Leçons des ténèbres by Marc-Antoine Charpentier (1643–1704)
Happy to return to one of my favorite cities for a performance with the Cohaere Ensemble!
The ceremony of dark matins is one of the most theatrical, yet moving, forms of the Holy Week liturgy. Following the 20th-century reforms, it was abandoned and forgotten by the Church, but its reminiscent survive in the dedicated music works composed in the past.
A particularly large number of them were created in France during the reign of Louis XIV. Almost every major composer tried his hand at this, including Couperin, Lambert, and Delalande, however it was Marc-Antoine Charpentier who left us the larger number of musicalized Leçons de ténèbres. All his arrangements, although varied and composed for a variety of performance ensembles, are written with an equally deep understanding of the text of Jeremiah’s Lamentations assigned to the dark matins. Baroque was passionate about funeral ceremonies; everything connected with death and passing was celebrated in an extremely festive and elaborate manner. During dark matins, one candle was extinguished after singing each of the subsequent parts of the liturgy, which was to symbolise the apostles leaving Christ. The light was not due to return until Easter Day. This service was one of the most popular in 17th- and 18th-century France. Churches were invaded by crowds going there as if to an opera, and the main person responsible for this phenomenon was precisely Charpentier. With his Leçons, he gave the French music a new genre that was to flourish exuberantly for decades to come.
Joel Frederiksen - Bass
Cohaere Ensemble:
Marta Korbel, Katarzyna Olszewska – violin
Marta Gawlas, Ana Fernández Anguita – flutes
Natalia Reichert – alto
Monika Hartmann – cello
Giulio Quirici – lute
Natalia Olczak – positive organ/harpsichord
Programme:
Marc-Antoine Charpentier (1643–1704)
Leçons des ténèbres
Première leçon de ténèbres du Mercredi Saint H.120
Première leçon de ténèbres du Jeudy Saint H.121
Première leçon de ténèbres du Vendredi Saint H.122
Marin Marais (1656–1728)
Pièces en trio
Suite à 3 g-moll (selected part)
Suite à 3 B-dur (selected part)