Emmanuelle de Saint Chamas

The French cellist-star Emmanuelle Bertrand (who seems to have forgotten a little something on the cover photo of the album …) embarks here in an exploration of several masterpieces of Saint-Saëns, one of the French composers who most enriched the repertoire of the instrument with two concertos, two other concert works, two completed sonatas and some other isolated works. His first Concerto, given here with the Lucerne Symphony Orchestra, dates from 1872 - the first creative period, still marked by Schumann or Mendelssohn, even though in the harmonic and orchestral limpidity "à la française" of which Saint-Saëns Would always be the defender.

"That’s it done at last, this blasted sonata! Will it please or not? That is the question." So wrote Saint-Saëns, not without humour, of his second ‘quadruped’ for cello and piano. He adored the cello, as is shown by much more than the famous 'Swan'. He wrote three sonatas for it, but unfortunately the last two movements of the Third Sonata have been lost and what is left survives only in manuscript. Emmanuelle Bertrand and Pascal Amoyel play it here with emotion and total respect. The Concerto also included here is today one of the ‘musts’ of the concertante repertory for cello.

Thibault Noally and his ensemble here reaffirm their love for and expertise in Alessandro Scarlatti's music as they celebrate his anniversary year with his famous and yet mysterious Stabat mater, a work that displays Scarlatti's more intimate side.In Noally's own words, "this is an extreme example of his stylistic eclecticism.

This reverie offered by Brice Sailly in homage to François Couperin is presented in the guise of a trip to Arcadia, that utopian land which lies hidden in the heart of European geography. The selected harpsichord pieces, most of them evoking childhood and the birth of love, sit beside excerpts from the Concerts royaux that set the scene rather as Watteau might have done, leaving to the less well-known airs de cour the task of describing sentiments in words. Couperin discreetly whispers the most luminous of truths. Here all is benevolence, a smile on the lips, a light heart, and melancholy is gently dismissed in favour of consolation.

This reverie offered by Brice Sailly in homage to François Couperin is presented in the guise of a trip to Arcadia, that utopian land which lies hidden in the heart of European geography. The selected harpsichord pieces, most of them evoking childhood and the birth of love, sit beside excerpts from the Concerts royaux that set the scene rather as Watteau might have done, leaving to the less well-known airs de cour the task of describing sentiments in words. Couperin discreetly whispers the most luminous of truths. Here all is benevolence, a smile on the lips, a light heart, and melancholy is gently dismissed in favour of consolation.

Emmanuelle, inspirada en la novela de Marayat Rollet-Andriane, deviene en un bello poema, en manos de Crepax, sobre la aventura del sexo, alejándose por completo de eventuales reiteraciones gráficas y temáticas que pudieran aducirse con respecto a las precedentes Bianca e Historia d'O; la puesta en escena, aprovechando el tercer-mundismo de la localización geográfica, tanto para incisivas anotaciones, como para dar el preciso sentido a este viaje hacia un presunto exotismo erótico, renueva las propias innovaciones anteriores de Guido Crepax. (Extracto del prólogo de Javier Coma)

At the end of the world, on the mythical island of Ogygia, while Neptune unleashes a storm, the inconsolable Calypso tries to seduce a handsome young castaway named Telemachus… Will Ulysses' son respond to the nymph's dangerous charms? Will he manage, as a humble mortal in the scheme of the gods, to escape the island where his father was once a prisoner ? A quintessential Homeric epic, Télémaque & Calypso is a flamboyant tribute to Destouches' own dramatic efficiency, and his particular attention to "lively speech" and natural declamation. After Sémiramis, Sylvain Sartre continues his brilliant journey through the masterpieces of the adventurous composer and musketeer, which are now finally revealed.

This is a full recording of the original Italian version (the “Vienna version” from 1762) of Gluck’s beloved take on the Orpheus myth, Orfeo et Euridice PLUS extra music written by Gluck for later performances of his opera. It includes virtuoso arias for Fagioli and as such represents a brilliant showcase for him and a collectible item for connoisseurs. This is Franco Fagioli’s first ever recording of a complete opera in which he sings the title role and since, the role has become one of Franco’s calling cards in recent seasons. It is known for its absolutely gorgeous music, including one of opera’s most audience-pleasing tunes, the uber-famous aria “Che farò senza Euridice”. This version of the opera (by far the most popular one) appears for the first time ever on period instruments on DG / Archiv, hence filling a major gap in our catalogue and is a substantial project featuring one of our exciting new signings in one of his finest roles.

One of the most impressive public festivals in baroque Rome was held in honour of Louis XIV in 1687. To celebrate the King's recovery after the successful operation on his anal fistula, and to establish his prestige as the undisputed protector of the Catholic Church, Cardinal d'Estrées, the French ambassador to the Holy See, organised a grandiose open-air celebration in one of Rome's most famous urban theatres: the Pincio Hill, between the Trinità dei Monti and the Spanish Steps.

The most impressive public celebration in baroque Rome was given in honour of Louis XIV in 1686. To celebrate the undisputed protector of the Catholic Church, and one year later the successful operation on the anal fistula of the Great King, the French Ambassador organised a grandiose open-air event on the Pincian hill, between the Trinità dei Monti and the Piazza di Spagna. Corelli's prestigious orchestra in full formation performed "Sinfonie" with trumpets and timpani, accompanied by fireworks.