Judicium Salomonis, H. 422
1 	Simphonie 	
Prima Pars
2 	Récit: Confortatum Est Regnum Israel 	
3 	Chœur: Tunc Lætata Est Omnis Ecclesia 	
4 	Trio: Et Rex Similiter Valde Lætatus Est 	
5 	Récit: Benedictus Es Domine Deus Israel 	
6 	Chœur Ideo Cunctis Unanimiter Lætantibus 
Secunda Pars - Songe de Salomon
7 	Simphonie 	
8 	Récit: Nocte Autem Sequenti 	
9 	Grand Récit: Quia Non Petisti Tibi Dies Multos 	
10 	Chœur: Et Facto Mane Evigilavit Salomon 
Dispute Des Deux Mères
11 	Récit: Obsecro Mi Domine 	
12 	Chœur: Audivit Omnis Israel 
Motet Pour Une Longue Offrande H. 434
13 	Prélude 	
14 	Paravit Dominus In Judicio Thronum Suum 	
15 	Prélude 	
16 	Chœur: Pluet Super Peccatores Laqueos 	
17 	Simphonie 	
18 	Simphonie

Judicium Salomonis soloists:
Paul Agnew - tenor [haute-contre] (Salomon)
Neal Davies - bass (Deus)
Ana Quintans - soprano (Vera Mater)
Marc Molomot - tenor [haute-contre] (Falsa Mater)
Marc Mauillon - baritone (Historicus Primus, Historicus Secundus, Populus)
Joao Fernandes - bass (Populus)
Leif Aruhn-Solen - tenor [haute-contre] (Populus)

Motet Pour Une Longue Offrande solooists:
Ana Quintans - Maud Gnidzaz, sopranos
Marc Molomot - Leif Aruhn-Solen, tenors [hautes-contre]
Paul Agnew - Carl Ghazarossian, tenors [tailles]
Joao Fernandes - Neal Davies, basses

Les Arts Florissants
William Christie - conductor

This Virgin Classics release reunites William Christie and Les Arts Florissants with the music of Marc-Antoine Charpentier, a composer for whom it can be said Christie has done more to expose than any other he has taken on. This is saying a lot, as Christie has also made extensive recorded forays into the works of Campra, Lully, Montéclair, Monteverdi, Purcell, and in particular, Handel. However, Charpentier remains a special case to Christie, and there is still a monumental amount of unrecorded music by this composer to exploit. The two works on Virgin Classics' Charpentier: Judicium Salomonis actually have been recorded before, though not often and not by well-known groups like Christie's -- the Motet pour une longue Offrande has been recorded by Philippe Herreweghe and that's about it in terms of the competition.

Virgin's recording, made in the Théâtre de Poissy, is very excellent -- warm, clear, and full bodied. Christie's soloists -- countertenors Paul Agnew and Marc Molomot, bass João Fernandes, alto Ana Quintans, and the others -- all turn in splendid performances, as does the band under Christie's direction. As in Charpentier's opera, Médée, which Christie recorded in a definitive reading on Erato some years back, Charpentier's music is lush, languid, and sometimes makes use of surprisingly advanced-sounding harmonies. But neither the dramatic motet Judicium Salomonis or the Motet pour une longue Offrande are as captivating as Médée; listen as one might through these long-seeming works and to the generally lovely sound made by Les Arts Florissants, the whole thing sounds musically dead and is rather dull overall. Long stretches of densely polyphonic writing work toward a big climax that sits there for a second, and then picks up with another dense, polyphonic passage. This same formal strategy is repeated several times; it is as though the busier and more florid the texture is, the more Charpentier likes it, and he doesn't know when to quit, to provide something more direct, if nothing more than just to rest one's ears for a bit. While one may complain about the lengthiness of some of the arias in Johann Sebastian Bach's cantatas, at least they serve the purpose of making the choruses more interesting. Charpentier: Judicium Salomonis just wears you out, and long before one gets to its conclusion.

