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Michel Tabachnik

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Michel Tabachnik
Background information
Born (1942-11-10) 10 November 1942 (age 81)
Geneva, Switzerland
Occupation(s)Conductor, composer, writer
Websitetabachnik.org

Michel Tabachnik (born November 10, 1942) is a Swiss conductor and composer with an international career. A promoter of contemporary music, he has premiered a dozen works by Iannis Xenakis, among others. He is also the author of essays on music and novels. In 1995, he was implicated in the case regarding the mass murder-suicides of the Order of the Solar Temple, from which he was acquitted by the courts.

Early life

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Tabachnik was born in Geneva, where he studied piano, composition and conducting. As a young conductor he was a protégé of Igor Markevitch, Herbert von Karajan and Pierre Boulez, acting as the latter's assistant for four years, mainly with the BBC Symphony Orchestra, London. This led him to become closely involved with conducting and to perform many world premieres, particularly those of Iannis Xenakis.[1]

Early career

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He was Artistic Director of l'Orchestre des Jeunes du Québec (1985–1989) and, over a twelve-year period, l'Orchestre des jeunes de la Méditerranée [fr] which he founded in 1984.[2] He has held the position of Chief Conductor of the Gulbenkian Orchestra in Lisbon, the Orchestre national de Lorraine [fr], the Ensemble InterContemporain in Paris and the Northern Netherlands Orchestra (Groningen).[2]

In addition to his work as a conductor, Tabachnik is also a composer. He has been honored with many commissions including "La Légende de Haïsha" for the anniversary of the Bicentenary of the French Revolution, "Le Cri de Mohim" for the 700th Year of Switzerland, and "Le Pacte des Onze" for I.R.C.A.M. Paris.[3]

Tabachnik records for Erato and Lyrinx, with whom he has been associated since 1991. His discography includes Beethoven, Wagner, Honegger and Iannis Xenakis. His recording of the Schumann Piano Concerto (with Catherine Collard as soloist) was voted Best Performance of the work by the international jury at the Radio Suisse Romande.[2] In 1995, Tabachnik was named Artist of the Year by the Italian "Centro Internazionale di Arte e Cultura" in Rome.[4]

Solar Temple

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Main article: Order of the Solar Temple

Michel Tabachnik met in 1977 Joseph Di Mambro, one of the two future leaders of the Order of the Solar Temple (OTS). In 1981, he became the president of the Golden Way Foundation that Di Mambro had created three years earlier in Geneva.[5][6] Within the framework of the OTS, Tabachnik wrote the Archées, esoteric texts that circulated within the OTS.[6][7] A few weeks prior to the 1994 mass suicide, which included the group's leaders, he had announced the end of the OTS in two meetings in Avignon at Di Mambro's request, what were the last meetings, where the end of the Order and its replacement by an organization called ARC (Alliance Rose Croix) was announced.[8][9][10] It was later said that Tabachnik had indeed taken part in these conferences, but without knowing the outcome of the massacres, and that it had been a set-up by Di Mambro.[8][11][10] At the time of the massacres, he was in concert in Denmark. Due to documents found related to the group, the police were able to understand the workings of the community and recognize some of its members, including Tabachnik.[12]

On 23 December 1995, during the journal de 13 heures program on the French channel TF1, journalist Gilles Bouleau claimed that the group had survived and united behind Tabachnik,[13][14] indirectly declaring that Tabachnik was the mastermind behind the Vercors massacre.[14] Later, Swiss journalist Arnaud Bédat acquired photos claimed to directly implicate Tabachnik in the OTS's actions.[15][16][17] This information was picked up by the media, leading Tabachnik to give a public denial.[18] It was revealed that in September 1994, Tabachnik gave two lectures in Avignon at Di Mambro's request, in which the end of the OTS was announced. It was later said that Tabachnik had indeed taken part in these conferences, but without knowing the outcome of the massacres, and that it had been a set-up by Di Mambro.[8][11][10] Tabachnik later sued Bouleau, unsuccessfully, for defamation.[15][19]

