Lully Phaeton

This is the story of Phaéton, valiant driver of the Sun’s chariot, led here by Vincent Dumestre and Benjamin Lazar, armed with a rich acquaintance of two decades of Lullyist cooperation. Just like at the time, they will make the Versailles Opera resonate with this production of this flamboyant tragédie lyrique which was first presented in Perm in Russia in 2018.

Phaeton was first produced not at the Palais-Royal Theatre in Paris but modestly at Versailles in January 1683. In the spring of that year it transferred to the Palais-Royal and was well enough thought of to enjoy revivals at regular intervals into the early 1740s. Indeed, rather as Atys became known as the ''King's opera'' and Isis as the musicians', Phaeton acquired its sobriquet, ''the opera of the people''. Among the many attractive airs ''Helas! Une chaine si belle'' (Act 5) was apparently a favourite duet of Parisian audiences, while ''Que mon sort serait doux'' (Act 2), another duet, was highly rated by Lully himself. In 1688 Phaeton was chosen to inaugurate the new Royal Academy of Music at Lyon where, as Jerome de la Gorce remarks in his excellent introduction, it was so successful ''that people came to see it from forty leagues around''. The present recording is a co-production between Erato and Radio France, set up to mark the occasion of the opening of the new Opera House at Lyon.

Jean-Baptiste Lully - Phaéton - Vincent Dumestre (2019) {2CD Set Château de Versailles Spectacles CVS015}
XLD rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 771 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 359 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 125 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 2019 Château de Versailles Spectacles | CVS015
Classical / Baroque / Opera / Period Instruments

This is the story of Phaeton, valiant driver of the Sun's chariot, led here by Vincent Dumestre and Benjamin Lazar, armed with a rich partnership of two decades of Lullyist cooperation. Just like at the time, they will make the Versailles Opera resonate with this production of this flamboyant tragedie lyrique which was first presented in Perm in Russia in 2018. Phaeton is a tragedie en musique in a prologue and five acts by Jean-Baptiste Lully. Philippe Quinault wrote the French libretto after a story from Ovid's Metamorphoses.

Founded in 1991 by Christophe Rousset, Les Talens Lyriques are now internationally recognised for their excellence in the Baroque repertoire and their latest recordings in the genre, for Aparté, have earned them international acclaim. After the huge success of 'Bellérophon', they now present Lully's 'Phaéton', recorded at the Salle Pleyel in Paris in October 2012. The critics commented on the admirable clarity and precision of the performance, the perfection of the choruses, sung with veracity by the Namur Chamber Choir, and an ideal cast.

This manuscript, from Christophe Rousset's private collection, was discovered by him in 2004. Dedicated to a Madame de Théobon, it contains not only the essential French harpsichord pieces of the late seventeenth century, but also many transcriptions of compositions by Lully and several hitherto completely unknown preludes. Providing precious insight into the art of the harpsichordist and the musical practices of that time, these pieces are recorded here for the first time. With it's powerful but still austere sound, the Nicolas Dumont harpsichord of 1704 does them full justice.

Voici la bande originale du film de Gérard Corbiau, réalisateur notamment du film Farinelli. On ne peut qu'admirer le soin avec lequel le cinéaste a mis en lumière les conflits et l'admiration réciproque entre les deux astres de Versailles : Louis XIV et Jean-Baptiste Lully. La musique est pétillante d'intelligence, de couleurs, de rebondissements, comme les intrigues de la première cour du monde. Sous la baguette explosive de Reinhard Göbel, le Musica Antiqua Köln révèle les contrastes les plus violents. C'est un bain de jouvence qui nous fait entrer dans un univers de théâtre aussi fascinant… Que dangereux !

This is the story of Phaéton, valiant driver of the Sun’s chariot, led here by Vincent Dumestre and Benjamin Lazar, armed with a rich acquaintance of two decades of Lullyist cooperation. Just like at the time, they will make the Versailles Opera resonate with this production of this flamboyant tragédie lyrique which was first presented in Perm in Russia in 2018.

Versailles: its court, its atmosphere and its music… So many splendours emblematic of a monument with an incomparably rich history. The works associated with the palace have travelled down the centuries and today represent a precious part of our heritage. In this ten-CD set, Alpha retraces the musical life of the unique and luminous universe of Versailles. Le Poème Harmonique, Café Zimmermann, Capriccio Stravagante and many others invite themselves into the company of Jean-Baptiste Lully, Marc-Antoine Charpentier and Jean-Henry d’Anglebert and share with us for a few hours the sumptuous concerts that made Versailles a place like no other.

Here is a very special recording devoted to early 18th-century dance music for which we have recently rediscovered choreographies from the period. Such a discovery may well come as a surprise, since it is not generally realised that, long before the proliferation of various 20th-century systems of dance notation, an earlied system had already been invented and them forgotten, only to be rediscovered within the last few years.