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M.-A. Charpentier's "Messe de Minuit pour Noël" (Naxos) - short review

About the composer

Marc-Antoine Charpentier (1643-1704) left numerous compositions of church and secular music. The opening Prelude of his "Te Deum" has become one of the best-known pieces of classical music, used by the European Broadcasting Union as their signature tune (this is actually mentioned by Naxos on the back cover).

Repertoire

For this recording, Naxos has chosen the canticle "Te Deum" (22:05), the Vespers psalm "Dixit Dominus" (8:58) and the Midnight Mass for Christmas ("Messe de Minuit pour Noël") itself (28:47). Part of its Kyrie ("Une jeune pucelle") is sung in the Huron language of Canada, as translated by the French missionary Jean de Brébeuf (1593-1649).

Performance

The performance was recorded at Grace Church on the Hill, Toronto, Canada, from 3rd to 6th, January, 2003, with sung versions (instead of the organ solos the composer had also recommended) by Jane Archibald, Michele de Boer and Anne L'Espèrance (sopranos), Marion Newman and Nancy Reynolds (altos), Colin Ainsworth, James McLennan and David Nortman (tenors), Giles Tomkins and Esteban Cambre (basses). The Toronto-based Aradia Ensemble, conducted by Kevin Mallon, played on original instruments (violins, violas, violas da gamba, cellos, violone, organ, theorbo, oboes, flutes, trumpet, basse de trompette and timpani).

Recording fidelity

The recording is presented in Multichannel 5.1 Hi-Def 24-bit quality at 48 kHz, Dolby Digital 5.1 and dts 5.1. The surround channels are mostly used for ambience, the mix is of very good quality and compares quite well with other Hi-Def 48/24 material.

Extras

The European DVD Audio disc comes complete with a 16-page booklet in English and German, with lyrics (English translations from the original Latin, French and Huron are provided) and background information.



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Topic - M.-A. Charpentier's "Messe de Minuit pour Noël" (Naxos) - short review - DVDAphile 14:14:52 11/13/04 (2)


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