musica Dei donum
CD reviews
Joseph Bodin DE BOISMORTIER (1689 - 1755): Les Quatre Saisons
Lili Aymoninoa, Sarah Charlesb, soprano;
Enguerrand de Hys, tenorc;
Marc Mauillon, baritoned
Orchestre de l'Opéra Royal
Dir: Chloé de Guillebon
rec: Oct 31 - Nov 3, 2023, Versailles, Petit Trianon (chapel)
Château de Versailles Spectacles - CVS144 (© 2025) (75'41")
Liner-notes: E/D/F; lyrics - translations: E/D
Cover, track-list & booklet
Scores
Spotify
Le Printemsb;
L'Étéc;
L'Automned;
L'Hivera
Marta Gawlas, transverse flute;
Koji Yoda, Akane Hagihara, violin;
Natalia Timofeeva, viola da gamba;
Léa Masson, theorbo;
Chloé de Guillebon, harpsichord
Joseph Bodin de Boismortier was one of the most productive and most fashionable composers of his time. Like his German contemporary Georg Philipp Telemann, he composed a large amount of instrumental music for amateurs, which was interesting but technically not too complicated. His large production has worked against him, as it was considered superficial and hardly worth to be performed. That seems to have changed: in recent years quite a number of recordings of his music have been released; one can find reviews elsewhere on this site.
The largest part of his oeuvre consists of instrumental music. However, he also wrote vocal music: apart from some works for the stage, he wrote airs à boire and airs sérieux, cantatas and cantatilles, and some sacred works. This part of his oeuvre has received little attention, but the four cantatas that are the subject of the disc under review are the exception. As far as I have been able to check, this is the fourth recording of Les quatres saisons. They are specimens of a popular genre in his time, which was inspired by the Italian chamber cantata, but had a character of its own, which has some similarity with French opera.
The title of these cantatas immediately makes one think of Antonio Vivaldi's famous cycle of violin concertos. However, they have little in common, except that the cantatas refer to the same kind of features of the various seasons as Vivaldi's Quattro Stagioni. The notable exception, apart from the difference in scoring, is that Boismortier's cantatas refer to antique mythology, very much like the Italian chamber cantatas of his time.
The cantatas were first published separately, but even so intended as a cycle from the outset. The title page of Le Printems, apparently published in March 1724, stated: "The author will give the three other seasons in succession, which will make up the whole book". They were also published collectively as the Op. 5; the year of publication is not given in the liner-notes or in New Grove. The single edition of Le Printems was dedicated to Anne Louise Bénédicte de Bourbon, who was married to the Duke of Maine, legitimised son of Louis XV; she revelled in politics and the arts, and held a popular salon at the Hôtel du Maine as well as at the Château de Sceaux. Julien Dubruque (Centre de musique baroque de Versailles), in his liner-notes, suggests that the entire cycle may originally have been intended for performance at the Château de Sceaux. However, when the four cantatas were published as a cycle, they had a different dedicatee: a certain M. Chambon, general tax collector for farms.
The four cantatas are different in scoring. Le Printems, L'Été and L'Hiver are for dessus (soprano), L'Automne for basse-taille (baritone). However, the part of the dessus in cantatas could also be sung by a male voice at an octave lower. The instrumental scoring also varies: Le Printems and L'Automne have a part for one treble instrument (transverse flute or violin), whereas L'Été has only a part for the basso continuo. The last cantata, L'Hiver, is different, in that it is consistently scored in four parts: voice, transverse flute, two violins and basso continuo. It is also the longest of the four, taking twice as much time as each of the other cantatas.
