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CD reviews
Jean-Baptiste LULLY (1632 - 1687): "Miserere" ("Grand Motets - Volume 2")
Les Épopées
Dir: Stéphane Fuget
rec: March 6 - 8, Versailles Chapelle Royale
Château de Versailles Spectacles - CVS059 (© 2022) (66'20")
Liner-notes: E/D/F; lyrics - translations: E/D/F
Cover & track-list
Scores
Jubilate Deo (LWV 77,xvi);
Miserere (LWV 25);
Quare fremuerunt gentes (LWV 67)
Caroline Arnaud, Lili Aymonino, Gwendoline Blondeel, Claire Lefilliâtre, Jeanne Lefort, Ileana Ortiz, Lucy Page, Kumi Sakamoto, Marie Zaccarini, dessus;
Ambroisine Bré, Océane Deweirder, Ayako Yukawa, bas-dessus;
Cyril Auvity, Clément Debieuvre, Serge Goubioud, Lisandro Pelegrina, haute-contre;
Marco Angioloni, Marc Mauillon, Sébastien Obrecht, taille;
Benoît Arnould, Vlad Crosman, Imanol Iraola, basse-taille;
Geoffroy Buffière, Thierry Cartier, Frédéric Caton, Renaud Delaigue, Olivier Gourdy, basse
Marie Hervé, Bertrand Blondel, Frédéric Naël, recorder;
Laura Duthuillé, Luc Marchal, oboe;
Arnaud Condé, Mélanie Flahaut, bassoon;
Volny Hostiou, serpent;
Josef Zak, Charlotte Grattard, Yun Hwa Lee, Hélène Decoin, Maud Sinda, Sabine Cormier, Louise Ayrton, Augustin Lusson, dessus de violon;
Maialen Loth, Satryo Yudomartono, Géraldine Roux, haute-contre de violon;
Céline Cavagnac, Leila Pradel, Diane Omer, taille de violon;
Laurence Martinaud, Younyoung Kim, quinte de violon;
Julien Hainsworth, Marjolaine Cambon, François Gallon, Albéric Boullenois, Marc Alomar, basse de violon;
Ludovic Coutineau, grosse basse de violon;
Pierre Rinderknecht, Nicolas Wattinne, theorbo;
Loris Barrucand, harpsichord;
Marie van Rhijn, organ
A few years ago the French label Château de Versailles Spectacles started a series of recordings of grands motets, which were written and performed in France since the mid-17th century, and remained popular until the French Revolution. This is the second disc devoted to the contributions of Jean-Baptiste Lully to this important genre. Whereas the form of the grand motet is well-known, its liturgical function is probably not. What place did it take in the liturgy?
At the Chapelle Royale, every day a mass was celebrated, and part of each mass were a grand motet, a petit motet and a setting of the text Domine salvum fac regem (Lord, save the king). The petit motet was performed during the Elevation, and this was a widespread practice across the Catholic part of Europe. Domine salvum fac regem was a typical French addition, reflecting the importance of the king and the monarchy. This brings us to one of the main features of the liturgy in France, where the king was basically the head of the church. This was formally laid down in 1682 in a declaration known as the Quatre Articles. This position gave him the freedom to adapt the liturgy. This resulted not only in the introduction of a setting of Domine salvum fac regem at the end of the mass, but also of a grand motet during the first part. As Thomas Leconte, in his liner-notes, puts it: "For the king's mass, in a sort of double liturgy - one for God, the other for the king - the rite dictated by Rome was retained but was to be recited in a low voice by the celebrant, while the king simultaneously heard the motets performed by the Musique de la Chapelle."
