… Niquet casts the three surviving grands motets from strength, with the likes of Stephan Imbodem and Véronique Gens among his other soloists. His conducting is alert, rhythmically buoyant, and attentive to both musical and word values, as the multi-tempo hurdles of “Converte, Domine” show. Details are never lost, but neither is momentum. The choral and orchestral work of Le Concert Spirituel is first-rate, with a precision that doesn’t rule out a refined color palette.

The Pièces de clavecin en concerts are a kind of link between the Italian trio sonatas and Bach’s polyphonic trios. An example of the latter would be the trio sonata which concludes the Musical Offering. Another example would be the keyboard sonatas – for harpsichord or pianoforte – with violin or ad libitum accompaniment which were developed considerably at the end of the XVIII century, especially in France.

Das Orchester "La Petite Bande" wurde 1972 von Sigiswald Kuijken gegründet. Ursprünglich war der Anlass der Gründung lediglich eine Tonaufnahme von Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme von Lully. Der Erfolg dieser und der der nachfolgenden Aufnahmen war jedoch so überwältigend, dass "La Petite Bande" sich als ständiges Orchester etablierte und seitdem regelmäßig Konzerte gegeben hat. Diese Box beinhaltet eine Auswahl von hervorragenden 10 CDs aus der umfangreichen Diskographie dieses Orchesters.

The soloists of the Simón Bolivar Orchestra of Venezuela have invited harpsichordist Bruno Procopio to conduct a programme dedicated entirely to Jean-Philippe Rameau. Procopio has also recorded the 'Pièces de clavecin en concerts' and first performed this all-Rameau programme at the Simón Bolivar Concert Hall in 2012. Discovering French Baroque music was a new departure for the Venezuelan musicians who responded with characteristic enthusiasm and verve to this dance-related suite, albeit working as a smaller group than usual. Maestro José Antonio Abreu, founder of El Sistema is also an acclaimed harpsichorist but as yet there are no period instrument orchestras in Venezuela.

The remarkable French harpsichordist Christophe Rousset tackles Rameau’s relatively unknown instrumental transcription of his popular opéra-ballet, Les Indes Galantes.
Christophe Rousset plays Rameau’s instrumental transcription of Les Indes Galantes on the stunning 18th century Jean-Henry Hemsch harpsichord. Public disapproval to the premiere of the opéra-ballet led to Rameau not only omitting the recitatives and its controversial passages, but to transcribing the whole work for instruments. He re-grouped the remaining pieces according to their keys into what he called ‘quatre grands concerts’ or concert suites.

Emmanuelle Haïm has established herself as one of the world’s leading performers, conductors and interpreters of Baroque repertoire, not only with Le Concert d’Astrée, the ensemble she founded in 2000, but with several of the world’s greatest orchestras. Known for her fresh and expressive approach to Baroque music, she has garnered critical acclaim and several international awards with her own ensemble, including Victoires de la Musique Classique, ECHOs, Gramophone Awards, and Grammy nominations.

With Les Indes galantes by Jean-Philippe Rameau, György Vashegyi – along with his Orfeo Orchestra and Purcell Choir – makes a further dazzling addition to their Glossa series of French dramatic masterpieces from the Baroque, and in the company of a luxurious line-up of vocal soloists.

There are two different short operas (from 1754 and 1757) by Rameau with the title Anacréon. Both are one-act actes de ballet; this one was actually used as the third entrée of Rameau's opéra-ballet Les surprises de l'Amour when it was revived the same year. Both works have as their subject the Greek poet, Anacreon. The 1757 one - which was first performed at the Paris Opéra in May of that year and has a libretto by Pierre-Joseph Justin Bernard - has an only marginally less slight ‘plot’ than the earlier Anacréon. It follows an argument as to the relative merits of love and wine. That’s resolved in Anacreon’s favour by L’Amour; in fact, he believes the two are not incompatible.

For approaching a century and a half in France – across the reigns of Louis XIV, XV and XVI – the Palace of Versailles played host, both indoors and outdoors, for an extraordinary sequence of dramatic musical performances. Un Opéra pour trois rois, conducted by György Vashegyi, represents the legacy of that time, a specially constructed operatic entertainment drawn from works by composers from Lully to Gluck, commissioned – and even, on occasion, performed – by kings, their queens and inamoratas.

The ensemble playing on historical instruments realizes the exciting music with fixed access. .. an excavation, where you have his pleasure.

– FonoForum

In a stunning world premiere recording, music director and conductor Nicholas McGegan, Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra & Chorale, and an international cast of French Baroque opera stars present Jean-Philippe Rameau’s original 1745 version of Le Temple de la Gloire, with libretto by Voltaire. Presented as a fully staged opera in April 2017, the three sold out performances enjoyed universal critical acclaim from some of the world’s leading publications.

Jean-Philippe Rameau, who composed for the churches and cathedrals of Avignon, Clermont-Ferrand, Montpellier and Dijon, produced a great number of sacred works to be performed by cathedral choirs. Only three examples from this highly creative period survive: In convertendo Dominum, Deus Noster Refugium and Quam Dilecta Tabernacula. A fourth motet, Exultet coelum laudibus, is thought to have been lost. These works predate Rameau's move to Paris and must first have been heard within the walls of Dijon and Lyon.

This luxurious set containing 39 CDs, 3 DVDs, 1 CD-Rom and four detailed booklets will tell you the full story of Baroque opera in Italy, France, England, and Germany. No fewer than 17 complete operas (including two on DVD) and two supplementary CDs (the dawn of opera, Overtures for the Hamburg Opera) provide the most comprehensive overview of the genre ever attempted! The finest performers are assembled here under the direction of René Jacobs and William Christie to offer you 47 hours of music. An opportunity to discover or to hear again the masterpieces of Baroque opera, some of which have been unavailable on CD for many years.

Making full use of Drottningholm Theatre's unique 17th century Baroque theatre machinery, as well as his deep creative understanding of the profound drama of the work, stage director Pierre Audi creates a production of Zoroastre that completely accords with the spirit of Rameau. True to the form of the tragédie lyrique, choreographer Amir Hosseinpour's dances perfectly match the weight and meaning of both plot and music. The ensemble, Les Talens Lyriques, reinforced with musicians from the Drottningholm Court Theatre Orchestra and Chorus, is expertly and passionately led into the musical stratosphere by musical director Christophe Rousset. This intensely dramatic production is captured live in vibrant High Definition video and true surround sound.

Castor et Pollux is arguably Rameau's finest creation in the tragdie lyrique style. Its libretto, based in mythology, focuses on an unusual theme: the self-sacrificing love between Castor, who is mortal, and his immortal brother, Pollux. When Castor is killed while defending his beloved Tlare from an attempted abduction, Pollux resolves to give up this immortality and take Castor's place in the Underworld. After passionate debate over who will live and who will die, the brothers are eternally united, transformed into the constellation Gemini. The striking luminous sets, depicting a stylized version of the constellation, give this fabulous production a glorious 21st century baroque look.