Michel-Richard Delalande is regarded as one of the great composers of the French Baroque, and so it is not surprising that our prizewinning Boston Early Music Ensemble has now turned to him. Along with his many sacred works, Delalande also wrote for the various court occasions that required secular music. Les Fontaines de Versailles, the work occupying a central position on this release, above all contributed to Delalande's increasing popularity. It was performed on 5 April 1683, some weeks before Delalande was appointed to the coveted post of "Sous-maÃ®tre de Chapelle." After the court had settled in Versailles with King Louis XIV in 1682, it's musical microcosm also experienced a renewal. Les Fontaines de Versailles numbered among Delalande's efforts to produce an oeuvre perfectly tailored for Versailles, both in it's form as well as in it's poetic content, thereby demonstrating his skill as a composer of Â»French musicÂ« and displaying it in a proper light for the king. It is with refined sophistication that Les Fontaines de Versailles evokes the special relationship between the king and his gardens. Delalande beyond doubt occupied the first place among Louis XIV's favorites: in 1689 the king named the thirty-one-year-old his "Surintendant de la Musique de la Chambre," a post that before only Jean-Baptiste Lully and then one of his sons had held.

Tracklist:

Les Fontaines De Versailles, S. 133: Ouverture
Les Fontaines De Versailles, S. 133, Scene 1: D'où Vient Que Dans Ces Lieux
Les Fontaines De Versailles, S. 133, Scene 2: Arrête Ici, Mon Fils
Les Fontaines De Versailles, S. 133, Scene 2: Venez, Venez
Les Fontaines De Versailles, S. 133, Scene 3: Déesse On Attendait Ici Votre Présence
Les Fontaines De Versailles, S. 133, Scene 3: Arbres, Jardins
Les Fontaines De Versailles, S. 133, Scene 3: Jeunes Zéphyrs
Les Fontaines De Versailles, S. 133, Scene 3: Chaconne
Les Fontaines De Versailles, S. 133, Scene 4: Je Suis Ce Géant Malheureux
Les Fontaines De Versailles, S. 133, Scene 5: Il Est Donc De Retour
Les Fontaines De Versailles, S. 133, Scene 5: Pour Jouir Quelques Fois De Sa Noble Présence
Les Fontaines De Versailles, S. 133, Scene 5: Plaintes, Regrets
Les Fontaines De Versailles, S. 133, Scene 5: Qu'on Ne Parle Plus De Tristesse !
Les Fontaines De Versailles, S. 133, Scene 6: Déesse Nous Voici
Les Fontaines De Versailles, S. 133, Scene 6: Heureux Séjour
Les Fontaines De Versailles, S. 133, Scene 6: Finissons Nos Concerts !
Les Fontaines De Versailles, S. 133, Scene 6: Je Goûte La Douceur De Mon Heureux Partage
Les Fontaines De Versailles, S. 133, Scene 6: Finissons Nos Concerts, Finissons Nos Concerts !
Suite No. 7 In G Minor, S. 161 "Grande Pièce Royale": Un Peu Lent
Suite No. 7 In G Minor, S. 161 "Grande Pièce Royale": Fugato
Suite No. 7 In G Minor, S. 161 "Grande Pièce Royale": Doucement
Suite No. 7 In G Minor, S. 161 "Grande Pièce Royale": Gracieusement
Suite No. 7 In G Minor, S. 161 "Grande Pièce Royale": Gayement
Suite No. 7 In G Minor, S. 161 "Grande Pièce Royale": Vivement
Concert D'esculape, S. 134: Ouverture
Concert D'esculape, S. 134: Esculape Aujourd'hui Triomphe Du Tombeau
Concert D'esculape, S. 134: Apollon Qui Chérit Sa Science Profonde
Concert D'esculape, S. 134: Simphonie De Violons Et Flûtes - Dans Ce Qu'il Entreprend La Nature Timide
Concert D'esculape, S. 134: Il Est Le Choix Du Plus Grand Des Monarques
Concert D'esculape, S. 134: Publions Ses Vertus Et Qu'aucun Ne S'étonne

UPC: 761203509720
Label: Cpo Records
Release Date: 2.5.21
Format: CD

Lalande - Les Fontaines de Versailles (CD)