A stranger reveals the splendor of the Chapelle Royale of Louis XV: Charles-Hubert Gervais was the Maître de Chapelle from 1723, and thus perfectly represents the splendor of sacred music at the Court of Versailles. Heir to the great frescoes of Lully and Lalande, Gervais is above all an opera composer, and his dramatic style makes his Grands Motets vibrate with Italian colors. For this protégé of the Regent Philippe d'Orléans, whose favorite musician he was for two decades, the power of evocation and Versailles-like pomp also take on the gallant style. Served like a King by magnificent performers, here is Gervais all to the glory of Versailles!
Starring
Marie Perbost
Déborah Cachet
Benoît Arnould
Nicholas Scott
Paco Garci
Choir Le Concert Spirituel
Orchestra Les Ombres
Sylvain Sartre Music director
Recorded from September 11 to 13, 2021 at the Royal Chapel of the Château de Versailles
The year of composition of the motets recorded here is not precisely known. If the Jubilate Deo ChG.55 (psalm 100) was described as "new" in January 1740, the Miserere mei, Deus ChG.61 (psalm 51) and the Super flumina Babilonis [sic] ChG.65 (psalm 137) were already in the repertoire of the King's Chapel before that date. Among these motets, the Jubilate Deo and the Super flumina Babilonis seem to have been very popular, since they were sung before His Majesty until 1792, while others - including a Beatus vir and a Cantate Domino - received warm applause from the audience of the Concert Spirituel between 1736 and 1738, notably because of the pages entrusted to the solo voices ("récits") that Gervais "composed very well.
A concert to launch the CD under the label Château de Versailles Spectacles took place at the Chapelle Royale of the Château de Versailles on Wednesday 23 November 2022 under the programme name >> Vivaldi & Gervais : Splendeurs sacrées à l'italienne