Tabachnik was investigated following the incident; Fontaine placed him under examination on 12 June 1996 for conspiracy.[20] Prior Swiss investigations had not established any connection between Tabachnik and the 1994 deaths; his own wife died in the earlier massacre.[21][5] At the time of the investigation, due to the death of the two leaders in Salvan in 1994, Tabachnik was the only defendant in the case. Fontaine considered that Tabachnik, through his writings and his conferences, could have incited followers to commit suicide. He was therefore charged with participation in a criminal conspiracy to commit a crime.[22] Fontaine placed him under examination on 12 June 1996 for conspiracy.[20] In his defense, Tabachnik published the book Bouc émissaire: Dans le piège du Temple Solaire, with a preface by Pierre Boulez.[23] Investigating judge Luc Fontaine suspected that Tabachnik had known that the massacres were being prepared.[20] Additionally, the writings that he had prepared for the group were alleged to have brought the members into a "homicidal dynamic".[24][25][26] Tabachnik denied that he had any prior knowledge of the massacres, claiming he had only occasionally spoken at OTS conferences. He admitted to having been a member of the group, though he had initially denied it.[20][21][27]

Trials

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Main article: 1995 Vercors massacre § Tabachnik's trial

He was tried in 2001 for conspiracy to commit murder and participation in a criminal association.[8][13] On 13 April 2001, at the Grenoble Museum-Library, which had been transformed for the occasion, the trial began. Tabachnik was defended by Francis Szpiner.[28][29][27] If found guilty, he faced up to 10 years in prison.[13] On the eighth day, Tabachnik was interviewed and told of having been manipulated and fooled by Di Mambro.[30] On the tenth day, the prosecutor demanded 5 years' imprisonment for Tabachnik's alleged role in the conditioning of the Temple's followers.[25][31] The prosecutors said that Tabachnik's participation in the meetings announcing the end of the OTS indicated wrongdoing.[8][32][13] The prosecution painted him as one of the higher ups of the organization; the psychiatrist Jean-Marie Abgrall, called as an expert for the trial, said that Tabachnik's influence within the group was unclear.[8] Szpiner argued that by the time the records showed the massacre was being planned, Tabachnik was no longer participating in the OTS.[27]

During the trial Tabachnik was questioned for two hours about his writings prepared for the OTS, Les Archées. These writings included 21 esoteric texts written between 1985 and 1992, which were distributed among the higher up members of the OTS.[8][7] The prosecution said they had been used to "condition" and brainwash the members of the OTS into their beliefs and their deaths.[13][21] When questioned, he declared that they were merely "amateur" writings, a set of notes that had been read to Di Mambro that he had liked and decided to make high-level teachings of the group.[8][7] During the trial, no one could figure out what the texts, called "indecipherable", were supposed to mean, including Abgrall.[28][8] They incorporated many traditions and systems of thought, including Kabbalah, astrophysics, and alchemy.[33] However, the court claimed that they contained themes that were used to justify the massacre, speaking of a "transition" and "secret masters" on Sirius. Tabachnik told the court that he had been in the shadow of Di Mambro and had no responsibility for what happened.[8]

Tabachnik said the writings had been symbolic, and that he had never imagined that anything in them could be used to justify death.[8] Szpiner said the excerpts presented by the prosecution were "snippets" that had been "cut and pasted" out of context.[28] Tabachnik had also been paid 192,135 Swiss francs from a company in Panama as payment for these writings; when asked by the judge if this had been fraud, he said that this money was for production costs for the writings and that he had already been cleared by the Swiss courts on this count.[8] On 25 June 2001, the court acquitted Tabachnik, on the basis that there had been no significant or conclusive proof uncovered that Tabachnik had orchestrated the killings, and his writings accused of influencing the members into death were deemed unlikely to have influenced the members.[26][13]

The public prosecutor, still accusing him of having, through his writings, pushed followers into a mass suicide, appealed the criminal court's decision.[33][6] Tabachnik was tried again in a second trial beginning 24 October 2006.[34][26] The appeal of the prosecutor against the first acquittal did not ask for his conviction or acquittal, and did not argue for him being guilty or innocent.[25] The prosecutor also stated that he did not appear to be an important member of the group and they had no proof to the contrary.[10] Tabachnik's lawyer argued his works were "esoteric ramblings" that could not have inspired the group's violence; he said that to punish him for "wild" ideas would be punishing him for the crime of having an opinion.[35][25] The attorney general said his writings were so obscure that they could not have been made as a call to suicide; if they had been used as such it was unintentional.[10]

