Les Maîtres Du Motet – Les Arts Florissants

   in Choir & Organ (Mar, 2019)
The Stabat Mater by Sébastien de Brossard and Pierre Bouteiller’s Missa pro Defunctis, selected to represent the repertoire of cathedral and chapel choirs during the reign of Louis XIV, comprise a plangent feast. Nineteen singers, including seven soloists – voices of character in vibrant ensemble – plus continuo collaborate with grace, solemnity, elegant expression, sublime refinement, and exquisitely tasteful phrasing. There is some solo singing of ineffable sweetness and the performers give every impression of total immersion in early 18th-century French culture. …