Philippe Petit

Here is a recording that at last does justice to the extraordinary music of Hotteterre. Hotteterre's music is surely some of the most lyrical and melodic music ever written for the transverse flute. It some of the first music ever written to feature the instrument. Dupré breathes new life into these three suites, which are both joyous and dark. The color produced by the skilled combination and variance of harpsichord, viola ga gamba, and theorbo playing the continuo part is fantastic. This is a superlative recording, worthy of a price many times what it is. I have heard several recordings of these suites, and this is certainly the best.

The title of the first volume in Bertrand Cuiller's projected series on Harmonia Mundi, François Couperin L'Alchimiste: Un petit théâtre du monde, hints at the background of these French Baroque pieces for harpsichord, which were often inspired by the colorful society surrounding the composer. Couperin's titles have always intrigued listeners with their mysterious allusions, and the teasing quality of the music often reveals a quirky sense of humor, though the titles and musical images point to a tradition that extended from Renaissance literature and the practices of the French lute school: to make a piece emblematic of some person, object, or quality by giving it a symbolic title.

Originally composed for the funeral of the dauphine, Princess Marie-Anne-Christine-Victoire of Bavaria, on May 1, 1690, this remarkable setting of Dies irae was revised in 1711, either because of the dauphin's death, or that of Lalande's two daughters, both distinguished sopranos ; all died from smallpox within a period of six weeks. Lully's setting of Dies irae, for the death of the queen in 1683, had shown the possibilities of this text as a grand motet for soloists, choirs and orchestra. But it was Lalande, seven years later, who developed the concept, and produced a much more striking result - perhaps the first setting of Dies irae in the history of music where the composer exploited in such dramatic style the contrasts inherent in the 18 rhyming stanzas and final couplet of this 13th-century poem.

Rameau’s career was nearing its end when the rehearsals of his last composition, Les Boréades, began at the Académie Royale de Musique, in spring 1764. The death of the composer in September interrupted the production of his lyric tragedy, which was only saw the light of day two centuries later! This magnificent opera is certainly the most accomplished of Rameau’s works, composed as he was aged eighty and in full possession of his creative means: the composition for orchestra and choir is highly virtuoso, the melodic invention exceptional, the drama powerful: a true musical testament.

Une présidente de la République féministe à qui un sondage révèle qu’une certaine Blanche-Neige est plus intelligente qu’elle… Une descendante du Petit Chaperon rouge vêtue de bleu marine qui se croit plus maligne que tout le monde, et enferme sa grand-mère dans la cage au loup du Jardin des Plantes… Un enfant maltraité par son oncle et dont chaque larme qui coule se transforme en cigarette…

Laissez-vous emporter dans l'histoire de ces hommes et femmes d'exception !
Découvrez la Grande Guerre sous un angle nouveau : celui de ces hommes et femmes de l'ombre, agents secrets d'Etat ou autodidactes indépendants, qui ont oeuvré à couvert, à leurs risques et périls, pour rendre possible la victoire.
Laissez-vous transporter dans le quotidien de ces hommes et femmes d'exception …

Bouvard : 90 ans de portraits crachés
Presque un demi siècle après Un oursin dans le caviar, Philippe Bouvard donne avec Des grumeaux dans la passoire une suite à ce qui fut le best-seller de l'année 1973. (Eh oui, déjà !)
Une cascade de souvenirs souvent indiscrets et une galerie de portraits hauts en couleurs : Les présidents de Vincent Auriol à Emmanuel Macron ; les stars de Bardot à Delon ; les génies de Salvador Dali à Marcel Pagnol; …

L’histoire du XVIIe siècle se souvient peu de Pierre-Paul de Fortia, petit noble du sud de la France, bien qu’il ait servi et se soit illustré sous trois rois : Henri IV, Louis XIII et Louis XIV. Pour le royaume, contre les protestants, il va participer activement aux sièges de Montauban et de La Rochelle et à la pacification du Languedoc. Il subira la peste de 1630. Gouverneur de Marseille et capitaine de galère, il sera le vainqueur de la bataille navale d’If contre une armada espagnole et essayera de rendre le sort des galériens moins misérable. Il lui faudra également veiller sur sa famille. …