Concerning William Christie and Les Arts Florissants, they are as fine here as they've always been, and Charpentier: Judicium Salomonis is probably the most deluxe package that these works will ever enjoy. Whether these particular pieces are worthy of such deluxe treatment is another matter. If one is a die-hard Charpentier enthusiast, this might be the best thing since sliced bread, but "heavy" and "ponderous" are both very good words to describe the effect of Virgin Classics' Charpentier: Judicium Salomonis. ---Uncle Dave Lewis, AllMusic Review

These grand motets are both late works, written between 1688 and 1699 and 1702. The earlier of the two, Motet pour une Longue Offrande H434, was written for an annual meeting of the Parlement and embodied the savoury moral that judgement rests with God. The characteristic Charpentier traits of almost visual-theatrical drama are here, though perhaps to a lesser degree than before. Fortunately Neal Davis is the quintessence of sonorousness in his role, singing Paravit Dominus in judicio with sweep and clarity. The choir also sings with considerable vivacity and engagement though it’s noticeable that individual strands do obtrude from time to time. It’s certainly not the neatest or most tightly drilled performance on disc from them.

Compensation comes from the eloquent winds of Les Arts Florissants, always one of this band’s strongest features, and from the solo singing. Davis we’ve already mentioned but the duet between Ana Quintans and Maud Gnidzaz is also worthy of note and admiration for its pliancy and plangency. Note too the characteristically high tenor – a somewhat loose translation into English – in the Trio finale.

Juducium Salomonis is the bigger work and the ostensible disc favourite – see the booklet cover which features a detail from a painting by Guido Reni, though it happens to be his c1606/07 Martyrdom of St Catherine of Alexandria. Here the band scores by virtue of its powerful accents and rhythmic charge in Part One and in the sheer expressive warmth of the opening simphonie of Part Two. Paul Agnew, a regular in this kind of French repertoire no less than in, say, Dowland proves eloquence itself in his recitatives and pronouncements. Note in particular how malleable, how potently gentle, and how supple he is in the First Part’s recitative Benedictus es Domine Deus Israel. And the special intimacy of Et facto mane is conveyed with real conviction. Still, there again, the chorus rather lets things down in Et facto – though I should add that this is only a marginal matter and won’t necessarily spoil ones enjoyment of these otherwise warmly sung and played motets.

The recording is a touch on the chilly side. The Latin texts are translated into French, English and German. ---Jonathan Woolf, musicweb-international.com

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01. Première Leçon, H.105
02. Deuxième Leçon, H.106
03. Troisième Leçon, H.110

Judith Nelson: soprano
René Jacobs: countertenor
Wieland Kuijken: bass viol
William Christie: organ & harpsichord
Konrad Junghänel: theorbo
Concerto Vocale - René Jacobs (conductor)

Leçons de ténèbres, literally lessons of darkness, are a genre of French baroque music which developed from the polyphonic lamentations settings for the tenebrae service of Renaissance composers such as Sermisy, Gesualdo, Tallis, and Tomás Luis de Victoria into virtuoso solo chamber music.

The tenebrae service uses the text of the Lamentations of Jeremiah, originally deploring the Siege of Jerusalem (587 BC) and subsequent desolation of the city, but applied allegorically to the three days of mourning for Christ between crucifixion and resurrection.

However the context of the French Leçons de ténèbres was often private performance. Delalande's 15-year old daughter sang for Louis XIV first in his living rooms and then in chapel, becoming the praise of all Paris. Philidor's catalogue indicates that Delalande's three surviving virtuoso solo Leçons de ténèbres were composed for such occasions.

