A French composer born June 13, 1951 in Humbercamps.
Christian Dachez studied notably at the conservatories of Lille, Boulogne and Versailles. He studied the trombone with Raymond Katarzinsky, conducting with Jean-Claude Hartmann, analysis with Philippe Dulat and theory with Yvonne Desportes.
Christian Dachez at first composed music for advertising, the cinema, television and the chanson. Charmed by the music of Ligeti, he found in this composer his spiritual master and definitively directed himself towards a contemporary language.
Dachez takes inspiration from all forms of art, notably painting, literature and poetry (Arthur Rimbaud, Gérard de Nerval, Friedrich Hölderlin…). Many of his works are based around a text, explicitly or not, that beneath the surface carries the idea of travel, of a spiritual quest, of inner examination. Starting with restricted and concentrated musical materials he composes for all formations, from soloist to large orchestra, with a predilection for the voice and strings, especially the cello. Works include Par-delà for cello and orchestra, first performed by Timothé Tosi and the Orchestre Perpignan-Méditerranée conducted by Daniel Tosi at the festival Aujourd'hui Musiques (1997); Ferraille d'herbes for bass clarinet and brass quintet, first performed by Armand Angster and the quintet Just’à Cinq in Radio France (1997); Eléazar for 12 mixed voices and four cellos, first performed by the ensemble Musicatreize and the Octuor de Violoncelles de Beauvais conducted by Roland Hayrabedian (1998); Lettre à Van Gogh II for 16 mixed voices, first performed by the ensemble Soli-Tutti conducted by Denis Gautheyrie at the Théâtre de Lisieux (2000); Still training and more for solo flute and ensemble of flutes, first performed by Pierre-Yves Artaud and the Orchestre de Flûtes Français conducted by Pierre-Alain Biget, in the Salle Cortot, Paris (2008); Lectures for female chorus, horns and harp, first performed by the Britten Choir and the ensemble Les Temps Modernes at the Hôtel de Ville of Lyons (2009); Primetime for clarinet, violin and piano, first performed by Armand Angster and the ensemble Accroche-Note at the Rencontres d'été de la Musique de Chambre in Strasburg (2012); Appel manqué for clarinets, saxophones and euphonium, premiered in New York by the ensemble Saxback (2018); L’escalier d’argile for organ and horn, first performed by Daniel Catalanotti and Emmanuel Hocdé at the Festival Oboe of Paris (2019).
Christian Dachez has also taught at the Conservatory of Beauvais.