May 14th, 2012 | 
Author: 
Saorge Orchid by Pierre Commenville courtesy of Parc National du Mercantour
There is no better way to discover the splendors of the Cote d’Azur (indeed of all France) than in the annual Fete de la Nature which aims to get people away from their screens and into their natural environment. Local naturalist associations and the system of national and regional parks are mobilized to provide expert guidance on all facets of the environment with particular emphasis on local flora and fauna. All events are free but with obligatory advance registration.
In the Roya Valley near Nice, the events were spearheaded by the Parc National du Mercantour which also organized a dozen different outings and programs throughout the region covered by the Mercantour National Park. The two that I attended this past weekend were fascinating and well-executed.
Saturday began in the perched village of Saorge where two nature walks were proposed: one on medicinal plants and the other on local bird life. Local naturalist and mountain guide Rene Bouyal led the plant excursion. I followed Mercantour park ranger and naturalist, Jean-Marie Cevasco, to discover the local bird life. Although the idea was to listen to and distinguish various bird cries, in practice, there was a relaxed overlap. The terrain around Saorge is known for its incredible variety of orchids which happened to be in full bloom. On the way to “bird stations”, I was delighted to get the lowdown on orchids and various other flowers and plants. Not that the birds were neglected! In addition to directing our careful listening to the local birds, Mr. Cevasco had brought along recordings of various bird calls which helped tune my ears. By the end of the day I was pretty sure I could distinguish between a warbler and a wren but I wasn’t sure.
Fortunately, I had an opportunity to review on Sunday when another bird walk launched from Col de Brouis outside Breil-sur-Roya. This time it was park ranger, naturalist and bird expert Laurent Zimmermann who led the way. Our group was small but passionate and we were rewarded by rather noisy birds that seemed to turn up the audio just for us! Mr. Zimmermann had brought along a bird guide and carefully pointed out pictures of the birds we were listening to. He had an extraordinary depth of knowledge about all aspects of bird life; one got the impression there wasn’t a question on the subject he couldn’t answer.
If the idea behind the Fete de la Nature is to sensitize people to their environment, it certainly worked for me. Although I’ve been hiking in the Roya Valley for nearly ten years, I’d never much gotten beyond the spectacular mountain vistas and tasty river trout. Sorting out the innumerable varieties of plants, flowers, birds, trees, insects and animals seemed such a vast and confusing project, I kept putting it off for another day. I’m glad that day arrived because I found that watching and listening more attentively creates a more intimate and rewarding experience of the mountains. It’s also focused my attention on preserving the local flora and fauna. For more, see the diverse protection programs of the Mercantour National Park and the Conservatoire d’espaces Naturels Provence-Alpes-Cote d’Azur.
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Trombone Shorty in 2011: Back this year!
Jazz lovers can start planning their summer music schedule now that the Nice Jazz Festival has announced their program for the summer of 2012. As last year, the Jazz Festival will be held in the Jardins Albert Premier in central Nice. The location’s ease of access was a big factor in moving from the Jardins des Cimiez last year. Mayor Christian Estrosi noted in a press conference yesterday that he was pleased with the attendance numbers last year (30,000) and is looking forward to doing even better this year. To encourage more visitors, ticket-holders get a free bus or tram ticket with their entry. If only there was free parking! Oh well.
Last year’s parrain (literally ‘godfather’ but in effect ‘featured guest’) was guitarist John Mclaughlin; this year the marrain is chanteuse and French resident Dee Dee Bridgewater who has been a regular at this and other jazz festivals in France. And, Ms. Bridgewater will open the festival on Sunday 8 July. Here is the full program schedule for the 2012 Nice Jazz Festival:
Sunday 8 July
China Moses & Raphael Lemonnier
Dee Dee Bridgewater
Erykah Badu
New Meeting Quarter
Ibrahim Maalouf
Eddy Louiss/Richard Galliano Quartet
Monday 9 July
Bernhoft
Gregory Porter
Selah Sue
Jean-Mark Jafet
The Bad Plus & Joshua Redman
Herbie Hancock and His Band
Tuesday 10 July
Beth Hart
Tinariwen
Texas
Jimi Brown Experience
Dr John
Trombone Shorter & Orleans Avenue
Wednesday 11 July
Trio Rosenberg
Thomas Dutronc
Emir Kusturica & The No Smoking Orchestra
Sebastien Chaumont & Guest
Ron Carter “Golden Stricker3 Trio
Ahmad Jamal
Thursday 12 July
Harold Lopez Nussa
Amadou & Mariam
Gilberto Gil
(Local Jazz Musicians)
Robert Randolph & The Family Band
Sharon JOnes & The Dap Kings
Tickets are €31 if reserved before 31 May and €35 thereafter. There are reduced rates for kids, seniors, youth etc. See my user’s guide to the Nice Jazz Festival and the official site for tickets
Olivier Campana, Emmanuel Cottalorda of Dog and Bone; courtesy of Claire de Filippis
The music season is winding down on the Cote d’Azur just as the days shorten and sun-glazed tourists check traffic conditions for the long drive home. There’s plenty of music all year of course but you have to actually go inside to hear it. No more dancing or dreaming under the stars. Bummer.
