This article, and the original title, are in French. I could not find many articles about this in English, so I’ve grabbed translations of excerpts to the best of my understanding. I have included both the originals and the translations below so that people can correct me.
Likewise, if someone has videos from the event, please feel free to link them in the comments. I found some myself, but it was hard to track down primary sources without knowing which French keywords were better to use. The article has a few instagram posts linked.
Original title: “Paris: un orchestre de 400 personnes joue au milieu des violences”
Original French:
L’Orchestre du Nouveau monde a été créé en 2020, alors que son fondateur, Etienne Jarrier, n’avait que 18 ans. Son idée: encourager «l’écologie et la justice sociale», selon son manifeste.
Ce mardi, sur la place de l’Hotel de Ville de Paris, quelque 300 musiciens ont fait sensation, jouant notamment la Marseillaise ou encore la Marche impériale de Star Wars.
Ce samedi devait donc être un grand jour pour Etienne Jarrier. Sur la place de la République, à Paris, le chef d’orchestre autodidacte attendait quelque 400 musiciens. L’orchestre était ouvert à tous, et les instrumentistes pouvaient télécharger les partitions pour se mettre au parfum.
Une répétition était programmée à 11h30, soit avant le début de la manif’. Le concert de l’Orchestre du Nouveau monde devait démarrer à 13h. Mais, rapporte Telerama, qui cite Le Monde, la police a envoyé des gaz lacrymogène dès 12h20.
Sur une vidéo, on peut notamment voir les musiciens, dont certains masqués qui tentent de rester concentrés malgré le gaz qui leur brûle les yeux et la gorge. Ils interprètent notamment la musique de Hunger Games, The Hanging Tree.
Translated:
The New World Orchestra was premiered in 2020, when its founder, Etienne Jarrier, was only 18 years old. His idea: to encourage “ecology and social justice,” according to his manifesto.
This Tuesday, on the square of the Hotel de Ville de Paris, some 300 musicians made a sensation, playing in particular the Marseillaise or the Imperial March of Star Wars.
This Saturday was, therefore, set to be a big day for Etienne Jarrier. In the Place de la République in Paris, the self-taught conductor was expecting around 400 musicians. The orchestra was open to everyone, and instrumentalists could download the sheet music to get up to speed.
A rehearsal was scheduled for 11:30 a.m., before the start of the demonstration. The concert by the Orchestre du Nouveau Monde was set to begin at 1:00 p.m. However, as reported by Télérama, citing Le Monde, the police deployed tear gas as early as 12:20 p.m.
In a video, we can see the musicians, including some masked who try to stay focused despite the gas that burns their eyes and throat. They performed the music for Hunger Games, The Hanging Tree.