A complete set of Leçons de ténèbres for the full three days of Holy Week would have included nine lessons, with each of these leçons requiring the setting of specific texts from Lamentations, although the conventions of exactly which texts to set varied slightly from the Renaissance to the Baroque, and by local custom. The following respresents the typical French baroque schema set by Charpentier :

Holy Wednesday

    Première leçon pour le mercredi Saint - 1:1-5
    Deuxième leçon pour le mercredi Saint - 1:6-9
    Troisième leçon pour le mercredi Saint - 1:10-14

Holy Thursday

    Première leçon pour le jeudi Saint - 2:8-11
    Deuxième leçon pour le jeudi Saint - 2:12-15
    Troisième leçon pour le jeudi Saint - 3:1-9

Good Friday

    Première leçon pour le vendredi Saint - 3:22-30
    Deuxième leçon pour le vendredi Saint - 4:1-6
    Troisième leçon pour le vendredi Saint - 5:1-11

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1. Miserere H.219 - I. Ouverture
2. Miserere H.219 - II. Miserere mei, Deus
3. Miserere H.219 - III. Quoniam iniquitatem meam
4. Miserere H.219 - IV. Asperges me hysopo
5. Miserere H.219 - V. Ne projicias me
6. Miserere H.219 - VI. Sacrificium Deo
7. Miserere H.219 - VII. Benigne fac, Domine
8. Pour la seconde fois que le Saint Sacrement vient au mesme reposoir H.372
9. Pour le Saint Sacrement au reposoir H.346
10. Motet pour l'offertoire de la Messe rouge H.434 - I. Paravit Dominus
11. Motet pour l'offertoire de la Messe rouge H.434 - II. Pluet super peccatores
12. Motet pour l'offertoire de la Messe rouge H.434 - III. Deus justus et patiens
13. Motet pour l'offertoire de la Messe rouge H.434 - IV. Justus es Domine

Agnes Mellon, soprano
Isabelle Poulenard, soprano
Henri Ledroit, countertenor
William Kendall, tenor
Peter Kooy, bass
La Chapelle Royale
Philippe Herreweghe – conductor

Recorded: May 1985, Studio 103, La Maison de Radio, France
Released: 2002, Harmonia Mundi HMA 1951185

Only one of four pieces in this anthology of sacred vocal music by Charpentier has previously been issued on LP—and that was a very long time ago. The beautiful little motet Oculi omnium in te sperant Domine, "pour le Saint Sacrement au reposoir", was amongst a group of Charpentier's works conducted by Louis Martini and recorded by Erato in 1953 (never generally available in the UK). That issue, which included, the 'famous Te Deum, and another, directed by Boulanger, of excerpts from the tragedie-lyrique, Macke (Brunswick mono AXTL1049, 7/54—nla), may be justly regarded as the opening salvo in the rehabilitation of Charpentier by the record companies.

Both the Oculi omnium and O Deus, O salvator nosier were written for the traditional processions commemorating the Feast of Corpus Christi. They are striking pieces, mainly on account of their expressive intensity and in that achievement which we now recognize in Charpentier a great master. The more remarkable of the two is, perhaps, the Oculi omnium, where Charpentier creates an atmosphere of deep pathos with extraordinary concision of technique. It's a work of haunting beauty—a microcosm of the composer's meditative style.

The most elaborate and stylistically varied of the pieces is Paravit Dominus, "pour l'offertoire de la Messe Rouge". Scored for five soloists, fourpart choir, flutes, oboes, bassoon, organ and strings, it seems to have been intended for performance during the Mass celebrating the opening of the Paris Parliament in the autumn. It's a late work belonging to Charpentier's years as maitre de musique at the Sainte Chapelle. If the Oculi omnium may be said to be a microcosm of Charpentier's meditative vocabulary, then this motet is no less a miniature compendium both of his sacred and secular styles. The versatility with which the composer merges an extensive range of forms and effects drawn from his knowledge of theatre and church creates a fascinating kaleidoscope whose colours are as uniquely Charpentier's as those of Rameau, for example, are unmistakably his.

