PROGRAMME:

Missa Assumpta est Maria H.11
Motet pour une longue Offrande H.434

From the shadow and misery of death to the dazzling light of Resurrection, Charpentier’s composition masterfully highlights the turmoil caused by the mystery of Easter, the mystic passage from death to life. The prayers, lamentations and songs unanimously rise towards the benevolent Virgin Mary, whose own ascension to heaven reaches summits of expressivity in what must be Marc-Antoine Charpentier’s most perfect mass (and the last one he composed).

The Missa Assumpta est Maria is the culmination of Charpentier's work, the final mass he composed yet with an extraordinary, almost royal sense of splendour. The soloists, choir and orchestra are all more than fitting for a Te Deum for Louis XIV, lending the sense of ceremony and “Pompe Versaillaise” to the profound faith of the Grand Siècle.

For this extraordinarily beautiful programme that perfectly expresses the musical and religious sentiment of Louis XIV’s century, Gaétan Jarry conducts the Marguerite Louise musicians and singers in their preferred repertoire, adorned with the gilt and surges of baroque passion.