Pierre-Yves Moign

(Born in Brest (Finistère), September 5, 1927)

Son and grandson of senior naval officers, Pierre-Yves Moign chose music. He studied piano and entered the National Superior Conservatory of Music of Paris where he obtained, in 1952, a 1st prize in counterpoint. His first work given in public was the music for the first show of the mime Marcel Marceau, in 1948.

Like many composers of his generation, he is interested in ethnic music and will study more particularly the traditional music of Brittany, his country of origin, and those of the Celtic countries. Inspired by Breton popular music, he wrote, in 1953, the music of a musical comedy on dialogues of Glenmor. Thereafter, he created traditional music ensembles with which, without concession to the picturesque, he will bring out the specificities of Breton music, its expressive value and its various facets.

In 1956, he founded Son ha Koroll, with whom he made three records for Barclay and played at the Olympia in Paris. In 1961, he founded Les Kabalerien, with whom he also made records, notably at the Chant du Monde, and until 1972, he made numerous galas, tours, radio and television broadcasts in France, Germany, Switzerland, Belgium and Great Britain.

In 1964, he composed the music of the Ballets Populaires Bretons de Rennes, then that of the Ballets Populaires de Quimper, showing that Breton music had nothing to envy to the popular music of other countries, especially that of Eastern Europe. He will innovate in another field by writing, during this period, for various vocal and instrumental ensembles, in particular groups of traditional instruments, thus playing a role of precursor in the “revival” of the folk music of the 70s, in Brittany.

However, as early as 1960, he became interested in the problems of musical education, studying especially the active methods – more particularly the Orff and Kodaly methods – with a view to their application to traditional Breton music.

Au début des années 70, avec l’association War Hentou Breizh (sur les chemins de Bretagne) dont il est le président fondateur, il met en pratique, avec plusieurs collaborateurs, un enseignement de la musique bretonne pour les enfants. With this same association, he created and directed a choir of nearly 100 participants, for which he wrote harmonizations whose quality renewed the repertoire of traditional music of the choirs of Brittany.

Finally, he is often asked to give lectures on traditional music. In 1972, P.Y. Moign decided to focus his activities essentially on musical composition, which he had never totally abandoned. Already in 1968, one of his works, for symphony orchestra, was premiered in Rennes, thus attesting to his sense of orchestration. Thus, after having appropriated the past and notably its musical tradition, P.Y. Moign has shown his interest in all genres and forms of music as well as, with his latest works, a refusal of all dogmatism; his writing being at the confluence of several influences characteristic of our time.

From 1978 to 1999, P.Y. Moign directs a cultural center in Brest: the Centre Breton d’Art Populaire, created on his initiative and which aims to develop the artistic heritage of Brittany in all its forms. Today, this center has a school of traditional arts with over 300 students. Among the numerous shows, concerts, conferences and animations organized by P.Y. Moign, we must note the meetings “Traditional Arts and Contemporary Society” in which internationally recognized specialists participated, and an Interceltic Gathering of Choirs.