The Miserere, which probably dates from the 1690s, is scored for four-part orchestra and chorus with five soloists. Its opening Prelude for strings, is poignantly affecting as, indeed, are the quietly fervent choruses. The solo element is an important one but I did not always feel that the singers voiced their music as confidently as they might. Henri Ledroit is a little unsteady at times though William Kendall, after a hesitant start, settles very well into his part. For the most part though these are convincing performances of music which contains majesty and quiet grandeur—the other side of the grand siècle coin, if you like, and at least as representative of it as the ceremonial splashes of colour which characterize the music for the royal chapel. The recorded sound is effectively resonant in both LP and CD formats. Presentation and full texts are included in both. Warmly recommended. ---Editorial Reviews.

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Actéon, pastorale for chorus, strings & continuo, H 481
- Ouverture
- Choeur des Chasseurs
- Air d'Actéon
- Duo de Chasseurs

Actéon: Paul Crémazy
Diane: Karen Perret
Junon: Sophie Van de Woestyn
Hyale: Martinez Gil Paz
Artébuse: Maria Ogueta
Daphné: Anne-Lise Faucon
Chasseurs: Guillaume Michel / Nicholas Achten

Les arts florissants, idylle en musique, H 487

La musique: Leticia Giuffredi
Peinture: Julien Picard
Poésie: Olga Listova
Architecture: Madjouline Zerari
Discorde: Hugo Oliveira
La Paix: Eugénie Warnier
Un Guerrier: Benjamin Alunni

Orchestre de l'Académie Baroque Européenne d'Ambronay
Conducted by Christophe Rousset
en la Chapelle Royale du Château de Versailles
Enregistré a l'Opéra  Royale  2004

Within the last few years Marc-Antoine Charpentier has become the most recorded French composer of the Grand Siècle. Paradoxically, he has remained a rather elusive figure and this ‘forgotten French Composer’ whom Claude Crussard rediscovered in 1945 scarcely emerges from the realm of ‘lyrical shades’. This resurrection of Charpentier continues to surprise us even now. His work, which touches on so many different domains, seems to have survived virtually intact in the celebrated manuscripts found in the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris. But the history of these works has yet to be uncovered. In fact, apart from a few rare monuments like the Médée or David et Jonathas, these works now being rescued from oblivion are difficult to situate either in time or place.

Charpentier’s career is linked to three main places: between 1679-1680 he was responsible for the sacred music of the Dauphin and for the music of the Princess de Guise. In 1684 he entered the service of the Jesuits of Rue St. Antoine. When did he write Actéon? We know that certain works of this kind were written to entertain the Princess de Guise, such as the musical idyll, Les Arts Florissants which is scored for the instrumental ensemble maintained by this noble personage (two treble viols, harpsichord and bass viol). Upon examination of the score there is no immediate reason to reject the idea that Actéon was written for the Princess. However certain elements suggest other possibilities: e.g. the Plainte in the fourth scene mentions ‘no flutes’ – and yet one can easily imagine two supplementary flutes in the Princess’ ensemble.

Nonetheless, one must continue to assume it was written for a small ensemble. Thus, in the chorus of hunters, ‘Quelle ardeur du soleil’, we find small differences in the harpsichord and the viol parts: ‘the small notes are for the viol, the large ones for the harpsichord.’ This mention of the harpsichord confirms that Actéon was originally intended for a small band. It is this kind of band that the Music Master recommends to Monsieur Jourdain, who aspires to become like ‘the folk of quality’, in Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme: ‘You will need three voices, a soprano, a countertenor and a bass who will be accompanied by a bass viol, a theorbo and a harpsichord for the basso continuo, with two treble violins to play the ritornelli.’

