Insula Combo: a concert + an experience
What is Insula Combo?
Insula Combo is Insula orchestra’s €15 cultural night out for 16–28 year olds at La Seine Musicale (Boulogne-Billancourt, just outside Paris). Every month, an exclusive event limited to 30 places brings together:
- your ticket for a concert (or a dress rehearsal) in the Auditorium of La Seine Musicale;
- an unusual experience, before or after the concert: escape game, painting workshop, yoga class, linocut printing, cyanotype, paper art, after-party with the artists…
No need to know anything about classical music: Insula Combo is designed for first-timers and regulars alike. Come on your own or with friends — workshops are open to beginners.
Insula Combo is part of Insulab, Insula orchestra’s programme for 16–28 year olds.
2026-2027 season program
Season opener
SYMPHONIC CONCERT + AFTER-PARTY WITH THE ARTISTS
SATURDAY, 26 SEPTEMBER 2026 – 6PM – LA SEINE MUSICALE
CONCERT → Beethoven’s Eroica, with David Fray (piano), Insula orchestra and Insula camerata, conducted by Laurence Equilbey. To launch the season in style, two Beethoven masterpieces: first the dazzling Emperor Concerto, where David Fray’s piano converses with the orchestra, then the Eroica Symphony, the work that tipped music into a new era: powerful, electric, full of drive. All performed by a double orchestra — Insula orchestra and its academy, Insula camerata — on period instruments, in the Auditorium of La Seine Musicale.
EXPERIENCE → After the concert, the evening continues: a relaxed post-show gathering to meet the musicians and discover their period instruments, followed by a cocktail to toast the start of the season together. The perfect chance to see behind the scenes.
Symphonic concert – 6pm
After-party with the artists – 8pm
Total duration: 3 hours
Grab your brushes
CHORAL CONCERT + PAINTING WORKSHOP
WEDNESDAY, 14 OCTOBER 2026 – 6:30PM – LA SEINE MUSICALE
EXPERIENCE → Before the concert, it’s brushes at the ready: a painting workshop to turn what the music inspires into colour. Guided by an artist, everyone creates their own piece and takes it home. Open to beginners.
CONCERT → Tchaikovsky / Bruckner, with the accentus choir, conducted by Sigvards Kļava. This a cappella concert (with no instruments at all) brings together sacred pages by Tchaikovsky and Bruckner, performed by accentus, one of Europe’s finest vocal ensembles. Soaring music, made of silences and great waves of harmony, to be experienced as a bubble outside time.
Painting workshop – 6:30pm
Tchaikovsky / Bruckner concert – 8pm
Total duration: 3 hours
The Impossible Concert
ESCAPE GAME + SYMPHONIC REHEARSAL
WEDNESDAY, 11 NOVEMBER 2026 – 1:30PM – LA SEINE MUSICALE
EXPERIENCE → Locked in the rehearsal room, will you make it to the concert hall in time? Possessed by the spirit of Beethoven, your conductor locks you in the rehearsal room. Work as a team to solve the puzzles, free yourselves, find your instrument and get on stage in time. A challenge that will test your composure, team spirit and powers of observation!
CONCERT → Schumann / Mendelssohn, with Mario Brunello (cello) and Insula orchestra, conducted by Laurence Equilbey. After the escape game, head to the Auditorium for a moment the public rarely sees: the orchestra’s dress rehearsal. On the programme, Schumann’s Cello Concerto, performed by cellist Mario Brunello, and Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 1, composed when he was just fifteen. A chance to watch the musicians and their conductor Laurence Equilbey fine-tune every detail up close.
Escape game – 1:30pm
Dress rehearsal – 3pm
Level: beginner
Register individually or as a team (up to 5 people)
Total duration: 3 hours
Craft in music
CLASSICAL CONCERT + PAPER ART
SATURDAY, 12 DECEMBER 2026 – 4:30PM – LA SEINE MUSICALE
EXPERIENCE → Before the concert, an introductory quilling workshop set to music: a raised paper creation to give away… or keep for yourself!
CONCERT → Bach’s Magnificat: dazzling trumpets, a radiant choir and infectious energy, performed by the accentus choir and Insula orchestra in the superb Auditorium of La Seine Musicale. One of the loveliest ways to get into the festive spirit.
Paper Art – 4:30pm
Magnificat concert – 6pm
Total duration: 3 hours
Yoga pianissimo
PIANO RECITAL + YOGA SESSION
THURSDAY, 28 JANUARY 2027 – 6:30PM – LA SEINE MUSICALE
EXPERIENCE → Before the concert, a real chance to unwind: a yoga session open to everyone, even those who have never tried it. Breathing, stretching, a return to calm — so you arrive with a clear mind and open ears, ready to hear the piano differently. Mats provided.
