Marc Antoine

Marc-Antoine Charpentier's (1643-1704) deeply soulful vocal works are among the most immediately appealing pieces of the middle Baroque. He had a gift for grateful, lyrical vocal writing that's expressively expansive and avoids the patterned clichés that sometimes hobble music of that era. This collection features a variety of works, including songs, a cantata, and a short opera-like scene in the form of a motet, Epithalium Carpenterij, that's quite unlike anything else in the musical repertoire. It's a wickedly funny tombeau, or musical memorial tribute, which Charpentier writes in his own honor.

Guitarist Marc Antoine has established himself as a musician who brings out a distinctive sound mixing classical, Latin jazz and flamenco styles. This style has helped him gain momentum in the smooth jazz genre to release CDs that consistently top the charts.

Marc-Antoine Charpentier - Ensemble Correspondances under Sebastien Dauce - Litanies de la Vierge (2013) {Harmonia Mundi}
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© 2013 Harmonia Mundi | HMC 902169
Classical / Baroque

In their first release on harmonia mundi France, Sébastien Daucé and his musicians present a sumptuous interpretation of the six-voice motets composed by Marc-Antoine Charpentier for the House of Guise. These works, headed by the Miserere, constitute an unexpected parenthesis in the music of the Grand Siècle. The creative genius, the inwardness and the intense fervour of a composer surrounded by his faithful company of singers and instrumentalists speak to us all the more intimately because Charpentier appears here as both copyist (the surviving scores are in his handwriting) and performer – he sang the haute-contre part.

The performances on this lovely album of vocal and instrumental music by Marc-Antoine Charpentier make it a recording that should delight the composer's fans and anyone who loves the music of the Baroque. Listeners should be warned that the packaging and even the composer's titles create expectations of music of a very different character from what is actually presented. The three Leçons de Ténèbres of the title, scored for bass and chamber orchestra, refer to baleful texts taken from the Lamentations of Jeremiah describing the fall and abasement of Jerusalem, and were written for services on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday of Holy Week, the darkest days in the Christian liturgical calendar.

This is another absolute gem, in which Herve Niquet and his ensemble, Le Concert Spirituel, show sparkling variety. (Classic CD)

Ma rencontre avec la musique de Charpentier remonte à mes années d'études aux Etats-Unis, au cours desquelles mes professeurs avaient l'habitude de parler de cette musique et de la montrer. J'ai ainsi découvert le "Reniement de Saint-Pierre" dans une anthologie de musique religieuse…Je me souviens aussi avoir entendu du Charpentier chanté en traduction anglaise, parfois aussi en latin par certains chœurs de paroisses protestantes. C'est là que j'ai pris connaissance de la "Pastorale sur la naissance de Notre Seigneur Jésus-Christ".William Christie

La première biographie d'une figure de proue de l'histoire antique.
Malheur au vaincu ! La vie et la personnalité de Marc Antoine (83-30 avant J.-C.) ont été dépréciées avant d'être occultées, alors qu'il s'agit d'un acteur essentiel de la Rome antique au tournant de son histoire. …

Lully may have had a monopoly on the performance of actual opera in France, but David et Jonathas is effectively a sacred opera composed for performance at Jesuit colleges. The work is comprised mostly of arias and choruses; what recitative there is is unusually dramatic–especially in Saul's confrontation with David and his visit to the Witch of Endor to summon the ghost of Samuel. (Dominique Visse as the Witch deserves special mention for a convincing performance in a role that could easily descend into camp.) William Christie's choir and orchestra perform with all the expertise you'd expect; Monique Zanetti makes a rather feminine Jonathan but sings beautifully. In the role of David, the sensitive and heroic countertenor voice of Gérard Lesne is extraordinary.