With 1,000 concerts to his credit in 120 countries, this adventurous musician says he is now calmed down by the music of Bach, the subject of his recent album – currently in the top 3 of the best-selling classical albums in France.

Baptized "Federer of the guitar" (36 international prizes won), he nevertheless continued his tours.

"I live at 200 an hour. Since childhood, I have been hyperactive", confides to AFP the 38-year-old guitarist, born in Bordeaux, in the south-west, of a rocker father and a mother. classics teacher.

"When I was younger, I was happy to be a virtuoso, to play very quickly, I wanted to be the best guitarist in the world, there was this somewhat elitist, sporty side", he adds.

"But here it's rather the opposite, I try to be more in connection with the soul; I discover serenity", smiles the one who went through the conservatories of Bordeaux and Paris.

He translates Bach's music, which intimidated him as a child, into intimate notes through his strings.

"Rocker Soul"

He has been touring abroad for 15 years and his "Magic Tour", which began in 2017, has taken this globetrotter to unusual places in South America, Africa and Asia.

He played in a temple in ruins in Guatemala, in the Palmeraie of Marrakech or in the Forbidden City in China, opening up to new music.

He was nourished by rasguedos (flamenco guitar technique), harmonies from Brazil, the sitar in Bangladesh or the kora from Mali.

"I am a classical guitarist but with the soul of a rocker, I have this desire to play to federate", explains Thibault Cauvin.

He understands that the identity of today's classical guitarist can be intriguing, his instrument being often associated with the electric guitar or flamenco.

"I rightly claim the guitar as a popular instrument: it's Jimi Hendrix, it's Django Reinhardt, it's Paco de Lucia and Joaquín Rodrigo, in the classical it's Andrés Segovia or Alexandre Lagoya; it's incredible to have these guitar-heroes of all persuasions", he says, convinced that he is currently living "the golden age of the classical guitar".

"It is today that there are the greatest classical guitar luthiers", he assures.

"If we compare with a guitar from 60 years ago, today's is more powerful, fairer, more balanced".

"In a concert, we seek the performance of Formula 1 which makes the Monaco Grand Prix where everything is perfectly regulated, but we also want the charm of the old Jaguar collection which makes noise, and that is rare. Only large instruments allow this", specifies Thibault Cauvin.

French guitarist Thibault Cauvin poses during a photo shoot in Paris on February 17, 2023. © JOEL SAGET / AFP

Classic does not in any way mean being limited to the repertoire of the past;

he also works with contemporary composers, such as Mathias Duplessy and likes atypical duets.

He thus played with Matthieu Chedid, the trumpeter Erik Truffaz or the DJ Thylacine.

For him, there is no need to have a classical music education to appreciate Bach on the guitar.

"Whether at Carnegie Hall (in New York), in the depths of Cape Verde or in a small chapel in the Dordogne, you have to taste it as if you were contemplating a sunset", he says.

© 2023 AFP