CONCERT → Piotr Anderszewski, piano. Piotr Anderszewski is one of the great pianists of our time. With a Schubert Sonata and pieces by Brahms, he draws us into an intimate, delicate, almost whispered world. A suspended moment, all in finesse.
Yoga session – 6:30pm
Piano recital – 8pm
Total duration: 3.5 hours
Open to beginners
Mats provided
Symphonic printmaking
SYMPHONIC CONCERT + LINOCUT WORKSHOP
SATURDAY, 27 FEBRUARY 2027 – 5PM – LA SEINE MUSICALE
EXPERIENCE → Before the concert, a linocut workshop using stamps specially created for the orchestra by artist Mélanie Alpach: ink it, press it and compose your own print, ready to frame.
CONCERT → Berlioz / Schumann. A grand Romantic journey with Insula orchestra in the great Auditorium of La Seine Musicale: Berlioz’s Les Nuits d’été, a song cycle carried by the velvet voice of mezzo-soprano Marie-Andrée Bouchard-Lesieur, then Schumann’s luminous “Rhenish” Symphony.
Linocut workshop – 5pm
Berlioz / Schumann concert – 6pm
Total duration: 3 hours
Symphonic Impressions
SYMPHONIC SHOW + CYANOTYPE WORKSHOP
WEDNESDAY, 21 APRIL 2027 – 6PM – LA SEINE MUSICALE
EXPERIENCE → Before the show, a cyanotype workshop: the photographic technique that makes deep-blue images appear using nothing but sunlight. A touch of chemical magic, and everyone leaves with their own unique print.
SHOW → Inferno. THE major event of the season: a 360° immersive show celebrating the 10th anniversary of La Seine Musicale. The orchestra at the centre of the hall, a giant screen suspended overhead, and Liszt’s music (the Dante Symphony) plunges the audience into Dante’s Inferno through spectacular imagery by Mat Collishaw. Thrills guaranteed.
Cyanotype workshop – 6pm
Inferno show – 8pm
Total duration: 3.5 hours
Mozart in motion
SYMPHONIC REHEARSAL + YOGA SESSION
SUNDAY, 13 JUNE 2027 – 12:30PM – LA SEINE MUSICALE
EXPERIENCE → An open-air yoga session on the terrace of La Seine Musicale, facing the Seine. A sunny bubble of relaxation to start the day well, open to everyone, beginners included.
CONCERT → Mozart in Paris, with Anna Besson (flute) and Insula camerata, conducted by Laurence Equilbey, with the participation of Ballet Preljocaj Junior.
A programme blending music and dance, celebrating both Mozart’s genius and the future of historically informed performance, carried by a generation of musicians at the start of a great adventure.
Yoga session – 12:30pm
Rehearsal – 2pm
Total duration: 3 hours
Open to beginners
Mats provided
Who organises Insula Combo?
Insula Combo is created by the team of Insula orchestra, the resident orchestra of La Seine Musicale, led by Laurence Equilbey. Muriel Prouet and Jeanne Dilé design exclusive events for you to discover classical music differently. You come for a concert — but not only!
Who can take part?
Insula Combo is for 16–28 year olds. Proof of age may be requested at the entrance.
How much does it cost?
€15 per person, concert and experience included. It is one of the most affordable cultural outings for young people in the Paris region.
Do I need to know about classical music?
Not at all. Insula Combo is designed to discover classical music differently, whether it’s your first concert or your hundredth. Workshops are open to beginners.
What experiences are offered?
This season: an escape game behind the scenes of the orchestra, a painting workshop, paper art, yoga classes (including an outdoor session on the terrace overlooking the Seine), a linocut workshop, a cyanotype workshop before the immersive show Inferno, and an after-party with the artists.
Can I come on my own?
Yes, many participants come on their own: it’s also a way to meet other young people who like going out. You can also come with friends.
How long does an Insula Combo last?
Allow about 3 to 3.5 hours in total, experience and concert included. The exact duration is given for each date.
How do I book?
Click “Book your ticket” under the date you’re interested in: you’ll reach the La Seine Musicale box office, where the concert ticket and the experience are booked together. Places go fast (30 per event, sometimes fewer for some workshops).
Where is it and how do I get there from Paris?
At La Seine Musicale, Île Seguin, 92100 Boulogne-Billancourt, just outside Paris. Access: metro line 9 (Pont de Sèvres) or tram T2 (Brimborion).
What’s the link between Insulab and Insula Combo?
Insulab brings together all of Insula orchestra’s offers for 16–28 year olds (Young People’s rate, events, community). Insula Combo is the monthly event: a concert + an experience for €15.
Let's keep in touch!
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