“Ah! How I sometimes wish I were fifteen again […] and had my whole life to myself! I would give my entire being to music, and it is through that language, the most perfect of all, that I would wish to express my feelings and emotions. “

Letter from George Sand to Pauline Viardot, 5 March 1849

A writer with a deep passion for music and a close friend of Chopin, Liszt and Pauline Viardot, George Sand maintained a fruitful artistic dialogue with the leading musicians of her time. She spent much of her life in Nohant and was a fierce advocate of the traditional culture of the Berry region, celebrating its richness and helping to preserve its heritage.

She devoted her life to fighting for freedom, social justice and the emancipation of women. Her work reflects a remarkably modern outlook - profoundly attentive to the human condition, but also to nature and the living world. From heritage to creation, from classical music to popular traditions, her legacy continues to resonate today with the values upheld by the Paris Mozart Orchestra.

George Sand will be with us throughout the 2026–27 season as part of the wide-ranging commemorations marking the 150th anniversary of her death.

In collaboration with visual artist FLORE and actress Suliane Brahim, a ne

w PMO musical and literary programme devoted to her relationship with nature and music will be presented in November at the Cité de la Musique in Paris and the Bourges Maison de la Culture. She is also at the heart of our next educational and socially engaged initiatives with L’Affaire Fanchette - the true story of a young girl abandoned in the forest of Aubusson at the age of 14. Sand passionately and fiercely campaigned on the girl’s behalf.

The melologue L’Affaire Fanchette will be taken to schools in the Île-de-France region, in Bourges and in the Cher districts, as well as to regional leisure centres and the Bourges prison. And for the first time, traditional bagpipe and hurdy-gurdy will join the PMO musicians, bringing to life - with singing and dancing! - the traditional music of Berry, once so dear to George Sand and now lovingly collected and orchestrated for us by Philippe Macé.

In June 2027, partnered by the addiction department of the Bourges George Sand Psychiatric Hospital, we embark on an Arts Trek in the footsteps of the young Fanchette, near Nohant and La Châtre, bringing together patients, healthcare staff, musicians and administrative teams.

Other season highlights: following another hugely successful edition of the La Maestra Competition last February, we are delighted to welcome the 2026 laureates back to the Philharmonie de Paris in September for a masterclass under my direction.

And young Chinese conductor Jiajing Lai (2nd Prize winner of La Maestra 2026) will be in residence with the PMO for ten days in November, sharing concerts with me and taking part in the life of the orchestra in both Paris and Bourges.

Next spring, in partnership with the Conservatoire de Bourges, the PMO will take part in the rediscovery of Louis Lacombe, a 19th-century composer from the city and a close associate of Robert Schumann. And we celebrate the bicentenary of Beethoven’s death as part of the Invalides Musical Season in Paris, as well as through chamber music concerts with our wonderful soloists in Bourges.

Claire Gibault