The libretto, apparently by an unknown author, consistently connects the typical features of the various seasons to figures from antique mythology. The subject of Le Printems is the rebirth of nature, and the opening recitative mentions Zephyrus, the god and personification of the western wind, Pan, the god of the wild, shepherds and flocks, the "amorous Satyr", nymphs, Flora, goddess of flowers and spring, the Sun, the "wet Naiads", Sylvans, Fauns and Dryads. The ensuing aria refers to Procne and Philomela, and this brings in a tragic element, as Tereus, Procne's husband, had raped his sister-in-law Philomela, and to keep her from revealing his crime, had her
tongue cut out and kept in a safe place. The gods turn the sisters into a swallow and a nightingale respectively, which explains their association with Spring. Notable are the imitation of the chalumeau, the connection between Spring and love, and the turn from the third to the first person in the last recitative and aria.
L'Été reflects the contrasting emotions with regard to the natural phenomena connected to it: "The scorching heatwave has dried up our fountains, dried up our woods and fields. The gentle Zephyrs refuse their breath; all languishes, all perishes in these burning climes." These feelings lend this cantata a dramatic character. However, "thine fires, which I dare complain of here, open to us the precious treasures of Ceres; fill us with good things from the Goddess". At the end the protagonist welcomes the Night, the time of "silence and mystery".
L'Automne is the brightest of the four cantatas, in the key of D major, according to Marc-Antoine Charpentier "joyous and warlike". It is the season of harvest and that is the thread of this cantata. The first aria has the character of a air à boire; the voice is accompanied by an obbligato instrument. The cantata is dominated by 'gai' rhythms, and the Italian influence in Boismortier's music manifests itself here.
L'Hiver opens not with a recitative, but an aria, which expresses the longing for a return of the "charming Zephyrs" and "brilliant Flora". It then describes that the birds don't sing anymore, the winds "spread terror", there is no fruit, torrents destroy the countryside, and "the god who spreads light, barely glances down upon these woeful climes." However, there is a different side to Winter, such as music and entertainment; Apollo, the Muses, Comus and Bacchus make their appearances. The last aria concludes: "Sweet Spring revives and beautifies nature, Summer covers our fields with abundant harvests. Autumn makes wine; cold weather is a time to enjoy the fruits of every season." Notable in this cantata is the A part of the first aria, which omits a basso continuo; the second violin provides the bass, doubled by the harpsichord. The ensuing recitative is based on a basso ostinato. In the third aria the viola da gamba is given an obbligato role.
French cantatas are regularly performed and recorded. The best-known composers of such works are Louis-Nicolas Clérambault, André Campra and Jean-Philippe Rameau. These four cantatas by Boismortier deserve their place alongside the cantatas of those three masters. They are quite different, not only due to their subject matter, but also thanks to the way Boismortier has structured them. These qualities come out here rather well, although the performance as a whole is a bit uneven.
Sarah Charles has a voice I don't like very much, which obviously is a matter of taste. There is little wrong with her interpretation, although it does not make a lasting impression, but the slight vibrato - a kind of tremolo - is regrettable. Enguerrand de Hys is well aware of the dramatic aspects of L''Eté, and the contrasts within this piece are convincingly realized. However, it seems to me that in the first half he tends to exaggerate; I would have liked a more relaxed way of singing. A real haute-contre may have been a better choice for this part anyway. Marc Mauillon is the best of the four soloists. I like his voice a lot, and he makes the most of L'Automne, also thanks to his fine sense of rhythm. This cantata receives a sparkling performance. Lili Aymonino has also a very nice voice and shows a good sense for the theatrical character of L'Hiver, due to the contrast between the downside of Winter and its pleasures, which is perfectly pointed out. The instrumental parts receive fine performances.
It is a shame, but still common practice these days, that the singers use modern pronunciation.
As I haven't heard previous performances for a long time, I can't compare this new recording with them. I also don't know whether they are still available. This production is well worth being investigated, and should contribute to a revaluation of Boismortier, who was more than a composer of music for amateurs.
Johan van Veen (© 2025)
Relevant links:
Sarah Charles
Enguerrand de Hys
Marc Mauillon
Orchestre de l'Opéra Royal