On the hot evening of June 21st, the streets of Paris were filled with music. Each year on this day, the Fête de la Musique, France’s annual celebration of music in all its forms, transforms this city, and many others across France, into a concert hall with performances of every genre, uniting music lovers of every age and background in a shared homage to the joy of listening.
But if you missed the Fête this year, or weren’t in Paris, don’t worry. The extraordinary range of French musical life doesn’t stop after the Fête, and experiencing it doesn’t always require being in Paris, or even in France. From the Basque Country to Normandy, from Brittany to the Caribbean, from the organ lofts of Paris’s great churches to the open-air piano stages of Provence, French musical creation is alive everywhere, all year long. And for those who truly love French music, you can not only listen in but also get involved.
Friends of Fondation de France is proud to support many remarkable and varied French musical projects, from innovative new ensembles to some of the most storied cultural institutions. Read on to learn more about our musical partners you can follow, listen to, and support this summer and long after.
Festivals
Tender Nights – Arènes Lyriques de Montmartre Summer Season | Paris, Montmartre
Since 2019, Tender Nights has transformed the gardens of the Arènes de Montmartre into an open-air twilight stage, presenting 16 concerts each summer. Since 2025, the season also includes Les Arènes Lyriques des Enfants, a concert series for children in hospitals and recreational centers across Île-de-France. U.S. donors can support both the main concert series and the children’s program. Learn more.
Festival International de Piano de La Roque d’Anthéron July 16 – August 16 | Parc du Château de Florans, Provence
One of the world’s great piano festivals, La Roque d’Anthéron has gathered the finest pianists of every generation under the ancient trees of a Provençal château park for over four decades, blending established masters with the most exciting emerging prize-winners. U.S. donors can support the festival’s programming and emerging talent initiatives. Learn more.
Les Nuits du Château de la Moutte August 1-11 | Château de la Moutte, Saint-Tropez, Provence
For over 50 years, the Nuits du Château de la Moutte have brought music and romance to Saint-Tropez under the stars. Set in the enchanting estate of Émile Ollivier – brother-in-law of Wagner and son-in-law of Liszt – the festival presents classical, baroque, jazz, and world music concerts by moonlight, across the château courtyard, a century-old palm grove, and the legendary Canebiers beach. This year, cellist Gautier Capuçon takes the helm as artistic director, with performances running August 1–11. U.S. donors can support the Festival and its cultural programming. Learn more.
Musiciens Ensemble — La Grange aux Pianos July 12 – September 13 | Chassignolles, Berry
Musiciens Ensemble organizes festivals of lute, guitar, and piano across France, including its flagship summer season at La Grange aux Pianos, the home studio of pianist Cyril Huvé, transformed each summer into an intimate stage for classical music. The 2026 season, “Éclosions romantiques,” runs July 12 to September 13. U.S. donors can support the festival’s concert programming. Learn more.
Académie Internationale de Musique Maurice Ravel – Festival Ravel Academy: August 17 – 30 | Festival: August 18 – September 5 | Saint-Jean-de-Luz, Basque Country
Now in its 56th year, the Académie Internationale de Musique Maurice Ravel gathers young musicians from around the world each August for intensive public masterclasses and concerts in the Basque Country birthplace of Maurice Ravel, as part of the Festival Ravel, this year themed “Ravel et l’Espagne.” U.S. donors can support the Academy’s masterclasses, young musician grants, and concert programming. Learn more.
Piano en Valois October–November | Angoulême, Charente
One of Europe’s largest piano festivals, Piano en Valois has since 1994 brought the greatest names in classical and jazz piano to Angoulême alongside the young talents who will define the next generation, with alumni including Khatia Buniatishvili, Brad Mehldau, and Maria João Pires. U.S. donors can support the festival’s concert programming and education outreach. Learn more.
Festival de Musique de Saint-Barthélemy Next edition: January 2027 | Saint-Barthélemy, French West Indies
Founded in 1984, the Festival de Musique de Saint-Barthélemy has grown into a ten-day celebration drawing over 40 renowned artists from orchestras around the world, performing chamber music, opera, jazz, and dance across the island’s intimate churches each January. U.S. donors can support the festival’s concerts and education programming. Learn more.
Orchestras & Ensembles
Fondation Correspondances – Ensemble Correspondances Normandy and beyond
Supported by Fondation Correspondances, Ensemble Correspondances, directed by Sébastien Daucé, is one of France’s most inventive early music ensembles, known for programs spanning Baroque and Renaissance polyphony. This summer, the ensemble leads its seventh annual Échappée Musicale Normande: a concert tour by bicycle through the rural communes of Normandy from July 14 to 19, presenting works by Charpentier. U.S. donors can support the ensemble’s concerts in France and abroad and its educational and cultural activities. Learn more.
