Festival Livres & Musiques de Deauville
The literary festival celebrating the music of words and the words of music
About Livres & Musiques
Livres & Musiques: When Words Meet Music
Since 2004, the Festival Livres & Musiques has brought together every spring in Deauville authors inspired by music and musicians passionate about literature. This unique event explores the intimate links between writing and music through musical readings, literary concerts, performances, and encounters.
A Rich and Unconventional Program
The festival takes place at Les Franciscaines de Deauville, a cultural space housing a museum, media library, and performance halls. Each edition pays tribute to a particular artist or musical universe: Françoise Sagan in 2024, Joseph Kessel in 2025. Novelists, biographers, illustrators, comic strip authors, children's authors, and singer-songwriters mingle for three days.
The festival awards the Prix Livres & Musiques and the Prix des Ados (Teen Choice Award) each year, with the latter involving over 3,000 middle schoolers in the selection. The vast majority of events are free and open to all.
A Festival Hosted by Les Franciscaines
The festival is organized by Les Franciscaines de Deauville, a multidisciplinary cultural center inaugurated in 2021 in a rehabilitated former convent, which has become the beating heart of Deauville's cultural life.
Livres & Musiques — edition 2026
The 23rd edition of the Livres & Musiques Festival took place from Thursday, April 23 to Sunday, April 26, 2026, at Les Franciscaines in Deauville, under the banner of creativity and artistic dialogue. Four days of musical readings, literary concerts, meetings, and book signings, with a tribute to Italian literature at the opening and about thirty invited authors, including Agnès Desarthe — winner of the Deauville Livres & Musiques City Prize 2026 for L'oreille absolue (L'Olivier).
23rd Edition — April 23 to 26, 2026
For its 23rd edition, the Livres & Musiques Festival brought together about thirty authors and musicians at Les Franciscaines around the dialogue between words and music. The jury was chaired by Jérôme Garcin, and almost all events were free upon reservation.
Tribute to Italian Literature at the Opening
The edition opened on Thursday, April 23 at 8 PM at La Chapelle with « Goliarda Sapienza – The Mirrors of Time », a musical reading based on the work and correspondence of the Italian author, performed by Maissiat, Françoise Gillard (Comédie-Française), Carole Martinez, and Johanna Nizard.
Livres & Musiques Prize 2026: Agnès Desarthe
The Deauville Livres & Musiques City Prize 2026 was awarded on Saturday, April 25 at 6 PM at La Chapelle. Agnès Desarthe received it for her novel L'oreille absolue (Éditions de l'Olivier), with a musical tribute conceived by Anne-Marie Philipe and Léonor de Récondo. The other finalists were Charles Dupêchez, Marcus Malte, Renaud Meyer, Patrick Roegiers, Alissa Wenz, and Hyam Zaytoun.
Teenagers' Prize: Nadia Nakhlé
The Teenagers' Prize 2026 was awarded to Nadia Nakhlé for her graphic novel Les Notes Rouges (Delcourt), chosen by nearly 6,000 middle and high school students.
Weekend Highlights
The festival notably welcomed Jérôme Garcin with « La plume sous le masque » (The Pen Under the Mask) (Friday, April 24, with Anne-Marie Philipe and Clément Garcin on guitar), a meeting about David Bowie's literary influences hosted by Jérôme Soligny, a discussion with Thomas Fersen, « La Grande Dédicace » (The Great Book Signing) bringing together about thirty authors at Le Cloître, a tribute concert to songs inspired by Patrick Modiano by Maissiat, and a Sunday dedicated to Rébétiko and the 50th anniversary of Raymond Queneau's passing.
Programme Livres & Musiques 2026
Thursday, April 23, 2026 — Opening
- 8 PM — « Goliarda Sapienza – The Mirrors of Time » · Musical reading based on the work and correspondence of the Italian author · with Maissiat, Françoise Gillard (Comédie-Française), Carole Martinez, and Johanna Nizard · La Chapelle
Friday, April 24, 2026
- 8:15 PM — « La plume sous le masque » (The Pen Under the Mask) · Intimate show based on Jérôme Garcin's work and his musical influences · with Jérôme Garcin, Anne-Marie Philipe, and Clément Garcin (guitar) · La Chapelle
Saturday, April 25, 2026
- Morning — Live radio broadcast from Les Franciscaines
- 11 AM — Meeting about David Bowie's literary influences · presented by Jérôme Soligny
- 2:30 PM — Meeting with Thomas Fersen, who discusses his foundational readings
- 3:30 PM – 5:30 PM — La Grande Dédicace (The Great Book Signing) · over 30 authors present · Le Cloître
- 6 PM — Award ceremony for the Deauville Livres & Musiques City Prize 2026 · La Chapelle
- 7:45 PM — Concert: songs inspired by Patrick Modiano's work · performed by Maissiat
Sunday, April 26, 2026 — Closing
- 2:30 PM — Meeting with David Prudhomme about his Rébétiko albums · accompanied by the Aman Dhio quartet
- 4 PM — Tribute concert for the 50th anniversary of Raymond Queneau's passing · with Léopoldine HH, Jean-Marie Hummel, and Liselotte Hamm
Most events were free, with prior reservation.
Highlights Livres & Musiques 2026
- 23rd edition dedicated to creativity and artistic dialogue
- Tribute to Italian literature at the opening (Goliarda Sapienza)
- Jérôme Garcin, jury president and guest of honor (« La plume sous le masque »)
- Livres & Musiques Prize 2026 awarded to Agnès Desarthe for L'oreille absolue
- Teenagers' Prize 2026 awarded to Nadia Nakhlé for Les Notes Rouges (nearly 6,000 young voters)
- Over 30 authors gathered for La Grande Dédicace (The Great Book Signing)
- Almost all events free upon reservation
Prices Livres & Musiques 2026
Practical information — Livres & Musiques
Practical Information
Location
Les Franciscaines, 145 bis Avenue de la République, 14800 Deauville
Access
- By train: Trouville-Deauville station (Paris Saint-Lazare, approx. 2h)
- By car: A13 then A132 towards Deauville
Prices
- The majority of events are free
- Some concerts and shows require booking
Ticketing
Booking at Les Franciscaines or on festivallitterairedeauville.fr
Contact
- Official website: festivallitterairedeauville.fr
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Where does it take place — Livres & Musiques
Les Franciscaines de Deauville
145 bis Avenue de la République, 14800 Deauville