In early 18th-century France, René Drouard de Bousset was at the height of his popularity as a virtuoso organist, a role which he combined with teaching as well as part-time composition. De Bousset began associating with the convulsionnaires – a Jansenist religious movement – at around the time in which the craze for the French cantate was sweeping through France, and although there are numerous examples of the cantata, much rarer is the cantate spirituelle, a logical step for De Bousset and of which there are just three known composers. The cantate spirituelle was a form which became increasingly fashionable in the late court of Louis XIV.
Early music ensemble Le Tendre Amour, directed by Katy Elkin and Esteban Mazer, is styled as a mini orchestra. Based in Barcelona, the group has performed at prestigious early music festivals throughout Europe, and their programme of Jewish Baroque music earned them the prize for best interpretation at the Varaždin Baroque Evenings festival in Croatia.
Other information:
- The world premiere of 3 “Cantates spirituelles” by Baroque composer René de Bousset.
- De Bousset was a famous organist and composer at the beginning of the 18th century. His ‘Spiritual Cantatas’ are based on biblical texts or scenes and might be described as mini oratorios. The title of the CD refers to the drowning of Pharaoh and his army in pursuit of the people of Moses, De Bousset vividly and brilliantly painting these dramatic events.
- The scoring of these cantatas is for 2 solo voices (soprano and baritone) and a rich continuo of traverse, oboe, theorbe, violin, viola da gamba and harpsichord.
- The second recording on Brilliant Classics of the ensemble Le Tendre Amour, who received wide critical acclaim and 5 star reviews for their first CD “All in a Garden Green” (BC 94313).
- Contains notes on the music and ensemble biography.
