sunday, February 8, 2026: Opera paraphrases around Rossini – Gauthier Broutin, Romantic cello; Hiewon Ha, Érard piano (1898)
- Saturday and Sunday, March 21–22, 2026: French melodies – Yann Toussaint, baritone; Anne Le Bozec, piano (masterclass on Saturday, March 21)
- Sunday, April 12, 2026: Trios for clarinet, bassoon and piano by Saint-Saëns, Glinka, Augusta Holmès, Gounod… – Roberta Christini, clarinet; Aline Riffaut, bassoon; Benjamin d’Anfray, Érard piano (1898)
Additional Information
- Duration: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Prices:
- Full price: €25.00
- Reduced price: €15.00
Ages 0–25, job seekers, holders of a disability or mobility inclusion card + 1 companion (proof required on site)
Access
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Where to go?
Villa Viardot – 14 rue Yvan Tourgueneff – 78380 Bougival
To avoid disturbing the performers, please arrive at least 30 minutes before the performance starts. -
How to get there?
- Access via 14 rue Yvan Tourgueneff and the Jonchère forest park
- By public transport:
- From Rueil-Malmaison (RER A): bus 6227 (La Jonchère stop)
- From Saint-Germain-en-Laye: bus 259 (La Chaussée – Musée Tourgueniev stop)
- From Paris Saint-Lazare: Transilien line L towards Saint-Nom-la-Bretèche (Bougival stop), then bus D (La Poste stop)
- From Versailles: Express bus 1 (Ancienne Mairie stop), then bus 259 (La Chaussée – Musée Tourgueniev stop)
- By car:
- DoubleTree Hotel parking
- Bouzemont parking (2-hour limit)
- Croix aux Vents parking (free)
- Vieljeux parking, on the Île de la Chaussée (free)
- Heritage walks by bike, on foot, or by boat from the Maison Fournaise in Chatou or the Château de Bois-Préau in Rueil-Malmaison
- Localisation :
- Bougival