Orchestre National de Bretagne Rennes, Brittany
One of France’s leading regional orchestras, the Orchestre National de Bretagne pairs a rich symphonic season with a strong commitment to education and access, performing throughout Brittany and continuing its concert activity across the region during the summer months. U.S. donors can support the orchestra’s concerts and artistic programming. Learn more.
Paris Mozart Orchestra Paris
In February 2026, the 4th edition of La Maestra – the International Competition for Women Conductors co-founded by the Paris Mozart Orchestra and the Philharmonie de Paris – crowned Slovenian conductor Mojca Lavrenčič as First Prize winner. Founded by Claire Gibault, the orchestra also leads Orchestre au Bahut, bringing live music into French secondary schools, while continuing to perform concerts throughout the summer. U.S. donors can support the orchestra’s concerts and education programs. Learn more.
Ensemble Cappella Mediterranea France/International
Under the direction of Leonardo García Alarcón, Ensemble Cappella Mediterranea is one of Europe’s foremost early music ensembles, celebrated for revelatory interpretations of Baroque and Renaissance repertoire and a gift for uncovering rarely performed works that illuminate the musical bridges between France, Spain, Italy, and the Americas. U.S. donors can support the ensemble’s concerts and new productions. Learn more.
Ensemble Jupiter France/International
Founded in 2018 by lutenist Thomas Dunford, Ensemble Jupiter brings together young award-winning musicians performing Baroque and classical repertoires across Europe and beyond. The ensemble is equally committed to artistic creation, producing opera and musical comedy projects alongside its concert touring. This summer, the ensemble will share performances on a tour across France and Europe, while U.S. audiences can see a performance at Carnegie Hall, New York, in November 2026. U.S. donors can support Ensemble Jupiter’s international tours, new productions, and emerging artist collaborations. Learn more.
Les Métaboles France/International
Founded in 2010 by conductor Léo Warynski, Les Métaboles is a professional a cappella ensemble devoted to the full spectrum of choral music, with a commitment to commissioning living composers. Their acclaimed discography and their concerts across France and Europe have established them as one of the country’s finest choirs. U.S. audiences can experience Les Métaboles live at New York City Center in January 2027. U.S. donors can support the ensemble’s concerts, commissions, and education programs. Learn more.
Ensemble Atmosphères Paris
A chamber orchestra under the direction of conductor Venezuelan-American Ilyich Rivas, Ensemble Atmosphères champions contemporary and 20th-century repertoires, featuring international artists in performances at Salle Cortot. U.S. donors can support the ensemble’s concerts and new commissions. Learn more.
Opera & Lyric Arts
Fondation pour le Rayonnement de l’Opéra National de Paris Paris
The foundation supporting the Opéra National de Paris — home of the Palais Garnier and the Opéra Bastille — funds the creation of new opera and ballet productions, educational programs for new audiences, and the preservation of the institution’s extraordinary artistic heritage. U.S. donors can contribute to new productions, education initiatives, and heritage conservation. Learn more.
Fondation pour l’Opéra Comique Paris
The Opéra Comique, the original home of Carmen, Pelléas et Mélisande, and Lakmé, is one of the most storied musical institutions in Paris, and leads the Maîtrise Populaire, a unique performing arts school open to 120 young people aged 8 to 25, culminating in a performance of a new piece each year at the beginning of the summer. U.S. donors can support the Maîtrise Populaire and the Opéra Comique’s productions and education programs. Learn more.
Fonds de Dotation de l’Opéra de Lyon Lyon
The Opéra de Lyon is consistently recognized for bold productions and ambitious commissions, with a fonds de dotation that supports its most innovative creative work and education programs across the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. U.S. donors can support productions and education programs. Learn more.
Pocket Lyrique Paris/France
Pocket Lyrique takes opera into schools, hospitals, and community spaces, making the lyric arts accessible to people who might never otherwise encounter it, through intimate productions that preserve the full emotional power of the form. U.S. donors can support productions and outreach. Learn more.
Opera for Peace International
Opera for Peace unites young singers from around the world through its Academy, training them alongside leading professionals and presenting performances across Europe throughout the year, grounded in a conviction that music is a genuine instrument of human connection and dialogue. U.S. donors can support the Academy and its concert programs. Learn more.
Chant de Linos Paris
Founded by tenor Benjamin Alunni, Chant de Linos creates projects at the intersection of rigorous research and musical performance — connecting people, ideas, and cultures through music. Alunni is a 2026 Villa Albertine resident in New York City, conducting field research for a new creation exploring how singing supports resilience among people living with HIV, developed with composer Omer Barash at Columbia University’s Computer Music Center. U.S. donors can support Chant de Linos’s concerts, commissions, and research-creation projects. Learn more.