Even so, the dramatic dimensions of Actéon make it a work that exceeds the limits of a ‘private’ musical establishment. The performance by the ensemble Les Arts Florissants is aimed at a larger audience such as that of the Jesuit College. However, the ensemble avoids all pretensions to larger vocal and instrumental forces. Even the choruses are composed of groups of soloists. All the instrumental sections are limited to a scoring in trio. It is even possible to imagine a categorical rejection of all pompous ostentation. The overture with its various sections is contrary to traditional models. What can certainly be found is a desire for colour which characterizes each scene of this Pastorale. The difference between the first two scenes is clearly defined by the use of the keys of D major and A major. In the little treatise written for the future Regent, the Duke of Orléans, Charpentier invests keys with certain qualities: D major is ‘joyful and war-like’, A major is ‘joyful and rural’. This search for colour is constant in each of the scenes. The fourth is very curiously composed of a recitative by Acteon (who has just been transformed into a stag) and a long plaint in C minor (‘obscur et triste’). The listener will also be struck by the various ways in which Charpentier sets the words to music. There are, in fact, very few true recitatives. On the other hand, one notes the frequency of melodic passages, interestingly constructed ensembles, such as Arthebusia’s air alternating with the chorus, Acteon’s long monologue (scene 3), and the final chorus with its various expressive facets.

Actéon is a work which employs the most classical devices of the tragédie en musique established by Lully. Only here, everything is in miniature: the argument, the vocal and instrumental forces, the length. It is a delicate but powerful little work what testifies to the craftsmanship of a composer preparing for an assault on the absolute summits like Médée.

The action takes place in six scenes:

1. Acteon and the hunters are on the tracks of a large quarry. The whole scene is built around a chorus of hunters which is used as a refrain. The scene ends with an instrumental ‘air’.

2. The scene changes to a spring in which Diana and her sisters are bathing. Diana’s recitative soon changes into a dance rhythm which is then taken up and continued by her sisters. A Menuet follows, alternating between the voices and the instruments, and finally Arthebusia’s air (with chorus) modelled after a Gavotte Air.

3. Acteon is tired and takes leave of his companions. He decides to rest in a quiet glade (the traditional ‘sleep scene’ of the tragédie en musique). He sings an extended monologue. Seeing Diana and her sisters, he attemps to hide, but is discovered. A dialogue follows between Acteon and Diana who refuses to listen to his explanation, ‘chance and ill fortune are my only offence’. To prevent him from boasting of what he has seen, Diana and her sisters decide on his fate.

4. In a recitative Acteon beholds himself transformed into a stag. A long instrumental plaint evokes his dismay.

5. The hunters burst in as their hounds go after a stag. They look for Acteon to invite him to join the hunt, ‘come to admire the fury of your hounds setting upon this stag at bay.’

6. Juno announces to the hunters the death of Acteon, changed into a stag and torn to pieces by his hounds. The pastorale ends with a chorus of hunters who express in varying degrees their sorrow and their anger. ---Jerome Lejeune, Translated by Derek Yeld, harmoniamundi.com

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Te Deum 	
1 	Prélude 	1:45
2 	Te Deum Laudamus 	1:18
3 	Te Aeternum Patrem 	1:55
4 	Pleni Sunt Coeli Et Terra 	2:20
5 	Te Per Orbem Terrarum 	3:19
6 	Tu Devicto Mortis Aculeo 	1:07
7 	Judex Crederis 	0:51
8 	Te Ergo Quaesumus 	2:08
9 	Aeterna Fac Cum Sanctis 	3:12
10 	Dignare Domine 	2:03
11 	Fiat Misericordia 	1:51
12 	In Te Domine Speravi 	3:21

Messe De Minuit Pour Noël 
13 	Kyrie 	6:27
14 	Gloria 	6:11
15 	Credo 	11:25
16 	Offertoire 	4:45
17 	Sanctus 	2:49
18 	Agnus Dei 	2:54

