Without a net: Paris 2024 Music Director takes us back to Olympic opening ceremony's historic night
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00:00Our next guest, I'll introduce him straight away.
00:02He's the man at the center of the amazing opening ceremony.
00:05Before we get Victor Lamann's take on what's going on
00:08and how everything is going, let's give you a little reminder of his work.
00:12Some little sequence here from the opening ceremony.
00:30It was an absolutely fantastic night.
00:49I'm sure you will agree.
00:50And Victor Lamann was the man behind all the music for it, which I find mind blowing.
00:55I can't imagine how you were feeling as all that was starting.
00:58Tell us what was going through your mind on the day of the opening ceremony.
01:01On the day of the ceremony. Yeah, sure.
01:04I was it's it's it was like
01:08also with the rain and everything, you know, I was floating a bit in the air.
01:12I was I didn't know what what to feel, you know,
01:15because there was so much expectations.
01:17It's more than 18 months of very hard work.
01:24A lot of sleepless nights.
01:26It looked fantastic. It sounded fantastic.
01:28And the music was absolutely wonderful.
01:29The whole thing works so well.
01:31Thank you. Was there any one inspiration for you?
01:33Because it's it's it's like it's not just one project.
01:35It's like several projects all at once.
01:37Yes, because pulling together amazingly. Yes. Thank you.
01:40But so I'm the composer and also the musical director,
01:43meaning I compose the whole thing or I did arrangements.
01:48I produced the music for others, but it's always my production.
01:52I went to the studio with all the the artists that you saw on screen.
01:58And so I had to enter into their world very respectfully.
02:03I'm I'm thinking Gojira, for example.
02:05Very metal band or Aya Nakamura, totally different aspect.
02:09Or Gaga or CĂ©line Dion.
02:11It's La Garde RĂ©publicaine.
02:13All the symphonic orchestras are very different style.
02:16And yet I had to be totally.
02:20So it was your idea to put Aya Nakamura and La Garde RĂ©publicaine together,
02:23which was for me, it was absolutely a beautiful image.
02:26It's musically, it's my idea to to to put that together.
02:31But it's also with discussions with Thomas Jolie as an artistic director
02:35who wrote with the author theme,
02:39the you know, the the scenario.
02:42But yeah, that was my idea to to put this music together.
02:46Absolutely fantastic.
02:47CĂ©line Dion was amazing on the Eiffel Tower.
02:50Lady Gaga phenomenal on the banks of the Seine was the one particular moment
02:54for you, which, you know, will will live with you in your heart.
02:57I mean, clearly, it must be difficult to pick something out
02:59of such a huge piece of work.
03:02I'm still processing it.
03:03In fact, I can imagine.
03:04Yes, because also also we we we we rehearse it
03:10in many different secret places in Paris and also a bit elsewhere.
03:15But it never happened.
03:17The entire thing that was the first for me also and for everyone who worked so hard.
03:21So there was a song as we say, you know, without the net.
03:26Without the net. No, no safety net.
03:28It's like a huge, you know, plan sequence.
03:30So so there's no there's no turning back.
03:34So today I would say, yeah, I think Aya and La Garde RĂ©publicaine
03:37That was amazing.
03:39Has a special place in my heart.
03:40It was all amazing. I mean, the whole thing.
03:41I saw like thousands of videos on TikTok and stuff of young, young dudes
03:47like trying to redo the choreography.
03:49And so I think it's it's something really meaningful.
03:51Some people didn't like certain aspects of the whole ensemble.
03:55There were certain things that seemed quite too sexual for some people.
03:58What would you say to that?
03:59I think the idea, obviously, wasn't to shock, to provoke or anything.
04:03The parts that you mentioned was more like
04:06like Fellini would do, like like with Greek God and with the festive moment.
04:12That that wasn't meant to shock or anything.
04:14So I'm obviously sad if people are hurt.
04:16That obviously wasn't the idea.
04:19That was more like a Greek celebration, like a banquet, you know, like.
04:24But you can't please everybody.
04:26There must be some aspect of the games you're enjoying,
04:28looking forward to most now. Some sport.
04:31Yeah, I always watched basketball since.
04:34So, you know, I'm a basketball fan.
04:37Basketball. Yeah.
04:38Victor Lamann, thank you very much for being with us.
04:40Pleasure to meet you.
04:41A music director of the entire opening ceremony, of course, a composer as well.
04:46And sharing with us his thoughts about how it all felt to him on the day.
04:49Remarkable. Great to meet you.
04:50And thank you so much for coming in.
04:51Thank you so much.
04:52Great to see you. Thank you very much indeed.
04:54That concludes this bulletin.
04:56But of course, there's more to come.
04:57So do stay with us here on France 24.