Charpentier David

Marc-Antoine Charpentier is the only composer of the age of Louis XIV to have distinguished himself so remarkably in the genre of the ‘sacred history’: he wrote more than thirty such works, all composed after his residence in Italy.
Sébastien Daucé and the Ensemble Correspondances have carefully extracted from this outstanding corpus a number of gems that reflect both his experience in Rome (probably studying with Carissimi, the master of the oratorio) and the humanist concerns of an entire period.

Long completely forgotten and then hailed, in the twentieth century, as a Baroque genius, Charpentier was born in Paris, in 1643. In the mid-1660s, he traveled to Rome, where he spent three years studying with Carissimi and mastering the Italian style. Upon his return to Paris, Charpentier accepted employment and patronage from the powerful and pious Marie de Lorraine, known as Mademoiselle de Guise, last scion of the illustrious Guise family. In 1627, already known for his religious music, Charpentier agreed to provide incidental music for Molière's comedies. With astounding facility, the church composer wrote witty, charming, and delightful music in perfect consonance with Molière's comedic genius, as exemplified by the extraordinary score for Le Malade imaginaire.

Marc-Antoine Charpentier is the only composer of the age of Louis XIV to have distinguished himself so remarkably in the genre of the ‘sacred history’: he wrote more than thirty such works, all composed after his residence in Italy. Sébastien Daucé and the Ensemble Correspondances have carefully extracted from this outstanding corpus a number of gems that reflect both his experience in Rome (probably studying with Carissimi, the master of the oratorio) and the humanist concerns of an entire period. Like a miniature opera, each piece relates an exemplary destiny, including several strong-willed women (Judith, Cecilia, Mary Magdalene) and a deep friendship put to the test (Mors Saülis and Jonathæ).

This is an attractive programme of comparatively rare vocal repertoire. Airs de cour by Charpentier (including verses from Corneille’s Le Cid) and Lambert are interpersed with instrumental movements from Couperin’s Les Nations. Cyril Auvity is an experienced advocate of the haute-contre repertoire and draws on all that experience to engage fully with the texts of these miniature dramas. His tone in the higher register can verge on the harsh, though this is a rare event.

Charpentier's Te Deum written in the bright key of D major features a four-part choir and eight soloists. It displays the composer's total command of religious music combined with a gift for melodic writing. Brilliant and majestic, yet profound, this Te Deum (Charpentier wrote four Te deums) was probably composed to celebrate the victory at Steinkerque in August 1692 during the wars against the countries of the League of Augsburg. [The struggle would eventually be in vain; and Strasburg, and the Palatine succession lost to France].

Cyril Auvity heads the cast in a new recording of Marc-Antoine Charpentier’s La Descente d’Orphée aux enfers in a production being released by Glossa. Auvity is the lovelorn Orpheus who ventures, with his lyre, into the Underworld to plead with Pluto (Etienne Bazola) for the return of his Eurydice (Céline Scheen), struck down in her prime by a snakebite, being encouraged in his efforts by Proserpine, the wife of the ruler of Hades (Floriane Hasler).

This is a mixed bag, but it is a mixture of wonderful stuff put together with considerable expertise. Marc-Antoine Charpentier was a major composer of the French Baroque, served at the Sainte-Chappelle in Paris, and wrote much music of solemnity and grandeur, but was also principal composer for the Comedie Française where he wrote music of a lighter nature. What we get here is mainly the latter, more directly entertaining Charpentier, and we get it in the forms of airs serieux, which are refined songs intended for court circles, and airs a boire, in a more popular style.

Yet another fine early music ensemble pops up for the holiday season, courtesy of Analekta. Masques has assembled a charming program of Christmas music from the Baroque period, which of course basically sounds like any other kind of Baroque music, but it's pleasing and spunky nevertheless. The highlights are the two sets of instrumental Noëls by Charpentier and Delalande, which present a festive garland of Christmas tunes in colorful instrumental garb, recorders well to the fore. They are delightful. Schiassi's Concerto for Strings ends with one of those wonderful pastoral numbers, thus establishing its seasonal credentials in the Corellian tradition.