Its draw is also in the departures from tradition. Without them, Aix would be another Salzburg instead of the most interesting opera festival in Europe — though at this point in Pierre Audi’s tenure as artistic director, “opera” is too limiting a label, with a slate over the past week of film, music theater, concerts and, yes, opera, including two new works, each of vastly different character. Many summer festivals exist primarily for the pleasure of music-making beyond the usual concert halls and theaters. In this edition, not everything succeeded artistically (or with audiences); some of what I saw was reckless, some of it offensive. In the pit, so to speak, was the Orchestre de Paris under the baton of its music director, Klaus Mäkelä.

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Persons: Pierre Audi’s, ”, —, Klaus Mäkelä Organizations: Ballets, Vitrolles, Orchestre de Paris Locations: Aix, Salzburg, Europe