Guy Touvron

French trumpet virtuoso Guy Touvron forged a highly successful career as a soloist, orchestral player, and teacher. As a soloist, he performed with the leading orchestras in Europe, sometimes appearing with ensembles he was once a member of. As a teacher he has been called one of the leading pedagogues of trumpet technique and interpretation France has ever produced. Indeed, he regularly held master classes at major venues across the globe, including at New York City (Juilliard), Manchester (Royal Northern College of Music), Oslo, Tokyo, and Nice. The busy Touvron also founded his own brass ensemble and was prolific in the recording studio, having made more than 70 recordings spread over a range of labels, including EMI, Naxos, Erato, BMG, Philips, DG, and Decca. While many identified Touvron with Baroque repertory, particularly with the works of <a href="spotify:artist:5aIqB5nVVvmFsvSdExz408">J.S. Bach</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:17OArJzEhRR3OmhtGcnfBq">Albinoni</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:0iGlEKhYsOH3m6K7SHHJ2z">Torelli</a>, he was quite active promoting contemporary music: nearly 30 compositions were written for him, including works by <a href="spotify:artist:44WCcB0fawefVAt1iR9O7v">Karol Beffa</a>, Anthony Girard, <a href="spotify:artist:7bit11q26BMBu3Ke6k7VVI">Graciane Finzi</a>, and Alain Margoni. Moreover, he premiered major trumpet concertos by Ivan Jevtic, <a href="spotify:artist:6q37Qqebsb9yd0HD1SieGB">Charles Chaynes</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:1VIbVO1ahhBhe1l8dEe245">Jacques Loussier</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:75CNe7AhtpW7cpOxypCnj6">François Rauber</a>, and Jérôme Naulais.

Guy Touvron was born in Vichy, France, on February 15, 1950. He began playing cornet at 10 and by his mid-teens was accomplished on both the cornet and trumpet. At 16 he enrolled at the Paris Conservatory of Music, where he studied under iconic trumpet virtuoso <a href="spotify:artist:12LdOpXPkvTuU6nauFBh41">Maurice André</a>.

Touvron won first prizes at the Conservatory in cornet playing (1968) and trumpet playing (1969). He was principal trumpet for the Orchestre National de Lyons from 1969-1971 and the French Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, from 1971-1974. Meanwhile, he entered competitions with almost unparalleled results: he captured first prizes at Munich (1972), Prague (1975), and Geneva (1976). In the midst of this success, he founded the Guy Touvron Brass Ensemble (1973) and joined the faculty at the Lyons Conservatory in 1974.

From the mid-'70s Touvron was active as a soloist and chamber player, particularly with his ensemble. In 1990 he left the Lyons Conservatory to take a teaching post at the Conservatoire National de Région in Paris. In the 1990s Touvron appeared on many successful recordings with fellow soloists, including the 1995 <a href="spotify:artist:6s1pCNXcbdtQJlsnM1hRIA">Shostakovich</a> Concerto for piano, trumpet, and strings, with <a href="spotify:artist:66MvLAvLznk5UOvASVGjk4">Martha Argerich</a> (DG). In 2003 Touvron published a biography of <a href="spotify:artist:12LdOpXPkvTuU6nauFBh41">Maurice André</a> entitled Maurice André -- A Trumpet for Fame. Guy Touvron died on March 9, 2024 at the age of 74.