Jul Mental D’or et de Platine

A contemporary of Mozart, Johann Christoph Vogel also died at an early age. Forward looking in approach, this composer of a tormented disposition, sought to extend the operatic revolution undertaken by Gluck in the 1770s. First performed in 1786 at the Opéra de Paris, 'La Toison d’or' reveals that search for an expressive art which demanded an all-embracing involvement from the performers and supplied the music with a sometimes unbearable intensity for audiences of the time.

Ton Koopman, great Dutch organist and harpsichordist sublimating the baroque scene for five decades, here delivers us an overview of the Great Organ (Robert Cliquot/ Julien Tribuot, 1710) of the Royal Chapel of Versailles, inaugurating our collection "L'Вge d'Or de l'Orgue Franзais" (the Golden Age of French Organ). An anthology of the possibilities of this purely "French style" instrument, here are the two great Suites of Clйrambaut, published the same year as the inauguration of the instrument, majestic pieces of Louis and Franзois Couperin, masters of colors, of Daquin's Christmas Music full of sap, and even a Bach Choral! A Master Organist makes a resounding tribute to the symbolic instrument wanted for his Chapel by Louis XIV.

A child wonder who stirred the admiration of the Court, Dandrieu was a virtuoso harpsichordist but above all, organist of the Royal Chapel of Versailles from 1721. He left a corpus of work of a rare inventiveness tracing out the Chapel's most dazzling musical moments under the reign of Louis XV. Here are Magnificats, pieces for Christmas and some splendid hallmark scores that offer snapshots of the liturgical art of the King's Organist at the height of the French baroque. Dandrieu writes for organ the equal of the harpsichord masterpieces of his time. Jean-Baptiste Robin, organist of the Royal Chapel of Versailles, makes the Great Organ ring with majesty, thanks to a decade of close familiarity with this historic instrument.

This is a beautiful, thoughtfully compiled disc. It chronologically charts the life of Jean de La Fontaine, that 17th-century master of the fable, through his own words and through music that sets his text, or that he simply admired. There’s one particular coup: the inclusion of identifiable extracts from the opera by Charpentier that sets a text by La Fontaine. Alas, the whole work did not survive, probably for reasons to do with Lully’s royally granted privilege, but the booklet notes make an excellent case for the association with the opera of the few pieces recorded here.

Various Artists - Les grands compositeurs et leurs oeuvres - XXe Siecle (2008) [3CD] {Fuzeau-Melomaniac}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 921 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 501 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (png) -> 2.10 Gb | 5% repair rar
© 2008 Fuzeau / Melomaniac | 8796/70036-38
Classical / Symphony / Suite / Chamber Music

Proposant une approche globale et sociologique de la musique, la collection Mélomaniac s'est construite sur l'idée forte de toujours placer l'oeuvre musicale, la vie instrumentale ou la pratique vocale au coeur de l'histoire des Hommes. Qu'il s'agisse d'un Pacific 231 d'Honegger illustrant le machinisme du début du XXe siècle, d'une présentation du didjeridoo en relation avec les cultures aborigènes en Australie, ou encore d'un chant sacré gdang des moines tibétains, vous trouverez dans les différents ouvrages Mélomaniac une réelle prise entre les faits musicaux et leur contexte d'existence.

En 2019, les organisateurs – depuis toujours placés sous la direction artistique de René Martin, le fondateur de ce festival – ont choisi la continuité thématique. Après s’être tournés « Vers un monde nouveau » en 2018, ce sont en effet les « Carnets de voyage » qu’ils ont choisi de proposer au public de cette nouvelle édition.

Richard Leech has sung his Raoul to enthusiastic audiences in Berlin and elsewhere, and it is good to hear a voice which has such a clean ring to it, evenly produced and tastefully directed (even if not invariably observing Meyerbeer's detailed instructions). The Valentine is Francoise Pollet, an exceptional singer (especially among the French) in the sympathetic roundness of her tone, exactly right for a good nine-tenths of the role (the remaining fraction calling for more rejoicing on the high Cs). As Nevers, the excellent Gilles Cachemaille gives a courtly, well-schooled performance. –Gramophone