Mélusine Festival

The Mélusine Festival: Great Music in the Land of the Fairy

Nestled in the wine village of Escolives-Sainte-Camille, about fifteen kilometers south of Auxerre, the Mélusine Festival is one of Burgundy's most unique musical events. Founded in 2014 on the initiative of pianist Éric Astoul, at the request of Bertrand Deroubaix, the owner of the estate, this human-scale festival brings together a few dozen music lovers each summer in the historic and romantic setting of the Commanderie du Saulce, for two exceptional days combining concerts, a country buffet, and heritage discovery.

The programming, managed since its inception by Éric Astoul — a student for fifteen years of the Hungarian master Georges Cziffra — revolves around the romantic repertoire and the piano, with a particular predilection for Franz Liszt, Chopin, Brahms, Debussy, Fauré, and Saint-Saëns. Each year, the festival invites renowned pianists and chamber music ensembles, ensuring an artistic quality that rivals the major national stages.

The Commanderie du Saulce: Eight Centuries of History

The festival's setting is an invitation to a journey in itself. The Commanderie du Saulce, a classified historic monument, has its roots in the early 13th century: in 1216, Constable Dreux de Mello gifted his "maison du Saulce" to the Knights Templar, the warrior monks who founded the Order of the Temple. For six centuries, the noblest knights succeeded each other at the head of this commandery, which became one of the most important in the Order of Malta in France.

The history of the place takes a romantic turn in 1755, when Jacques Armand de Rogres de Lusignan de Champignelles, captain of King Louis XV's guards, established his residence there and created his own little Versailles: Trianon, fountains, a labyrinth, and a French garden adorned the estate. Nothing was too beautiful for this descendant of the fairy Mélusine, a mythical figure of the Middle Ages! The body of a mermaid still adorns the decor of the place today, recalling that the fairy has haunted these walls for centuries. It is from this legend that the festival draws its name.

Today, the estate houses guest rooms and reception spaces, while preserving its park, classified as a remarkable garden, which serves as a setting for the summer concerts. Visitors have the opportunity to discover this exceptional heritage during guided tours organized by the owner alongside the concerts.

A Program of Excellence Driven by a Love for Liszt

The Mélusine Festival is distinguished by a program centered on grand romantic piano, with a particular devotion to the work of Franz Liszt. Each edition explores the transcriptions, symphonic poems, and sonatas of the Hungarian titan, placing them in perspective with the works of his contemporaries and successors.

Over the years, the festival has hosted exceptional artists:

• Éric Astoul (piano) — organizer and artist in residence, Liszt specialist
• Tristan Pfaff (piano) — young Franco-American virtuoso, winner of prestigious international competitions
• Romain Hervé (piano) — renowned pianist and educator
• Éléonore Darmon (violin) — leading chamber musician
• Guillaume Martigné (cello) — sensitive and expressive chamber musician
• Maxime Zecchini (piano) — versatile pianist, blending classical repertoire with popular music
• Sandra Landini (piano) — eclectic performer, from Chopin to Rachmaninoff

The format adopted — two to three concerts over a July weekend, interspersed with a country buffet in the commandery's courtyard — creates a friendly and warm atmosphere, far removed from the solemnity of large concert halls. The audience freely interacts with the artists, sharing a glass of Burgundy under the stars.

The Festival and the Wine Region of Auxerrois

Escolives-Sainte-Camille is more than just a postcard setting. This village in the Auxerrois region hides remarkable archaeological treasures: its Gallo-Roman excavations, begun in 1955, have uncovered a 1st-century villa, thermal baths, and exceptional sculptures attesting to a two-thousand-year-old wine culture — friezes adorned with vines confirm that the Auxerrois vineyard was already active in the 2nd century. The festival is naturally integrated into this rich territory, between the Burgundy of wines, the Burgundy of stones, and the Burgundy of sounds.

An Intimate Festival, A Spirit of Transmission

With a few hundred spectators per edition, the Mélusine Festival deliberately cultivates a spirit of proximity and authenticity, which is rare in the French festival landscape. No crowds, no barriers: here, music is shared in a preserved space, where each artist and each listener experiences a unique and irreplaceable moment.

The association Sur les pas de Liszt (In the Footsteps of Liszt), a partner of the festival, helps to promote the work of the Hungarian composer and to disseminate piano culture in France. Together, they embody the conviction that great music, in an exceptional setting, can touch hearts far beyond the usual circles of confirmed music lovers.