Marin Marais's music was popular not only at Versailles but also captivated the Parisian bourgeois classes, who sought to imitate courtly trends.
Composer's Artistic Vision
French court music, based at Versailles, was highly conservative, adhering to unchanging forms and traditions, yet it conveyed profound, veiled emotions beneath its conventional surface.
Historical Context
The music on this album reflects the French aristocracy of the 18th century, a world that was decadent, amoral, and frivolous, yet also subtle and sophisticated.
Recording & Production
This album was recorded in February 2019 at Sputnik Recording Studios in Seville, Spain, with Johanna Rose and Juan Ramón Lara as producers.
Composer Biography
Marin Marais, a viol player and son of a shoemaker, rose to the highest ranks at the French court due to his talent, with Hubert Le Blanc's 1740 treatise stating he played the viol 'like an angel'.
Compositional Technique
Unlike their Italian contemporaries, French composers reproduced traditional, folk-based dance models with symmetrical phrases and ostinato basses, filling them with infinite tiny details and melodic tensions.
Compositional Technique
Marin Marais's works, like 'Le Bijou', often feature simple, charming refrains framing melancholic episodes, depicting states of mind or characters with melodic mastery rather than innovative harmonies.
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