Boesset: Airs de cour

Boesset: Madame de la Fayette
Airs de cour / La Princesse de Clèves (extraits)
Ensemble Gradiva - Alain Zaepffel
Adès 204722

Contents:

  1. Noires forêts (4 voices, lute)
  2. Objet divin de ma pensée (countertenor, lute)
  3. La Magnificence et la galanterie... (recitant)
  4. Jamais n'aurai-je le pouvoir (4 voices, lute)
  5. Il parut alors une beauté à la cour... (recitant)
  6. Un jour Amarille et Tirsis (4 voices, viol, lute)
  7. Cette princesse était sur son lit... (recitant)
  8. Non je ne saurai plus fiendre (countertenor, lute)
  9. N'espérez plus, mes yeux (countertenor, lute)
  10. Il y a des personnes... (recitant)
  11. Ennuis, désespoirs et douleurs (countertenor, lute)
  12. Me veux-tu voir mourir? (4 voices, lute)
  13. Alors que d'un discours hardi (countertenor, lute)
  14. Madame la dauphine... (recitant)
  15. Cléandre voyant de retour (4 voices, lute)
  16. Ils s'en vont ces rois de ma vie (countertenor, lute)
  17. Ne délibérons plus (countertenor, lute)
  18. Cependant monsieur de Clèves... (recitant)
  19. N'espérez plus mes yeux (4 voices, lute)
  20. La douleur de cette princesse... (recitant)
  21. Doux complices de mes ennuis (4 voices, lute)

Performers: Alain Zaepffel (countertenor), Marcel Bozonnet (recitant), Claire Antonini (lute), Véronique Dietschy (soprano), Christophe Le Paludier (tenor), Jacques Bona (bass), Marianne Muller (viol)

Playing time: 53'

Recording date: December 1994

Anthoine Boesset (1586-1643) was one of the leading court song composers to Louis XIII (1617-43). The present collection includes airs written between 1615 & 1643, the two ends of Boesset's career. Also included is the famous track #12 which was the outcome of a discussion with Descartes in which it was argued by a Dutch composer that rational methods would yield the best results toward obtaining emotion in song (the Dutch composer lost).

The "recitant" selections above are spoken poetry (despite the fact that the "récit" was a song form in this genre).

Other recordings devoted to Boesset:

Je meurs sans mourir
Boesset: Airs de cour and court-ballet music from the time of Louis XIII
Le Poème Harmonique - Vincent Dumestre
Alpha 057
Boesset: Madame de Lafayette
Ensemble Gradiva - Alain Zaepffel
Accord 476 2510

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Todd M. McComb