Sacred Music & Historic Organs
Les Amis du Chœur Grégorien de Paris Paris
The Chœur Grégorien de Paris is one of France’s premier ensembles dedicated to the authentic practice of Gregorian chant, carrying on one of Western music’s oldest vocal traditions through periodic concerts, an active discography available on streaming platforms, and the École du Chœur Grégorien de Paris. U.S. donors can support the ensemble’s concerts and choral school. Learn more.
AROSS – Orgues Aristide Cavaillé-Coll de Saint-Sulpice Paris, 6th arr.
AROSS promotes and preserves the legendary Aristide Cavaillé-Coll organ of Saint-Sulpice — among the most historically significant instruments in the world — through an ongoing concert series featuring leading international organists, with select performances available to stream on YouTube, with a program including English Voices on July 26. U.S. donors can support the concert series and conservation work. Learn more.
Grandes Orgues de Saint-Eustache Paris, 1st arr.
The association supporting the Grand Orgue of Saint-Eustache — one of the largest organs in France, housed in one of Paris’s most magnificent churches — presents organ performances each Sunday throughout the year, livestreamed on the Orgue de Saint-Eustache YouTube channel. U.S. donors can support the organ’s conservation and concert programming. Learn more.
Education & Transmission
Fondation Gautier Capuçon France/International | Year-round
The Fondation Gautier Capuçon supports exceptional young professional musicians at the launch of their international careers, presenting a full and ongoing calendar of concerts featuring its laureates across France, Europe, and beyond throughout the year. U.S. donors can support scholarships for laureates, as well as concert and recording opportunities. Learn more.
Fondation Royaumont Asnières-sur-Oise, Île-de-France
Based at the historic Royaumont Abbey north of Paris, the Fondation Royaumont supports young musical ensembles through multi-year residencies. The Royaumont Season presents 28 concerts and performances from September to June at Royaumont Abbey and partner venues across France and internationally, including new commissions from emerging composers each year. U.S. donors can support Royaumont’s residency program and Season programming through the Friends of Fondation de France website. Learn more.
École Normale de Musique de Paris Alfred Cortot Paris
One of the world’s most distinguished private conservatories, the École Normale de Musique de Paris Alfred Cortot has trained generations of professional musicians since 1919, with a rich concert series at the acoustically beloved Salle Cortot running throughout the year. U.S. donors can support student programs and concerts. Learn more.
Fondation Vareille — A Violin in My School France/Switzerland
The Vareille Foundation combats educational inequality by bringing violin lessons into the core curriculum of French schools serving disadvantaged children aged 4 to 8, treating music as essential as any academic subject, and backed by rigorous research. The program has demonstrated measurable effects on cognitive development, concentration, language acquisition, and motor skills during the critical early years of childhood. U.S. donors can support the A Violin in My School program. Learn more.
Institutions
Cité de la Musique – Philharmonie de Paris Paris, 19th arr.
France’s preeminent concert complex, the Philharmonie de Paris is home to the Orchestre de Paris and welcomes the full spectrum of musical life year-round. In the summer, the Philharmonie offers festivals, temporary exhibitions, its museum of musical instruments, a media library, and the Philharmonie des Enfants, a dedicated interactive space for young visitors to discover music through play. U.S. donors can support programming and education initiatives. Learn more.
Fondation du Cercle de l’Orchestre de Paris Paris
The Orchestre de Paris — one of France’s great symphony orchestras, resident at the Philharmonie de Paris — brings French musical excellence to audiences in Paris and abroad, including this summer at the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence. The Fondation du Cercle supports access-broadening initiatives including concerts for underserved audiences, family programs, school partnerships, and the Academy of Orchestre de Paris. U.S. donors can contribute to these initiatives. Learn more.
Fondation du Théâtre des Champs-Élysées Paris, 8th arr.
Built in 1913 and one of Paris’s most iconic venues, the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées presents an eclectic and high-caliber program of opera, symphony concerts, recitals, ballet, and theater throughout the year, with live streaming available on its dedicated TCE Live channel and YouTube. Its foundation supports artistic creation, accessibility initiatives, and the preservation of the theater’s exceptional heritage. U.S. donors can support new productions, digital access programs, and heritage conservation. Learn more.
Support French music projects from the United States
Not only can you experience this music, you can play an important role in keeping it alive. All of the organizations featured here are supported by Friends of Fondation de France, a U.S. 501(c)(3) nonprofit that makes it possible for U.S. donors to make fully tax-deductible contributions to pre-registered French projects. Visit our directory to learn more about each project and how to support it.
