A worrying signal for participatory culture
The association À Cœur Joie expresses its deep incomprehension and disappointment at the decision of the Conseil départemental de Vaucluse not to support the 2025 edition of the Choralies, Europe’s largest participatory festival of choral singing, organized since 1953 with the loyal and committed support of Vaison-la-Romaine.
This decision marks the second consecutive absence of support, following a first withdrawal in 2022. Since then, our repeated requests for a meeting with the presidency have gone unanswered.
Even though the festival has embodied, for over 70 years, a culture driven by the citizens themselves, the department’s silence reinforces a worrying trend towards the invisibilization of “culture for all”, to the benefit of festival logics too often centered on the passive consumption of artistic productions. This one-eyed cultureignores the immense wealth of the associative fabric, the strength of voluntary work and the vitality of the choral sector.
Every three years, the Choralies in Vaison-la-Romaine bring together over 4,000 singers from twenty countries for a week of concerts, workshops, encounters and sharing. They rely on the commitment of 450 volunteers, internationally renowned choral conductors and thousands of choristers, who represent the leading collective artistic practice in France, with 5% of the population involved.
With its 50,000 concert seats, the festival benefits from extensive media coverage, a deep-rooted local presence and a proven economic impact. The absence of support from the Département sends a particularly negative signal to all those who, on a daily basis, bring to life a culture that is demanding, participative and supportive.
Aware of the difficult choices facing local authorities, we nevertheless call on elected representatives, cultural institutions and citizens attached to a living, shared culture to defend the place of choral music in French cultural life, and more broadly, the full recognition of all those, professionals and amateurs alike, who make culture happen, every day, in every region.
Board of Directors
Association À Cœur Joie
Press release issued on June 23, 2025
