by Rhythm emerges from garbage, garbage converted into melodies. At La Halle de la Machine in Toulouse, I watch Ignacio Herrero, one of La Halle’s staff members, make music from recycled pieces of trash.
This hangar-like space in the southern district of Montaudran is best known as the home of the giant animatronic Minotaur Asterion and his equally enormous spider companion Ariane. However, the exhibits shown by the staff also include a makeshift orchestra: old speakers converted into an organ, a huge windmill of abandoned guitars, a cascade of battered cymbals, an accordion powered by a contraption that in a previous life operated windshield wipers. The ingenuity, innovation and whimsy of it all is delightful: music and engineering come together harmoniously in a way that would have made Heath Robinson sing.
Toulouse has always been a city that breaks boundaries: The Halle de la Machine is next to the L’Envol des Pionniers Museum, which pays tribute to early French aviation, and three miles from the Cité de l’Espace-themed science museum. space. Since October 31, it has been officially designated a City of Music by UNESCO, in recognition of the exceptional musical institutions, musical education and festivals of Toulouse.
Music is as much a part of the city’s DNA as it was when the medieval counts of Toulouse were fervent patrons of those Occitan-singing troubadours who provided the soundtrack of the Middle Ages. There are not many places where the town hall shares its space with the national theater and opera, in this case the Théâtre du Capitole, but that is what happens behind the pink neoclassical façade of the Capitole, the most imposing monument in Toulouse. The Christmas market is in full swing during my visit, filling the elegant Place du Capitole with gleaming white wooden chalets, the aroma of mulled wine and stalls selling deliciously sticky treats. aligotthe signature dish of the Aveyron region, composed of cheese and garlic puree.
At the Théâtre du Capitole I enjoy a captivating performance of Monteverdi’s The Return of Ulysses by the Toulouse-based Gemelliensemble I. It is the last in the series, but offers a taste of the theatre’s rich program of opera, classical music and ballet. With baroque opera ringing in my ears, I approach the student quarter near one of Toulouse’s three universities. The cloisters of its Gothic Couvent des Jacobins create an atmospheric setting for concerts, including the Piano aux Jacobins festival and the Toulouse conservatory, which is training the next generation of musicians.
When I arrive at Place Saint-Pierre, near the Garonne River, I am firmly in student territory. I’m not sure why the bar Le Saints des Seins calls itself the saint of breasts, but it is popular for its live music and DJ sets. There’s a slightly more adult vibe a few minutes away at Flashback Café, whose DayGlo interior lights up a cold December night with its brightly colored inflatable couches, a giant screen for players, and a stage for live bands and DJs. I regret not being there for the “ugly jumpers, mustaches and mullet haircuts” themed night. I also ran out of time to continue along the river to Le Taquin jazz club, an intimate space that hosts local and international jazz musicians, as well as funk and world music artists.
Le Taquin Jazz Club is an intimate space that hosts local and international jazz, funk and world music musicians.
Two of my favorite cultural institutions in Toulouse (the art collections of the Fondation Bemberg and the Musée des Augustins) are closed for renovations; the first until February and the second will probably reopen at the end of 2025.
I stayed in one of Toulouse’s newest boutique hotels, the centrally located Hotel Les Capitouls. It’s not often you walk into a hotel reception and see posters for Joy Division, New Order, Stone Roses and the Haçienda nightclub, but something about Manchester in the 80s and 90s has inspired the hotel’s French designer, Thierry d’ Istria, to pay tribute. In addition to posters, cassette tapes and other musical paraphernalia have been turned into works of art in rooms and public areas. They’ve even named the bar Le Wilson, although I suppose it has more to do with nearby Place Wilson than Manchester musical maverick Tony.
A recent addition to Toulouse’s cultural (and culinary) scene opened in September at La Cartoucherie, an eco-friendly district close to the 11,000-seat Zénith Toulouse Métropole music venue. Les Halles de la Cartoucherie emerged from the ruins of an old munitions factory and has already become a honeypot. With its industrial heritage proudly displayed, Les Halles is part food hall (with stalls offering everything from cassoulet to West African cuisine, plus a butcher shop and food store), part coworking space and partly a gym (with squash courts, a gym and a climbing center) with spaces for courses and workshops. In spring, its ultra-modern music hall will open its doors for concerts and cultural shows.
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Judging by the tables packed with people devouring plates of Peruvian ceviche, Sri Lankan curries and Lebanese meze, among others, the formula evidently works. Eating well in Toulouse is easy and a pleasure. I remember why I fell in love with Toulouse years ago when I walk through the Victor Hugo food market, one of the largest covered markets in France and the place to find some of the best produce from southwestern France. I can’t stay away from the stalls selling regional cheeses, including the holy trinity of rocamadour, roquefort and cantal.
The charcuterie displays take me back to a night earlier in my visit, when Jessica Hammer of Taste of Toulouse took me on a wine bar tour, the highlight of which included the cured hams and cheeses platter at Maison Sarment. Oh, and the wine, of course, including the underrated Côtes de Gascogne and Gaillac, so typical of the southwest. Hammer, a wine expert and former cheesemonger from Michigan, fell in love with Toulouse six years ago and hasn’t looked back. In a place filled with so many joys of life, surrounded by such gentle beauty, it is difficult not to be seduced by the song of the south of Toulouse.
This trip was provided by the Toulouse tourist office. The Hotel les Capitouls has double rooms (accommodation only) from €159