Soprano – April Cantelo (tracks: 13 to 18), Eiddwen Harrhy (tracks: 1 to 12),
 		Felicity Lott (tracks: 1 to 12), Helen Gelmar (tracks: 13 to 18)
Alto – Charles Brett (tracks: 1 to 12), James Bowman (tracks: 13 to 18)
Tenor – Ian Partridge
Bass – Christopher Keyte (tracks: 13 to 18), Stephen Roberts (tracks: 1 to 12)
Choir – Choir Of King's College, Cambridge (tracks: 1 to 12)
Orchestra – English Chamber Orchestra (tracks: 13 to 18),
 		Academy Of St. Martin-in-the-Fields (tracks: 1 to 12)
Conductor – David Willocks (tracks: 13 to 18), Philip Ledger (tracks: 1 to 12)

Probably composed in 1690, the Messe de Minuït pour Noël, H 9, is perhaps Marc-Antoine Charpentier’s best-known composition after the Te Deum, H 146. The special appeal of this “Mass for the Midnight Service on Christmas Eve” lies in its use of no fewer than ten traditional French carols while impressively revealing Charpentier’s mastery of the concertante style.

The eight solo vocalists (SSAATTBB) can easily be taken from the chorus. They are divided into three groups – one group of two sopranos and two groups each comprising alto, tenor and bass – which interact with the chorus and instruments. This new edition represents the current state of scholarship and offers a completely revised Urtext of Charpentier’s masterpiece. ---musicroom.com

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Messe Pour Les Trépassés à Huit Voix
A1 	Kyrie, Dies Irae (Début) 	
B1 	Dies Irae (Du Juste Judex À La Fin) 

Motet Pour Les Trépassés à Huit Voix
B2 	Début 	
C1 	Fin 	

Messe Pour Les Trépassés à Huit Voix
C2 	Fin 	

Miserere Des Jesuites à SIx Voix
C3 	Première Partie 	 
D1 	DeuxiÈme Partie

Chorus Of The Gulbenkian Foundation
Gulbenkian Orchestra
Michel Corboz – conductor

The Parisian de Guise family was stricken by multiple tragedies and then commissioned Charpentier to commemorate them in his Mass and Motet for the Dead and a work that has come to be known as Miserere des Jésuites. This is therefore not a particularly upbeat CD, but neither is it glumly mournful, and the works are ample demonstration of the intense expressiveness of Charpentier's imagination and of the individuality of his gift for creating music that steers clear of convention and cliché and goes straight for the heart. --- Stephen Eddins, Rovi

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1. Prélude pour ce que l'on voudra, h. 521 	
2. In odorem unguentorum, h. 51 	
3. Beati omnes qui timent dominum, h. 178 	
4. O sacramentum pietatis, h. 274 	
5. Pie jesu, h. 427 	
6. Super flumina babylonis, h. 170 
7. Sonata no. 1 	
8. Gratiarum actiones pro restituta regis sanitate, h. 341 	
9. Magdalena lugens, h. 343 	
10. Supplicatio pro defunctis, h. 348

Ensemble Correspondances:
Caroline Bardot & Juliette Perret, dessus
Etienne Bazola, basse-taille
Béatrice Linon & Alice Julien-Laferrière, violons
Lucile Perret & Matthieu Bertaud, flûtes
Laurent Dublanchet, basse de viole
Cécile Vérolles, basse de violon
Diego Salamanca & Nicolas Muzy, théorbes
Sébastien Daucé, orgue clavecin et direction

As a rival of Lully, Charpentier principally composed religious music (for the Jesuits, then for Sainte-Chapelle, where he was a music teacher), and theatrical music, most notably for Molière’s comedies and his successors in the "Comédie-Française."

A gentle meslange of timbres, three male voices surrounded by an instrumental ensemble led by Jean-Marc Andrieu's delicate recorder, lends these motets a most characteristic colour, filled with mysticism, expression and depth. Far from the pomp of court, Marc-Antoine Charpentier's style stands out for his time. Imbued with Italianism, it plays with contrasting timbres and keys to endow it with meaning – a true transcription of the soul's passions.

