Francesc Valls / Henri Desmarest: In Excelsis Deo – Jordi Savall

Avec ce programme, Jordi Savall présente en miroir deux chefs-d’oeuvre exceptionnels Connectés dans le temps, et liés par l’histoire de ce XVIIIe siècle naissant.

Met dit programma plaatst Savall twee uitzonderlijke meesterwerken, verbonden door de geschiedenis van de prille achttiende eeuw, tegenover mekaar.

   in Choir & Organ (Jan, 2018)
The big question surrounding Catalonian independence is what happens to Jordi Savall if the region breaks away. This magnificent set, recorded in the Chapelle Royale at Versailles, puts two relatively obscure Masses by Francesc Valls and Henry Desmarest on either side of a collection of mostly anonymous material, arranged by Savall, from the same early 18th-century period, when the War of the Spanish Succession was raging inconclusively. But what singing! Desmarest’s Credois not just an exercise in compositional control: it puts significant demands on the choir, who respond magnificently, here as throughout. With texts in five languages – Catalan as well as Castilian – it makes for a bulky box but …