When I talk about summer music on the Riviera, I don’t just mean the famous festivals, the Nice Jazz Festival and the Jazz a Juan at Juan-les-Pins. There’s also the Nuits du Sud at Vence for “world” music and the first-rate classical concert series at the Cloister of the Franciscan monastery in Cimiez. A little further afield, there are the classical concerts at the Festival de Musique in Menton and, up a few price tiers, pop-rock concerts at the Monte Carlo Sporting Summer Festival. These are all paying concerts but here’s where you’ll hear your major stars: Wynton Marsalis at the Nice Jazz Festival; Santana at the Jazz a Juan; the Spanish Harlem Jazz Orchestra at the Nuits du Sud; Brigitte Engerer at the Cloister concerts; Leo Nucci in Menton, Tom Jones in Monte Carlo.
But you don’t need to come down to the coast to listen to music! Far from it. Each year regional and local authorities sponsor free concerts in dozens of villages in the hinterlands. Whether jazzy, lightly classical, French or vaguely exotic, the programming plays it safe. Still, it’s a good way to catch up with rising talents like the soprano Amy Blake singing in a fetching hilltop village like Clans. You can get the schedule at this site.
Other free concerts in the summer include the Fête de la Musique where musicians (mostly dreadful) bang away on every square or streetcorner, the weekly Prom’ Parties in Nice (so-so music) and the “off” concerts (fun) surrounding the jazz festivals of Nice and Juan-les-Pins.
Then there are more obscure concerts that are not so well advertised. The town of Sospel hosted a Baroquiales series which featured a group (Doulce Memoire) that combined Renaissance dance music with Spanish flamenco dancers. OK, it was odd, but definitely listenable and watchable.
My most fun free concert was this past Saturday at Breil-sur-Roya. For a rollicking hour and a half, Dog and Bone shook the trout loose from the lake with covers of greatest hits from the Stones to the Beatles to Motown. I almost didn’t go because I often find that French bands don’t quite “get” rock; the phrasing isn’t right, the rhythms aren’t precise, the words are learned phonetically. This band got it all right, helped no doubt by lead singer Olivier Campana‘s years with London bands. They played with such verve and musicality, I found myself wondering, “who are these guys”? and “why don’t they play longer”? (ever notice how you can’t get amateurs off the stage but the pros always leave you hungry?).
It turns out that they weren’t playing for free (the local Velo Club sponsored them) and they have quite a list of songwriting, recording and performance credits among them. Toulon-born Campana (performing as Olivier Chamber for some reason) has recorded with a number of bands over the years and now showcases his Springsteen-ish voice on his solo album, My Starlight (available on iTunes). Breil-born lead guitarist Emmanuel Cottalorda has written hit tunes for the Quebec singer, Marilou, and has worked with singer/songwriter Pascal Obispo. Joined by drummer Laurent Pomares and bassist Ronald Houweling, this newly-formed group shows real promise. Wonder what original material they may come up with. Anyway, I’m glad that my musical summer ended on such a high note.
Grasse is of course known for its perfume factories that create the scents for some of France’s finest labels. But you don’t have to shell out for a bottle of perfume anymore! The town has launched “scent siestas” that allow you to stretch out on a lounge chair while a mist machine creates a cloud of scent around you. Nice! Over 6000 people have enjoyed the municipal aromatherapy since the program started at the beginning of the summer. And where can you enjoy these perfume clouds? Why, at the foot of the Perfume Museum, of course, as well as the Place 24 août behind the Cathedral and the rue Ossola (no lounge chairs however, as it’s a busy commercial street). The mists will be in place until the end of August but will be brought out again for local festivals.
Scrunched up against neighbouring Cannes, Le Cannet seems swallowed up by its glamorous sister. Now there’s a good reason for visitors to tear themselves away from La Croisette and head uphill to Le Cannet.
The very first museum devoted to the painter, Pierre Bonnard (1867–1947) has now opened its doors in Le Cannet with a smashing new exhibition, titled Bonnard et Le Cannet: Dans La Lumière de La Meéditerranée.
Gathered from such heavyweight museums as the Musee d’Orsay in Paris and the Metropolitan in New York, the exhibition includes such masterpieces as L’Atelier au Mimosa, Baignoir and L’Amandier.
Why Le Cannet? Bonnard fell in love with the colors in the south of France and lived in Le Cannet lived here between 1922 and 1947. High on the hills overlooking Cannes and the sea, he painted some of his most enchanting work.
Naturally, this exhibit concentrates on the works produced during this period as Bonnard captured the glory of the French Riviera in its kaleidoscope of color.
The exhibit will be on display until September 27.