Wistfully Archaic
Leslie Richford | Selsingen, Lower Saxony | 01/27/2007
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Louis-Nicolas Clérambault (1676 - 1749), Soprano Cantatas and Sonatas. 1. Orphée; 2. Simphonie à cinq in G minor; 3. Sonata prima "Anonima" in G major; 4. Suite No. 2 in C minor for harpsichord; 5. Léandre et Héro.
Performed by Sandrine Piau, soprano; Soloists of the Concert Spirituel (Patrick Cohén-Akenine and Martha Moore, baroque violins; Jocelyn Daubigney, baroque flute; Alix Verzier, viola da gamba; Cathérine Arnoux, bass viol; Blandine Rannou, harpsichord).
Recorded in April 1996 in the Auditorium of the Conservatoire de Sarcelles, France. Published in 1998 as Naxos 8.553744. Total time: 61'51"
Without wishing to doubt the integrity of my fellow-reviewers, I really do wonder where some of them have their ears: This award winning CD (Editor's Choice in both Gramophone and BBC Music magazines) is one of the best recordings of French baroque cantatas that I have ever heard, its qualities belying its unbelievably small price and dwarfing the competition from Danièle Forget and L'Ensemble Arion on Analekta (only the cantatas). That the music itself is "typically French" is a comment that will help nobody: The whole point of this disk is to establish what French baroque music was like, namely a mixture of more traditional French styles with "modern" Italianate influences. The pieces recorded here are chamber music and should in no wise be expected to rival orchestral or operatic repertoire as we know it today. The two cantatas (totalling 34 minutes) are excellently sung by brilliant French soprano Sandrine Piau, who manages to capture much of the wistfully archaic atmosphere as well as the intense dramatic moments to be found in such "mini-operas"; to call her voice "brittle" is to be more than unkind, and personally I found listening to her to be an exquisite experience to be treasured, her training enabling her to lead the listener through all the nuances and pitfalls of Clérambault's style. And thanks to Naxos for giving us some excellent engineering with perfect balance and a booklet containing introductions and translations of the text, making for an hour of baroque bliss!
The instrumentalists of Concert Spirituel are well-known soloists in their own right, and the Simphonie and the Sonata prima meet all the demands of stylish, idiosyncratic performance of this exclusive music. A special treat is in store when one arrives at the Suite for Harpsichord, which is played delightfully by Blandine Rannou, who has since made a number of prize-winning baroque harpsichord recordings for the French label ZigZag Territoires. This is simply amazing value for money, and the CD should be heard on high-class equipment to be appreciated fully."
Track Listings (9) - Disc #1
