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Louis XIV's Composer Competition

Lucie Skeaping explores the extraordinary competition instituted in 1683 by King Louis XIV to find four new chapel composers for his Chapelle Royal in Versailles.

We may think of talent contests as a modern day phenomenon, but in 1683, King Louis XIV instituted an extraordinary competition to find four new composers suitable for his Chapelle Royal in Versailles. The successful applicants would each be given a season of the year to compose for the Chapel and the contest was advertised in a French gazette of the time. It attracted applications from the greatest French composers of the day, but ended in controversy with some sections of the press accusing Louis' court composer Lully of influencing the results. Lucie Skeaping investigates the competition and the composers involved.

58 minutes

Last on

Sun 30 Sep 2012 13:00
麻豆约拍 Radio 3

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Music Played

  • Henri Dumont

    Hymne "O Panis angelorum"

    Performers: Les Pages & Chantres de la Chapelle, Ensemble Musica Aeterna, Olivier Schneebeli (director)

    • VIRGIN CLASSICS.
    • VM 5616752.

  • Jean-Baptiste Lully

    Miserere Me Deus 鈥� Symphonie (Opening)

    Performers: Le Concert Spirituel, Herv茅 Niquet (director)

    • FNAC MUSIC.
    • 592308.

  • Marc鈥怉ntoine Charpentier

    Agnus Dei 鈥� Second Agnus Dei 鈥� Agnus Dei from Messe pour les Tr茅pass茅s

    Performers: Les Arts Florissants, William Christie (director)

    • VIRGIN CLASSICS.
    • 5457332.

  • Michel鈥怰ichard de Lalande

    Delictum meum cognitum-Laetamini in Domino from Beati quorum remissae sunt

    Performers: Salom茅 Haller, Damien Guillon, Howard Crook, Herv茅 Lamy, Alain Buet, Les Pages & les Chantres de Versailles, La Grande Ecurie & la Chambre du Roy, Olivier Schneebeli (director)

    • VIRGIN CLASSICS.
    • 5 45531 2.

  • Paolo Lorenzani

    Motet for The Elevation

    Performers: Le Concert Spirituel, Herv茅 Niquet (director)

    • NAXOS.
    • 8.553648.

  • Pascal Collasse

    Cantique III: Plaintes d'un Chr茅tien sur les contrari茅t茅s qu'il 茅prouve au dedans de lui-m

    Performers: Isabelle Poulenard (soprano), Miriam Ruggeri (soprano), Jacquiline Mayeur (mezzo-soprano), L猫 Concert Royal, Patrick Bismuth (director)

    • ASTREE.
    • E 8756.

  • Henry Desmarest

    Requiem aeternam from De Profundis

    Performers: Le Concert Spirituel, Herv茅 Niquet (director)

    • GLOSSA.
    • GCD 921610.

  • Guillaume Minoret

    Agnus Dei from Messe de Noel

    Performers: Aria Voce, Philippe Le Corf (director)

    • STUDIO.
    • SM D3050.

  • Henri Dumont

    Hymne "O Panis angelorum"

  • Jean-Baptiste Lully

    Miserere Me Deus - opening Sinfonia

  • Marc鈥怉ntoine Charpentier

    Agnus Dei; Second Agnus Dei; Agnus Dei from Messe pour les Trepasses

  • Michel鈥怰ichard de Lalande

    Excerpt from 'Beati quorum remissae sunt'

  • Paolo Lorenzani

    Motet for the Ascension

  • Pascal Collasse

    Cantique III - Plaintes d'un Chretien

  • Henry Desmarest

    Requiem aeternam from 'De Profundis'

  • Guillaume Minoret

    Agnus Dei from Mass for Christmas

Broadcast

  • Sun 30 Sep 2012 13:00
    麻豆约拍 Radio 3

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