Let us quote Catherine Cessac: "Charpentier's aesthetics remain first and foremost those of expression and emotion, based on contrast, the fragmentation of the musical discourse with the goal of coming as close as possible to the affects (or passions) suggested by the text." ---harmoniamundi.com

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CD1
1. Prologue. Ouverture
2. Louis est triumphant
3. Paroissez, charmante Victoire
4. Le Ciel dans nos voeux sinteresse
5. Loure-Canaries-Suite des Canaries
6. Dans le bel age, si l'on n'est  volage
7. Ouverture (reprise)
8. Acte I. Scene 1. Pour flatter mes ennemis
9. Scene 2. D'ou vous  vient cet air somber
10. Scene 3. Que serois heureux
11. Scene 4. L'Allegresse en ces lieux
12. Scene 5. Seigneur, la Thessalie attaquant vos Estats
13. Scene 6. Courez  aux champs de Mars
14. Acte II. Scene 1. Il est temps de parler

CD2
1. Acte II. Scene 2. Princesse, c'est sur vous que mon espoir se fonde
2. Scene 3. Enfin a ton amour tout espoir  est permis
3. Scene 4. Prince, venez apprendre une heureuse nouvelle
4. Scene 5. Quand son amour seroit extreme
5. Scene 6. Puisqu'un fier enemy
6. Scene 7. Qu'elle est charmante
7. Acte III. Scene 1. L'orage est  violent
8. Scene 2. Vous savez l'exil qu'on m'ordonne
9. Scene 3. Quel prix de mon amour
10. Scene 4. Croiras-tu mon maheur
11. Scene 5. Noires filles du Stix
12. Scene 6. L'Enfer obeit a ta voix
13. Scene 7. Je vois le don fatal

CD3
1. Acte III. Scene 7 (fin). Dieu du Cocyte & des Royaumes sombres
2. Acte IV. Scene 1. Jamais on ne la vit si belle
3. Scene 2 . Ah! Que d'attraits
4. Scene 3. Si-tost que je parois
5. Scene 4. Vous  soupcons estoient vrais
6. Scene 5. D'ou me vient cette horreur
7. Scene 6. Vos adieux sont-ils faits
8. Scene 7. Objets agreables
9. Scene 8. Mon pouvoir t'est connu
10. Scene 9. Noires Divinites
11. Acte V. Scene 1. On ne peut sans effroy
12. Scene 2. Si la pitie vous peut trouver  sensible
13. Scene 3. Venez, parlez
14. Scene 4. Eh bien, barbare
15. Scene 5. Quel feu dans mes veines s'allume
16. Scene 6. Ah, Roy trop malheureux
17. Scene 7. Elle est morte, et je vis!
18. Scene 8. C'est peu, pour contenter la douleur

Jason – Gilles Ragon (tenor)
Medee – Jill Feldman (soprano)
Nerine – Sophie Boulin (soprano)
Creon – Jacques Bona (bass)
Oronte – Philippe Cantor (baritone)
Creuse – Agnes Mellon (soprano)
Les Arts Florissants (Musical group)
William Christie - conductor

This is one of the earliest recordings by William Christie and his famous Les Arts Florissants, and one of their first great successes. This recording won the Gramophone award for the Best Early Opera in 1984, one of the first historically informed performances to win such universal acclaim. Everyone interested in period performance practice should have this recording, together with Christie's 1995 rerecording of this fabulous opera. The comparison between the two versions of the opera reveals a lot about Christie's genius. It is amazing how much the two versions are alike, and yet it is even more amazing, given how great the first version was, how much improvement Christie was able to achieve with his second recording of Medee. Christie's vision of Medee remained fundamentally unchanged between the two recordings, but within that uniform framework he was able to identify and highlight the greatest strenghts of Medee as a remarkably dramatic work, combining the intensely beautiful music with the poignantly dramatic libretto. The second recording followed a series of stage performances that gave Christie and his performers a deeper insight into the work. As a result, the 1995 recording of Medee is truly a thing unto itself; but the 1984 recording nevertheless is more than a mere predecessor - it is also a masterpiece. The recording features a marvelous cast of soloists, with Agnes Mellon especially memorable as Creuse. The singing here is more reserved than on the second Medee; and this is perhaps the main reason Christie chose to rerecord. The 1984 recording also suffers from minor cuts, because of the constraints of the original LP format. The most noticeable cut is the gorgeous solo aria of the Corinthian in the final scene of the first act. Obviously, if you can't spare $$ to buy both recordings, buy the second one. But if you can afford to buy both, you will learn a lot from a comparison between the two. If you're already a Christie fan, you will come away with an even greater respect for him. And if you're relatively new to this kind of music, you will come away with a better understanding of why it deserves your attention. ---amazon.com