The appeals court upheld the lower court's ruling, and he was acquitted a second time in December 2006.[35][20][26] The judgment stated that there was no proof that he had knowingly participated in the organization of the deaths.[25] Following his acquittal, Tabachnik stated in a press release that: "My innocence has finally been recognized. I am emerging from eleven years of nightmare", and declared the whole series of trials "eleven years of slander, humiliation and dishonor".[25] Tabachnik continues to deny any involvement in the planning of the massacres.[20][7]

Later career

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Since September 2005, Tabachnik is chief-conductor of the Noord Nederlands Orkest (NNO).[36] From 2008 until 2015, Tabachnik was the music director and chief-conductor of the Brussels Philharmonic.[37][38][39][40]

Speaking on his involvement with the OTS, Tabachnik appeared in two 2022 documentary series on the case, Temple Solaire: l'enquête impossible and La Fraternité. It took two years to convince Tabachnik to be interviewed for La Fraternité; director Pierre Morath described him as "traumatized" by the whole affair and that it was "almost a miracle" he had agreed, with a fear that people would distort his words as had happened before.[41][42] Temple Solaire: l'enquête impossible also featured Bouleau and Bédat, both who had accused of him of being involved in the massacre.[43][44] His appearance in the documentary took many weeks of convincing by the production team.[45] Bédat described their meeting, noting that Tabachnik "agreed to an interview, yelled at me for two hours and then it was over. We became friends".[46] During an interview for the promotion of the series, Bédat stated he had changed his mind and no longer believed that Tabachnik had planned the deaths, and that him being away in concert had perhaps stopped him from being killed as well.[46]

Publications

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  • Bouc émissaire: Dans le piège du Temple Solaire
  • Il était une fois un enfant, novel, publisher de l'Aire, 1999.
  • De la Musique avant toute chose, essay, préface by Régis Debray, Essai, éd. Buchet/Chastel, 2008.
  • L’Homme sauvage, novel, publisher Ring, 2013.
  • Ma Rhapsodie, essay, publisher Buchet/Chastel, 2016.
  • Le Libraire de Saint-Sulpice, novel, publisher Otago 2017.
  • L’Enlèvement au Sinaï, novel, publisher Otago, 2019.
  • Demain au Marmara Taskim, novel, publisher L'Harmattan, 2022.
  • La Pierre de Siloé, novel, publisher L'Harmattan, 2022.

Compositions

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  • Supernovae, 1967
  • Frise, 1968
  • Fresque, 1969
  • Invention à 16 voix, 1972
  • Mondes, 1972
  • Sillages, 1972
  • D'autres Sillages, 1972
  • Movimenti, 1973
  • Éclipses, 1974
  • Argile, 1974
  • Trois Impressions, 1975
  • Les Perséïdes, 1981
  • Cosmogonie, 1981
  • l'Arch, 1982
  • 7 Rituels Atlantes, 1984
  • Pacte des onze (Évangile selon Thomas), 1985
  • Élévation, 1990
  • Prélude à la Légende, 1989
  • Le Cri de Mohim, 1991
  • Évocation, 1994
  • La Légende de Haïsha, 1989
  • Concerto pour piano et orchestre de chambre, 2003
  • Nord pour orchestre, 2006
  • Diptyque-écho, Concerto pour violon et orchestre, 2008
  • Genèse, pour violon solo et orchestre, 2010
  • Lumières fossiles, pour orchestre, 2011
  • Benjamin, dernière nuit, opéra, 2012
  • Le livre de Job, 2013
  • Benjamin, dernière nuit, drame lyrique en quatorze scènes, 2016
  • "Sumer", concerto pour violoncelle et orchestre, 2019
  • "Genèse II", concerto pour violon et orchestre, 2021

