Programme
Opera excerpts
Jean-Baptiste Lully (1632-1687)
To mark its 40th anniversary, the Centre de musique baroque de Versailles celebrates Lully, as close as possible to the places where his operas were created and performed during the reign of the kings of France. Conceived as a journey through his tragédies en musique and comédies-ballets, this concert brings together, under the direction of Fabien Armengaud, performers from a variety of backgrounds to present famous and lesser-known excerpts from a repertoire that has become emblematic of the Académie royale de musique.
At a time when the Centre de musique baroque de Versailles is celebrating its 40th anniversary, this concert also echoes another anniversary: the rediscovery of Lully and French opera of the Grand Siècle, marked in 1987 by the recreation of Atys. It is within this double context that this Voyage au cœur des opéras de Lully was conceived, devoted to his works composed for Louis XIV, which later became pillars of the repertoire of the Académie royale de musique.
To perform them, several generations of musicians will come together under the direction of Fabien Armengaud: singers and instrumentalists from the Studio baroque, CMBV choir Les Pages & Les Chantres, students from the Section baroque of the Collège Louis Pergaud de Maurepas, and instrumentalists from Le Concert des Amateurs, an orchestra specially formed for the occasion. Young professionals, students in training, children enrolled in specialised music programmes and amateur musicians will share a common goal: bringing French Baroque heritage to life and celebrating Lully’s art.
