大象传媒

Donald Macleod continues his focus on French composers, inspired by this month鈥檚 鈥楾our de France鈥� cycle race. Today Donald joins Mme de Pompadour in her private theatre at the Palace at Versailles.

"I have followed the theatre since the age of twelve", so said Rameau to a young composer who wrote to him for advice. It's an intriguing insight into a man who didn't produce his first opera until the age of fifty. Quite why it took him that long isn't clear. Up to that point he had been a church musician, following in his father's footsteps, holding a succession of posts mainly in the South of France. He also taught and established himself as a theoretician of some note. A brief, early sojourn in Paris, a mecca for any theatrical hopeful, ended abruptly when he was still in his twenties. It wasn't until he returned to Paris in 1723 that Rameau was able to start writing music for theatrical entertainments, at first for the popular Fairs, and then finally in 1733 for the Paris Opera. In the midst of constant cultural rows over the merits of French and Italian operatic style, Rameau flourished as a theatre composer. At one point he was so successful the management of the Paris Opera decreed no more than two of his works should be mounted per season, to allow other composers to get a look in! He completed his final opera, a masterpiece, Les Bor茅ades in 1763, the year before he died at the age of eighty. Across the week Donald Macleod focuses on this remarkable period in Rameau's life, from the first of his theatrical works to his last.

Among the entertainments Rameau wrote for performance by the King's mistress and her circle of friends was his opera ballet Les Surprises d'Amour.

Les Surprises de l鈥橝mour
Ouverture 鈥� le plus vite possible
Les Nouveaux Caract猫res
S茅bastien d鈥橦茅rin, direction

Les Surprises de l鈥橝mour
Act 1, Sc 6 (The Abduction of Adonis)
Entr茅e: Le jour vient d'茅clore
L'oiseau le plus tendre
Premier et deuxi猫me airs 鈥� Vif
Magali Perol-Dumora, soprano, A Nymph
Les Nouveaux Caract猫res
S茅bastien d鈥橦erin, direction

Hippolyte et Aricie, Act 1, sc 1
Temple sacre, s茅jour tranquille
V茅ronique Gens, soprano, Aricie
Les Musiciens du Louvre
Marc Minkowski, director

Plat茅e, Act 1, sc 5 and 6
Ariette Quittez, nymphes
脡pais nuages
Tambourins
Ariette Soleil, fuis de ces lieux
Aria: les Aquilons viennent troubler
Orage
Marcel Beekman, tenor, Plat茅e
Emmanuelle de Negri, soprano, Clarine
Cyril Auvity, tenor, Mercure
Arnold Schoenberg Choir
Les Arts Florissants
William Christie, director

Plat茅e, Act 2, sc 2 to 4
Aria: 脌 l'aspect de ce nuage
Tonnerre et pluie de feu - Recitative: Ciel! quelle terrible ros茅e!
Qu'elle est aimable
Edwin Crossley-Mercer, bass-baritone, Jupiter
Marcel Beekman, tenor, Plat茅e
Cyril Auvity, tenor, Mercure
Marc Mauillon, baritone, Cith茅ron, roi de Gr猫ce
Arnold Schoenberg Choir
Les Arts Florissants
William Christie, director

Le Temple de la Gloire, Act 3 Finale
Chaconne for the Roman men and women
Volez, Plaisirs, volez avec la Gloire
D鈥檜n bonheur nouveau, go没tons tous les charmes
Air for the Roman men and women
Ces oiseaux, par leur doux ramage
Chantal Santon-Jeffery, soprano, Glory
Mathias Vidal, tenor, Trajan
Chamber Choir of Namur
Les Agr茅mens
Guy van Waas, conductor