Guy18

Just wondering what to expect. Worth the time? Good music? How many musicians is it likely to be? Any vocals? All advice much appreciated!

kja

Ste. Chapelle is, IMO, a magnificent venue for a concert, particularly if you can be there when the sun is setting -- watching the lights play on the stunning stained glass is magical! (Also go during a sunny day when you can see those windows in their glory.) It's a small venue, so I wouldn't expect a symphony, but how many musicians, and whether with or without vocals, will depend on the schedule.

Diane

I went to a concert at Ste Chapelle this past Christmas and there was a vocalist for some of the holiday songs. I really enjoyed it. Be sure to dress warmly! Blankets were given out to everyone but it's very chilly sitting in the chapel for 90+ minutes!

margo_oz

Yes! Yes!

It was cold - and the seats were none too comfortable. But the concert, in great surroundings, was wonderful.

Guy18

Thanks so much! Tickets purchased for 5 pm. Perhaps there will still be some light? Glad to hear there might be a vocalist. Can't wait!

flanneruk

Does anyone know how to find out the programme for these concerts? Or the performers?

It's hardly the only medieval church in Europe offering concerts: in December there are dozens within a few miles of my relatively remote house in the English countryside, and the normal social round means I'll have attended around half a dozen in the couple of weeks before leaving for a Paris Christmas.

Ste Chapelle's not even the only medieval or early modern church in Paris offering concerts in December: between Dec 22 and 24, there are concerts at Notre Dame, St Germain des Pres, St Roch, La Madeleine, St Ephrem, and St Germain l'Auxerrois.

From a musical point of view, all that seems to distinguish Ste Chapelle are that the few programmes it seems to publish in advance are pedestrian beyond belief, it's permanently silent about its performers and its website witters on about champagne.

Which strikes me as indicating that Ste Chapelle's Greatest Classical Hits packages are just cynical attempts to exploit some tourists' gullibility.

So can anyone answer the poster's question?

Because, on the limited evidence Ste Chapelle seems prepared to offer, I'm certainly not going to waste time at the musical equivalent of the Changing of the Guard when there's a modest smattering of real concerts in Paris for audiences interested in the music they're offering.

manouche

Won't be much light at all since the sun sets around 5 PM in December so you won't get the full effect of the stained glass. The windows are not illuminated except by outside light. The concert will be fine though. Dress warm there is absolutely no heat inside.

sandralist

You will need to go back to the chapel during the sunlight hours if you want to see the stained glass.

If you enjoy the music obviously you'll have a good experience, but on my one time doing this, not only was the pianist not very accomplished, but someone in the audience suddenly had a need to leave to chapel during the performance, and the sound of the medieval wooden boards underfoot creaking and squeaking and even screeching as they made their way back out was the most memorable part of the evening.

Ackislander

"From a musical point of view, all that seems to distinguish Ste Chapelle are that the few programmes it seems to publish in advance are pedestrian beyond belief, it's permanently silent about its performers and its website witters on about champagne."

Thus Flanner and not incorrect. The music is old chestnuts like Vivaldi and the acoustics aren't very good. We heard the Mozart Clarinet Concerto, and the soloist and ensemble had a tough time keeping together because of echoes.

The musicians are pickup musicians, I expect, and nothing wrong with that. I know lots of pickup musicians in Boston, and many of them are brilliant players. All of them are competent. I would also guess they don't get a lot of -- if any -- rehearsal time, not a real problem if you are playing stuff you have played a million times before.

HOWEVER. If you go to the concerts, you have essentially unlimited time to wander around the chapel, far more than you get during the day. You get there early, you have an intermission, and they don't rush you out after the concert because they have to take down the chairs, fold up the acoustic panels, and get things ready for tomorrow's throngs. If you like Gothic architecture, even heavily restored Gothic architecture, it is worth going any time, but in December or really any after summer time ends in early November, the windows will be black holes.

Also, there is no point in paying for premium seats. The venue is very small, and there are no bad seats. No great ones, either.

Gretchen

We have always enjoyed the concerts. And they are "old chestnuts" usually and when we were there, the musicians hammed it up on one of them, which WAS fun to see closer to the front.
As for the program, for christmas it could be a "special" and maybe a chorale. We weren't able to get in for one on All Saints Day that was a wonderful program.

Christina

It's classical music light for tourists, which is why they only play what they think the most inoffensive music possible, usually Vivaldi's Four Seasons and Mozart's Ein Kleine Nachtmusik. I'm sure the musicians are competent, there are many good grads and professional nowadays, but they are not going to be "names". YOu don't go for the music, but for the venue. They are very expensive for what it is, also, the regular concernts are only about an hour and cost over 20 euro, I believe.

Guy18

Thanks again. Much of this is what I'd expected/feared. Still, no regrets. I love Christmas music and as long as it's not jingle bells or completely bungled I'll be satisfied. Maybe they'll let us in a bit early and the windows will still have some color in them.

Gretchen

You could go at 3 and not see the windows!! A concert there either fits your schedule while in Paris or not. Think of it that way.

denisea

We have been the past 2 years on Christmas Eve. For the 2 concerts we attended, there were 4 female and 4 male vocalists and most of them had solos, at some point. It's a nice concert. Worth doing.

manouche

There are plenty of other Christmas music concerts around town in beautiful churches. Just Google "concerts de noel paris 2015" and you'll see lots of possibilities. You can buy advance tickets at billetreduc.com or go about an hour early and buy at the door. Most of the churches have much better acoustics than Ste Chapelle and the program will be Christmas music. I would go see Ste Chapelle during the day if it's sunny and enjoy a good dose of Christmas spirit in another venue. The little church on Ile Saint Louis has a wonderful Christmas concert.