Boismortier: 6 Concertos for Five Flutes, Op. 15

Featuring

Jacques-Antoine Bresch
Jocelyn Daubigney
Anne Savignat
Vincent Touzet
Jan de Winne
Joseph Bodin de Boismortier

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Compositional Technique

Boismortier was innovative in his use of instrumentation, composing music for almost every instrument and making extensive use of the transverse flute.

Composition History

The Six Concertos for Five Flutes, Op. 15, are notable as the first time Boismortier divided his pieces into the fast-slow-fast, three-movement structure and used Italian titles and directions.

Instruments

The flutes used in this recording are modern reproductions made in 1995, based on models by L. H. Rottenburgh from around 1725, and are pitched at A=396.

Composer Biography

Joseph Bodin de Boismortier, the composer, began his career not in music, but as a collector for the Royal Tobacco Excise Office in Perpignan.

Critical Reception

Boismortier was criticized for his prolific output of 'light-weight pieces,' with one contemporary remarking, 'Happy Boismortier, whose fertile pen can monthly, without travail, father a volume.'

Notable Performances

For 25 years, Boismortier's grand motet Fugit nox was performed annually at Christmas in the Salle des Cent Suisse of the Palace of the Tuileries for the Concert Spirituel, a famous Parisian concert series.