Maryvonne Le Dizès was a member of the group since 1979 and was the first woman to win the Paganini Competition in 1962
The French group Ensemble intercontemporain has announced the death of its violinist, Maryvonne Le Dizès.
The French violinist studied at the Conservatoire National de Musique in Paris, where she received awards for best in class for violin and chamber music.
Le Dizès was no stranger to breaking down gender barriers. In 1962, she became the first female winner of the Paganini Competition. She was also the first woman and first person from outside the US to enter the Carnegie Hall competition.
Le Dizès lived in the US for two years, where she had followed her husband. She became determined to work on her violin playing again after the birth of her children.
’I threw myself into the complete Bach Sonatas and Partitas, the Sonatas of Beethoven, Brahms, Schumann, Prokofiev,’ Le Dizès said in a 1999 interview. ’I took up the chamber music repertoire again, all the concertos… I got myself back in shape!’
She joined Ensemble intercontemporain in 1979, where she played for more than 20 years. She worked closely with its founder and conductor Pierre Boulez, as well as with Gyorgy Ligeti on his trio for piano, violin and horn, and his Violin Concerto, which she performed with Ensemble intercontemporain.
She commissioned new works with the ensemble, including a string trio by Jean-Baptiste Devillers, a trio for saxophone, trombone and violin by Gilbert Amy, and the solo violin work Ommaggio (a Tiepolo) by Philippe Fénelon.
Le Dizès was described as ‘an accomplished educator’ by Ensemble intercontemporain, teaching at the Boulogne-Billancourt Regional Conservatory since 1977.
’Teaching is as vital to me as playing my instrument. I cannot teach if I do not play, and I cannot play without teaching,’ she said.
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