Les Boréades
- Francis Colpron - recorder
- Olivier Brault - violin
- Mélisande Corriveau - gamba
- Hank Knox - harpsichord
Friday, March 15, 2024 at 7:30pm
Union Church, 24 Maple Avenue
Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue, QC H9X 2E6
Programme
"Jouvence pour un Roi fatigué"
As well as being obsessed with his own glory, Louis XIV had three other passions: women, buildings, and music. During his seemingly interminable reign — it lasted almost 65 years - the first two passions faded; the first because of the spirit of devotion imposed on the court by Mme de Maintenon, his morganatic wife, the second because of the economic troubles afflicting the kingdom. Music, however, which he had studied in his youth, remained a consolation until his death. He liked his musicians, conversed freely with them, and chose them with care. Couperin wrote his Concerts royaux for Louis; Marais was his favorite gambist; and Élisabeth Jacquet enjoyed his continuing support ever since, as a child prodigy, she wrote her first compositions.
Jacques Hotteterre dit le romain (1681-1729)
Trio sonata for flute,violin and continuo nº 3 in D minor, original in B minor (Troisième œuvre de sonates, Paris, 1712)
- Prélude
- Fugue
- Grave
- Vivement
Jean-Philippe Rameau (1683-1764)
Nouvelles suites de pièces de clavecin (Paris, 1728)
- Les Sauvages
- L'Enharmonique
- L'Egiptienne
Marin Marais (1656-1728)
Pièces de viole et basse continue (4e livre de pièces de viole avec la basse continue, Paris, 1717)
- Musette
- Biscayenne
François Couperin (1668-1733)
Pièces de viole et basse continue (Pièces de violes avec la basse chiffrée, Paris, 1728)
- Le Dodo ou l'enfant au berceau
Joseph Bodin de Boismortier (1689-1755)
Sixth sonata for flute (played on recorder) and violin, opus 51 (Paris, 1734)
- Andante
- Allemande - allegro
- Aria - larghetto
- Minuetto 1, 2 et 3
Intermission
Anne Danican Philidor (1681-1728)
Sonata for recorder and continuo in D minor (1er livres de pièces, 1712)
- Lentement
- Fugue
- Courante
- « Les notes égales et détachées »
- Fugue
Elisabeth Jacquet de la Guerre (1665-1729)
Sonata for violin and continuo in D minor (Paris, 1707)
- [Prélude]
- Presto
- Adagio/presto/adagio
- Presto
- Aria
- Presto
Marin Marais
Chaconne of the first trio suite in C major for recorder, violin and continuo (Pièces en trio, Paris, 1692)
Biography
Founded by Francis Colpron in 1991, Les Boréades focuses on early music. The ensemble has chosen an interpretative approach in keeping with the spirit of the Baroque era, by adhering to the rules of performance practice of the past and playing on period instruments. Critics and audiences alike in Canada and abroad have been unanimous in hailing the group's energy and spontaneity as well as its theatrical, expressive and elegant playing, indicative of a unique flair for Baroque aesthetics.
The group has received many grants from the Québec and Canada governments and has toured extensively in Canada and abroad, taking part in several renowned festivals. The musicians also performed at the Frick Collection of New-York, Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Salle Gaveau in Paris, Vancouver Festival, Musikfest Bremen and at the Alter Musik Regensburg.
Les Boréades has performed with world-renowned artists such as Hervé Niquet, director of the Concert Spirituel de Paris; Skip Sempé, harpsichordist and director of Capriccio Stravagante; violinists Manfred Kraemer and Adrian Butterfield; harpsichordist Alexander Weimann; conductor Eric Milnes; cornettist William Dongois; recorder player Stefano Bagliano; as well as with tenor Charles Daniels, and Canadian singers Matthew White, Karina Gauvin. The ensemble Les Boréades owns a solid discography of 25 titles, on the Atma Classique label, which are distributed around the world.