Half a man's life

For 2010-2011 Bender (above) has organised a mouthwatering season. [copyright: Philippe Laville]

Just in case there wasn't enough to do with Cannes-PACA, Bender has always kept himself busy by simultaneously working with other orchestras. The 2009-2010 season was more difficult than usual however and, having stepped down as Director of the Philharmonic Orchestra of Nice after one year in the role, the conductor is without a second job for the moment.

In retrospect, Bender admits that he regrets ending his collaboration with the Symphonic Orchestra of the Balearic Islands to work with Nice, whose musicians were, it seems, not wholly enthusiastic about the merger with Cannes. He believes that there is now a chance that he will work once again with the Spanish orchestra, whose home is in Majorca, possibly  even next year. Although there is the matter of his age to consider these days, he adds.

Not that his passion for classical music has diminished over the years and, for the current season he will be playing, as always, dozens of concerts all over the region and the world. It's normal for his orchestra to pull off 100 performances per season; many of these are not seen by your average classical music aficionado but by children in local schools, the elderly in residential homes and by those living in the area's poorest neighbourhoods.

Bender’s impressive work has paid off and Cannes-PACA are now considered to be among the best orchestras in Europe. "In regards to our repertoire we are top," he states. "Because we are small,” he adds, “we have to play precisely because you are more likely to hear our mistakes than with an orchestra of 140." Although some musicians use Cannes-PACA as a launching pad, many members stay with Bender for the majority of their careers.

He admits he doesn't know how much longer he will stay with the orchestra himself but claims he is not lacking the motivation or musicians to continue. "On va voir," he concludes. We will see.      

AS/HM