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1. Kyrie
2. Gloria
3. Credo (début)
4. Credo (fin)
5. Sanctus
6. Antienne « In odorem unguentorum » pour les vępres de l'Assomption de la Vierge, H. 51
7. Agnus Dei

Martha Angelici (soprano)
Solange Michel (alto)
Jeannine Collard (alto)
Jean Archimbaud (haute-contre)
Jean Giraudeau (ténor)
Louis Noguera (basse)

Chorale des Jeunesses Musicales de France
Ensemble instrumental non identifié
Henriette Roget (orgue)
Louis Martini (direction)

Missa Assumpta est Maria, the last of Charpentier's many mass settings, written about 1700, is considered his greatest work in the genre, and this splendid recording by Hervé Niquet supports that assessment. The mass offers further evidence that Charpentier, whose music was virtually unknown except to scholars until the late twentieth century, deserves a spot in the pantheon of the most exceptional Baroque composers. His music was controversial during his lifetime, and he wrote of his discouragement that he had as many vociferous detractors as supporters. What is most striking to modern listeners is probably the transparent emotion expressed in his music, which gives it an extraordinarily modern sensibility. He is best known for his noble and often achingly poignant religious works, but his secular love songs dazzle with their simplicity and unmannered charm, and other works reveal a wicked wit.

This mass is notable for the warmth of Charpentier's choral and vocal writing, which often has an intensity and harmonic richness that practically give it a Romantic character, particularly in movements like Et incarnatus, from the Credo. ---Stephen Eddins, Rovi

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1. Tristes déserts, sombre retraite, air for soprano & continuo, H. 469
2. Sans frayeur dans ce bois, chaconne for soprano & continuo, H. 467
3. Non, non, je ne l'aime plus, air for for alto (or countertenor) & continuo, H. 455
4. Amour vous avez beau redoubler mes alarmes, air for alto & continuo, H. 445
5. Rendez-moi mes plaisirs, air for alto (or countertenor) & continuo, H. 463
6. Oiseau de ces bocage, air for soprano & continuo, H. 456
7. Quoi! je ne verrai plus, air for alto (or countertenor) & continuo, H. 461
8. Epitaphium Carpentarii, cantata for 6 voices & continuo, H. 474
9. Airs on stanzas from Le Cid, for alto (or countertenor) & continuo, H. 457-59
10. Celle qui fait mon tout tourment, air for soprano & continuo, H. 450
11. Ruisseau qui nourris ce bois, air for soprano & continuo, H. 466
12. Veux-tu, compère Grégoire, air for 3 voices, H. 470
13. Beaux petits yeux d'écarlate, air for 3 voices & continuo, H. 448
14. Ruisseau qui nourris ce bois, air for soprano & continuo, H. 466

Orphée descendant aux enfers, cantata for 3 voices, instruments & continuo, H. 471
15. Prélude
16. Air d'Orphée 'Effroyables enfers où je conduis me
17. Récit d'Orphée
18. Quelle douce harmonie a frappé mon orielle...
19. Air - Orphée 'Vos plus grands criminels...'
20. Ne cherchons plus d'où vient cette tendresse...

Gérard Lesne, countertenor
Cyril Auvity, tenor
Edwin Crossley-Mercer, bass

Il Seminario Musicale
Gérard Lesne – director

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