“Charpentier is one of the most touching musical personalities of the Grand Siècle. Having frequented his music for more than ten years, through such varied activities as reading the Mélanges, listening to and editing his music, and musicological research, I suggested to the musicians of the Correspondances ensemble that we should devote a period of several months to work on the composer. Hence we wish to present this recording as the fruit of a year of research and collective work aiming at producing a specific sound and specific tone-colors, the shared invention of which was guided by assiduous frequentation of a large number of pieces composed around 1680. After discovering the riches of all these compositions, plucked all these flowers, we left it to the process of distillation to do the rest: the final programme offers an opportunity to hear the finest pieces among those we read through, which in our view constitute the quintessence of the composer’s style during this period.’ Sébastien Daucé!

Tracklist

1. Prélude pour ce que l'on voudra, H. 521
2. In odorem unguentorum, H. 51
3. Beati omnes qui timent Dominum, H. 178
4. O sacramentum pietatis, H. 274
5. Pie Jesu, H. 427
6. Super flumina Babylonis, H. 170
7. Sonata No. 1 in G Minor
8. Gratiarum actiones pro restituta Regis sanitate, H. 341
9. Magdalena lugens, H. 343
10. Supplicatio pro defunctis, H. 348