L'Archange & le Lys: Messe & motets d'Antoine Boesset

Featuring

Sébastien Daucé
Ensemble Correspondances
Henri Dumont
Antoine Boësset
Anonymous
Étienne Moulinié

Giuseppe Giamberti

Did you know?

1/7

Composer Biography

Antoine Boesset, whose works are featured, held prominent musical positions at the French court under Louis XIII, including Master of the King's Chamber Music and Superintendent of the King's Chamber Music.

Historical Context

Antoine Boesset had a close relationship with the Royal Abbey of Montmartre, teaching its nuns to sing and requesting to be buried near them.

Compositional Technique

The Mass on the 11th mode by Boesset combines strict Renaissance counterpoint with more modern concertato elements, reflecting the musical style of the 1640s in France.

Compositional Technique

Boesset's Mass on the 11th mode unifies its movements through recurring melodic motifs, including citations of the Gregorian Credo and an air he dedicated to Louis XIII.

Composition History

This album draws from the 'Recueil Deslauriers', a manuscript copied around 1650-1660, which belonged to composer Sébastien de Brossard before joining the Bibliothèque Royale.

Recording & Production

This album was recorded in the church of Labeaume, a picturesque village in southern Ardèche, which offers residencies to artists.

Composer's Artistic Vision

Antoine Boesset, known as a master of the secular 'air de cour', also expressed a desire to compose more serious religious works for Louis XIII's devotions and to celebrate his victories.