Just Flutes 2025: Juliette Hurel

Just Flutes Festival 2025
Juliette Hurel flute

Juliette Hurel is well known in both the French and International music world as a highly renowned flautist.

She was unanimously awarded first prizes for flute and chamber music at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique in Paris and has won prizes in several major international competitions. In 2004 she was nominated for the “Discoveries of the Year” award in the “Victoires de la Musique Classique”.

Juliette Hurel has performed at prestigious concert venues such as the Cité de la Musique and Théâtre des Champs-Elysées in Paris, the Grand Théâtre de Provence, Wigmore Hall in London and the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam. She receives invitations to play at important festivals such as the Festival International de la Roque d’Anthéron, « La Folle Journée » in Nantes, the Festival International de Colmar, Holland Festival, the Cartagena Music Festival and festivals in Tokyo and Bilbao. As a highly sought soloist, Juliette Hurel has played with orchestras from around the world, including the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra, Orquesta Sinfónica de Colombia, Orchestre Métropolitain de Montréal, BBC National Orchestra of Wales and Hong-Kong Sinfonietta. She also performs regularly with various orchestras in France.

In 1993, seeking to form a flute and piano duo that could achieve a musical partnership at the highest level, Juliette Hurel began a collaboration with pianist Hélène Couvert. They enjoy discovering and performing (unjustifiably) forgotten works from the repertoire, as well as tackling the great classics. This friendship and successful musical collaboration has resulted in several acclaimed album recordings.

In 2019, Juliette Hurel, Hélène Couvert and actress Julie Depardieu created a musical tribute to the artistic muse and patron Misia Sert, in the form of a show entitled "Misia, Reine de Paris". It is with enormous pleasure that they continue to perform this work today, and to bring the story of this fascinating woman to life.

Juliette Hurel is very interested in contemporary music and working alongside the composers to fully understand and realise their intentions. She is the inspiration and dedicatee for several commissions, notably the flute concerto "Love songs" by Bruno Mantovani, premiered in 2016 with the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin, and "Chant de Résurrection" for flute and piano by Philippe Hersant, premiered in 2021 with Hélène Couvert.

The discography of Juliette Hurel is rich and varied: Works by Martinu and Prokofiev, French repertoire from the 20th century, the Haydn Flute Sonatas, Concertos for flute and orchestra by C.P.E. Bach (with L’Orchestre d’Auvergne under the baton of Arie van Beek), the albums “Impressions Françaises” and “Dawn of Romanticism”, the complete Mozart Flute Quartets with the Quatuor Voce and the album "Bach-Inspiration". In 2020, Juliette and pianist Hélène Couvert recorded a collection of rarely performed works by female French composers (Mel Bonis, Cécile Chaminade, Lili Boulanger) entitled "Compositrices à l'aube du vingtième siècle". These recordings have received critical acclaim and were hailed by the French and International press. An album of German romantic flute music, featuring Hélène Couvert and cellist Emmanuelle Bertrand, is planned for release in 2023.

Juliette Hurel has been solo flautist with Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra since 1998, and from 2010 has also taught at the Rotterdam Conservatoire "Codarts". She is Artistic Director of the "Rencontres Musicales de Noyers sur Serein" and the "Musicales du Golfe". Juliette Hurel plays a "Pearl" flute in 18 carat gold.