References

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  1. ^ "TABACHNIK Michel (1942)". Centre de documentation de la musique contemporaine. 1 August 2017. Retrieved 10 December 2023.
  2. ^ a b c "Biography of Michel Tabachnik". Michel Tabachnik. February 2020. Retrieved 16 December 2023.
  3. ^ Bataille, Stéphanie (4 February 2009). "Michel Tabachnik: Autour du Sacre du printemps (Stravinsky) Paris, Cité de la musique. Jeudi 26 février 2009 à 20h". ClassiqueNews. Retrieved 16 December 2023.
  4. ^ "Profile". Tivoli & Crescendi Artists. Archived from the original on 15 March 2012. Retrieved 11 July 2011.
  5. ^ a b Pueyo, Serge (25 October 2006). "Ordre du Temple solaire : les larmes de Tabachnik" [Order of the Solar Temple: Tabachnik's tears]. Le Figaro (in French). Archived from the original on 9 November 2006. Retrieved 6 September 2011.
  6. ^ a b c Chrisafis, Angelique (25 October 2006). "Conductor on trial over cult killings in France, Switzerland and Canada". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 20 August 2023.
  7. ^ a b c d Borloz, Emmanuel (9 July 2022). "Rencontre avec Michel Tabachnik – "Je rêve qu'on me parle de musique mais on en revient toujours au Temple Solaire"" [Interview with Michel Tabachnik – "I dream that I get approached about music but it's always about the Solar Temple"]. Tribune de Genève (in Swiss French). Retrieved 3 October 2024.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Vézard, Frédéric (24 April 2001). "Michel Tabachnik minimise son rôle" [Michel Tabachnik downplays his role]. Le Parisien (in French). Retrieved 29 April 2024.
  9. ^ "L'Ordre du Temple Solaire" [The Order of the Solar Temple]. La Croix (in French). 17 April 2001. ISSN 0242-6056. Retrieved 16 December 2023.
  10. ^ a b c d e Lecluyse, Eric (31 October 2006). "Tabachnik épargné par le parquet" [Tabachnik spared by the prosecution]. L'Express (in French). Reuters. Archived from the original on 16 December 2013. Retrieved 25 January 2013.
  11. ^ a b Morath & Lemasson 2023c, 30:40–31:46.
  12. ^ Morath & Lemasson 2023b, 11:00–11:50.
  13. ^ a b c d e f "Conductor cleared of cult deaths". BBC News. 25 June 2001. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  14. ^ a b Morath & Lemasson 2023c, 23:15–25:10.
  15. ^ a b Teynier, Marc (17 June 2022). ""Temple Solaire : l'enquête impossible" : Gilles Bouleau raconte "l'horreur indicible" sur TMC" ["Temple Solaire: l'enquête impossible": Gilles Bouleau recounts the "unspeakable horror" on TMC]. Le Parisien (in French). Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  16. ^ Siebenmann, Laurent (15 June 2022). "TMC replonge au coeur de l'affaire de l'Ordre du Temple solaire" [TMC goes back to the heart of the Order of the Solar Temple affair]. Le Matin (in Swiss French). ISSN 1018-3736. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  17. ^ Morath & Lemasson 2023c, 25:43–25:54.
  18. ^ Morath & Lemasson 2023c, 27:20–27:30.
  19. ^ Vermelin, Jérôme (17 June 2022). ""Temple Solaire, l'enquête impossible" : Gilles Bouleau raconte l'affaire qui a bouleversé sa carrière" ["Temple Solaire, l'enquête impossible": Gilles Bouleau recounts the case that turned his career upside down]. TF1 INFO (in French). Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  20. ^ a b c d e f Clusel & Palmer 2020, p. 233.
  21. ^ a b c "Swiss conductor acquitted of sect killings". SWI swissinfo. 20 December 2006. Retrieved 24 August 2022.
  22. ^ Morath & Lemasson 2023c, 42:40–43:08.
  23. ^ Roux, Marie-Aude (8 November 2007). "Michel Tabachnik : "Je me sens un peu comme un miraculé"" [Michel Tabachnik: "I feel a bit like a miracle worker"]. Le Monde (in French). Retrieved 26 April 2024.
  24. ^ Carrera, Tolita (25 October 2006). "195. Ordre du temple solaire : un expert raconte l'horreur de la tuerie" [195. Order of the Solar Temple: an expert recounts the horror of the massacre]. Centre Contre les Manipulations Mentales (in French). Agence France-Presse. Retrieved 29 July 2020.
