Marc-Antoine Charpentier composed about 35 histoires sacrées, essentially the same genre as the oratorio that had been developed by Giacomo Carissimi
in Rome in the mid-seventeenth century. The texts were most frequently
taken from the Hebrew Bible (although one of the works here has as its
subject the Nativity), and most are relatively brief; the three included
here last from about 12 to 37 minutes. The histoires sacrées primarily
consist of solos and dialogues in the style of recitatives, in which
singers take the roles of the characters in the drama, with a chorus
acting as narrator. Only occasionally do soloists have what is
conventionally understood as an aria, and when they do, the arias are
not an excuse for showy vocalism, but have the purpose of advancing the
drama, albeit with heightened melodic lyricism. For the listener who can
put aside the expectations of the late Baroque oratorios of Handel or J.S. Bach, these intimate and deeply expressive works are immensely rewarding. Charpentier
had a real gift for creating and managing dramatic tension through
music, and these little gems have the character of brief operas. The
longest of the three, Mors Saülis et Jonathae, has developed characters
with musical individuality and a poignant story with an elegant dramatic
arc. The ensemble Il Seminario Musicale, founded and conducted by French countertenor Gérard Lesne,
performs these works with consummate musicality and sensitive attention
to the subtleties of the texts. The soloists, including Lesne
himself, sing with clear understanding of middle Baroque French
performance practice and with robust, clean tone, and persuasively
convey the emotion and theatricality of the stories. Naïve's sound is
intimate, but with a nice sense of spaciousness. (Stephen Eddins)Marc-Antoine Charpentier composed about 35 histoires sacrées, essentially the same genre as the oratorio that had been developed by Giacomo Carissimi
in Rome in the mid-seventeenth century. The texts were most frequently
taken from the Hebrew Bible (although one of the works here has as its
subject the Nativity), and most are relatively brief; the three included
here last from about 12 to 37 minutes. The histoires sacrées primarily
consist of solos and dialogues in the style of recitatives, in which
singers take the roles of the characters in the drama, with a chorus
acting as narrator. Only occasionally do soloists have what is
conventionally understood as an aria, and when they do, the arias are
not an excuse for showy vocalism, but have the purpose of advancing the
drama, albeit with heightened melodic lyricism. For the listener who can
put aside the expectations of the late Baroque oratorios of Handel or J.S. Bach, these intimate and deeply expressive works are immensely rewarding. Charpentier
had a real gift for creating and managing dramatic tension through
music, and these little gems have the character of brief operas. The
longest of the three, Mors Saülis et Jonathae, has developed characters
with musical individuality and a poignant story with an elegant dramatic
arc. The ensemble Il Seminario Musicale, founded and conducted by French countertenor Gérard Lesne,
performs these works with consummate musicality and sensitive attention
to the subtleties of the texts. The soloists, including Lesne
himself, sing with clear understanding of middle Baroque French
performance practice and with robust, clean tone, and persuasively
convey the emotion and theatricality of the stories. Naïve's sound is
intimate, but with a nice sense of spaciousness. (Stephen Eddins)
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