Browsing through Early Music. Splendour and grandeur: the world of the Grand Motet, episode 3/3.
The Grand Motet is a religious composition with a Latin text, for soloists, choir and a big orchestra. It is the most important religious music form in the 17th and 18th century and flourished under the reign of Louis XIV, the Sun King and continued to be popular in the time of his successor, Louis XV.
The Grands Motets are usually based on a hymn and have a ceremonial character. Two important composers of Grand Motets are Jean-Baptiste Lully and Marc Antoine Charpentier.
Arcangelo Corelli (1653-1713)
1. Concerto no 8 in G minor, Fatto per la notte di Natale
– Vivace
– Grave, Arcate, sostenuto e come stà.
– Allegro
– Adagio-Allegro-Adagio
– Vivace
– Allegro
– Pastorale, Largo
Musica Amphion conducted by Pieter Jan Belder
(CD Corelli Concerti Grossi op. 6, Brilliant Classics 92610)
Michel-Richard de Lalande (1657-1726)
2. Grand Motet “Quam dilecta”, S.12
– Quam dilecta tabernacula tua
– Concupiscit et deficit
– Cor meum et caro mea
– Beati qui habitant in domo tua
– Beatus vir cujus est auxilium
– Domine, Deus virtutum
– Protector noster, aspice, Deus
– Domine virtutum, beatus homo
Salomé Haller (soprano), Damien Guillon (countertenor), Howard Crook (alto), Hervé Lamy (tenor), Alain Buet (bass), Les Pages & les Chantres de Versailles and La Grande Ecurie & la Chambre du Roy conducted by Olivier Schneebeli
(CD Michel-Richard De Lalande, Virgin Veritas 5 45531)
André Campra (1660-1744)
3. Grand Motet “Exaudiat te Dominus”
– Récit de taille: Exaudiat te Dominus
– Choeur: Mittat tibi auxilium
– Dialogue haute contre, bas taille: Memor sit
– Choeur, bas taille: laetabimur in salutari tuo
– Duo de hautes contre: Impleat Dominus
– Bruit de guerre –Duo de basses –taille: Hi in curibus
– Choeur: Ipsi obligati sunt
– Trio haute contre, taille, bas taille: Domine salvum fac regem
– Choeur: Et exaudi nos
Jaël Azzaretti (soprano), Paul Agnew and Bruno Renhold (contralto), Nicolas Riveng (tenor), Andrew Foster Williams and Arnaud Marzorati (bass), Les Arts Florissants conducted by William Christie
(CD Campra Grands Motets, Virgin Veritas 5 41555-2)