  25. ^ a b c d e f "Ordre du Temple solaire : la relaxe de Michel Tabachnik confirmée en appel" [Order of the Solar Temple: Michel Tabachnik's acquittal upheld on appeal]. Le Monde (in French). AFP. 20 December 2006. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  26. ^ a b c d Mayer 2014, p. 49.
  27. ^ a b c Demagny, Xavier (25 August 2018). "VIDÉO - Histoires criminelles : l'Ordre du temple solaire, 16 membres d'une secte retrouvés morts en Isère" [VIDEO - Crime stories: the Order of the Solar Temple, 16 cult members found dead in Isère]. France Bleu (in French). Retrieved 29 July 2020.
  28. ^ a b c Pivois, Marc (28 April 2001). ""Tabachnik a donné le signal" du grand départ" ["Tabachnik gave the signal" for the big departure]. Libération (in French). Retrieved 29 April 2024.
  29. ^ Morath & Lemasson 2023d, 2:55.
  30. ^ Morath & Lemasson 2023d, 23:04–23:51.
  31. ^ Morath & Lemasson 2023d, 30:35–30:47.
  32. ^ "L'Ordre du Temple Solaire" [The Order of the Solar Temple]. La Croix (in French). 17 April 2001. ISSN 0242-6056. Retrieved 16 December 2023.
  33. ^ a b "Le chef d'orchestre à nouveau sur le banc des accusés" [Conductor back in the dock]. La Libre Belgique (in French). 23 October 2006. Retrieved 29 July 2020.
  34. ^ Morath & Lemasson 2023d, 39:26–40:20.
  35. ^ a b "Conductor cleared of cult deaths". BBC News. 20 December 2006. Retrieved 24 August 2022.
  36. ^ "Welcome to the NNO: Past Conductors". Noord Nederlands Orkest. Archived from the original on 16 March 2012. Retrieved 7 June 2011.
  37. ^ "Michel Tabachnik: Music Director". brussels philharmonic. Archived from the original on 23 October 2013. Retrieved 23 September 2013.
  38. ^ Macassar, Gilles (23 April 2011). "La Mer, Nocturnes...Claude Debussy - Brussels Philharmonic, dir. Michel Tabachnik". Telerama (in French). Archived from the original on 12 December 2013. Retrieved 7 June 2011.
  39. ^ "Quelle est la meilleure version de La Mer de Claude Debussy ?" [What's the best version of Claude Debussy's La Mer?]. Radio France (in French). 19 March 2018. Retrieved 16 December 2023.
  40. ^ "La Mer de Debussy : l'écoute en aveugle" [Debussy's La Mer: blind listening]. Radio Classique (in French). 12 May 2014. Archived from the original on 12 May 2014. Retrieved 16 December 2023.
  41. ^ Dufour, Nicolas (21 January 2023). ""La Fraternité", l'horreur de l'Ordre du Temple solaire par des survivants" ["La Fraternité", the horror of the Order of the Solar Temple by the survivors]. Le Temps (in Swiss French). ISSN 1423-3967. Archived from the original on 20 September 2023. Retrieved 29 June 2024.
  42. ^ Papaux, Sven (8 February 2023). "Le pire massacre sectaire de Suisse au cœur d'un docu RTS" [Switzerland's worst cult massacre at the heart of an RTS documentary]. Watson (in Swiss French). Retrieved 28 June 2024.
  43. ^ Vermelin, Jérôme (17 June 2022). ""Temple Solaire, l'enquête impossible" : Gilles Bouleau raconte l'affaire qui a bouleversé sa carrière" ["Temple Solaire, l'enquête impossible": Gilles Bouleau recounts the case that turned his career upside down]. TF1 INFO (in French). Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  44. ^ Teynier, Marc (17 June 2022). "«Temple Solaire : l'enquête impossible» : Gilles Bouleau raconte «l'horreur indicible» sur TMC" ["Temple Solaire: l'enquête impossible": Gilles Bouleau recounts the "unspeakable horror" on TMC]. Le Parisien (in French). Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  45. ^ Dupreuilh, Fabrice (17 June 2022). "Secte de l'ordre du Temple solaire : TMC déterre le dossier" [Solar Temple cult: TMC digs up the file]. Le Point (in French). Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  46. ^ a b Schnarrenberger, Adrien (17 June 2022). ""C'est le documentaire ultime sur l'Ordre du Temple solaire"" ["This is the ultimate documentary on the Order of the Solar Temple"]. Blick (in Swiss French). Retrieved 24 July 2024.
Sources
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