That was not all. Even the texts could be adapted, as the Jubilate Deo shows. Grand motets were usually settings of psalms or 'neo-Latin' poetry. The motet Jubilate Deo opens with the first verse of Psalm 100, but the piece as a whole is a selection of verses from several psalms. It was written for a special occasion, the Treaty of the Pyrenees, which was signed in November 1659 and ended the Franco-Spanish War that had started in 1635. This, and Louis XIV's marriage to Maria Theresia of Austria, Infanta of Spain, united the two countries. That was reason enough for a celebration, and apart from a Te Deum, written by Pierre Robert, maître de musique of Notre-Dame cathedral, the motet Jubilate Deo by Lully was performed in the church of the Convent of the Fathers of the Mercy. Later it was performed several times at court. Notable is that these performances were among the first, in which the Vingt-quatre violons du roi participated. This ensemble had been founded in 1626 and was responsible for the musical accompaniment of festivities and official events at court. Not only were the verses chosen for the occasion, some verses were adapted. The fourth section includes the phrase: "Jubilate in conspectu regis" - Rejoice before the king. Originally, the original text has here: "the Lord, the king". This is repeated in the penultimate section. Unfortunately, the English and German translations ignore this important element. The text includes some pretty dramatic sections, and that is not lost on Lully. An example is the third section: " He breaketh the bow, and cutteth the spear in sunder; He burneth the chariot in the fire. (...) Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all the earth: make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise."
Miserere mei Deus is one of the seven penitential psalms, which were specially performed during Holy Week. Lully's setting dates from 1663 and was first performed on 29 March of that year. It was not only performed during Passiontide, but also at funeral services, such as that in memory of the chancellor Pierre Séguier (who had died in January) on 5 May 1672. It soon became one of Lully's best-known sacred works, and it still is. In 1684 it was printed, along with five other motets by Lully, "by express command of His Majesty". The text offers many opportunities for diversification, which Lully did not overlook. A broad palette of affetti is displayed here, and Lully cleverly explores the contrasts between grand choeur and petit choeur and differentiates between five- and three-part episodes in the orchestra.
The grand motet is often defined as a sacred work for soloists, choir and orchestra. That is not incorrect, but not very precise. In fact, it is not so much solo voices and choir that are juxtaposed, but a petit choeur and a grand choeur. The former consists of solo voices, in Jubilate Deo up to eight. The present disc offers not only three specimens of Lully's contributions to the genre, but also demonstrates its stylistic development. Whereas in the two motets discussed above the tutti sections are alternating with sections for petit choeur, mostly of several voices, in Quare fremuerunt gentes individual voices play a larger role. It is one of Lully's last motets, and was written at another special occasion, the signing of the Truce of Regensburg on 15 August 1684, which ended the War of the Reunions. It is a setting of Psalm 2, which proclaims God's sovereignty against the pretensions of worldly rulers. As Louis XIV saw himself as God's representative on earth, this psalm should warn anyone who may doubt his sovereignty. With a reference to the above-mentioned Quatre Articles, Thomas Leconte writes: "It was to Louis XIV, sovereign by divine right, and to no one else, that the mission that God had once entrusted to David now fell." He also points out that this has to be seen in the light of the preparation of the revocation of the Edict of Nantes, and with that the oppression of Protestants. "[Do] we not hear in the concluding chorus the clergy and the people of France being warned that they are assured of the double royal and divine protection only on condition of their total obedience?" The text includes quite some belligerent episodes, and that is fully explored by Lully. In this work we also observe the influence of his operas, as this work is substantially more dramatic and theatrical, almost in Italian style. This is further emphasized by the role of solo voices.
In recordings of grands motets, the solo parts are often sung by singers who do not participate in the tutti episodes. As here the starting point is the motet in its early stages, they are part of the vocal ensemble, and some of its members act as petit choeur. That lends these performances a strong amount of coherence: these motets are treated here as ensemble pieces, in which some sections are performed by members of the ensemble. The passages for solo voices or petit choeur are performed in a quite declamatory manner, and that suits the expression of the text. I was quite happy with the first volume, and this second volume is a worthy sequel. We have here excellent, expressive performances, and when the text and the music ask for it, there is no lack of drama either.
This disc and its predecessor include seven of the twelve grands motets that Lully has written. I am looking forward to recordings of the remaining motets.
Johan van Veen (© 2022)
Relevant links:
Les Épopées