The Departmental Voices rocked the royal abbey of La Celle, and 20 other Var villages will host this musical event.

The event has become a must-see. As the summer season begins, the departmental council invites Var residents and tourists to come and enjoy the talent of local musicians in the heart of the department's villages. And as has become a custom, the grand opening of this tour of the Departmental Voices took place on Friday in one of the Var's architectural gems: the Royal Abbey of La Celle.

And this has been going on for ten seasons now. So much so that the public has become accustomed to honoring this opening in large numbers, in the cool of the cloister and appreciating in passing, before the concert, the superb exhibition of "Georges Rousse, Utopia," open since June 7 and which will continue until November 2.

To launch these tenth Voix Départementales, Véronique Lenoir, vice-president and head of the culture committee, welcomed the audience with a brief introduction to the 21 concerts to follow and, for this first date, by launching the Angélique Nicolas Quintet onto the stage. Known for her elegant vocal timbre, the singer was accompanied by a rhythm section combining swing, energy, and finesse. Virtuoso saxophonist Olivier Chaussade completed this talented quintet.

The evening's repertoire ranged from great American jazz standards to timeless classics of French chanson, offering a rich and varied musical experience. The audience was particularly appreciative and asked for more from the artists, who were quick to round off the first evening in style.

The municipalities concerned

Now, Les Voix Départementales are hitting the road to visit twenty other villages until August 29th, with musical styles ranging from swing, blues, rock and jazz, but also Latin-Cuban, Brazilian and international variety music.

After the abbey of La Celle, this 2025 edition will stop in the towns of Entrecasteaux, La Croix-Valmer, Le Muy, Roquebrune-sur-Argens, La Motte, Montferrat, Seillons-Source-d'Argens, Taradeau, Tourves, Bras, Gonfaron, Belgentier, Mazaugues, Montmeyan, Seillans, Bargemon, Pignans, Saint-Zacharie, Le Beausset and Barjols. Thus allowing the public to discover musical groups from the Var through a high-quality program, focused on world music, accessible free of charge to all audiences.

It responds to the Department's desire to combine access to culture everywhere, for everyone, with the discovery of local groups or artists of national stature. All the groups are obviously Var groups and since the music is good, it's worth noting!

More information on the Voix Départementales tour this year can be found in our summer magazine, on page 46. The full program can be found on the website www.var.fr.