Bordeaux Opera: We saw “Azur & Asmar” accompanied with finesse and generosity

What does this orchestra bring to a score to which the film imposes its tempo? Conductor Hannah von Wiehler answers by playing with other parameters: sound volumes—not stealing the spotlight from the images, reserving the forte for intense moments, such as the discovery of a magic key—or nuances of interpretation—making the strings vibrate to evoke a legend.

Conducting without a baton, swaying to the score's North African rhythms, she brings the generosity and finesse needed to merge its European and Eastern influences. And it is with an encore of the baroque dance enhanced with Arabic percussion that closes the film that she ends, to thunderous applause.