Les Jardins chorégraphiques
Stéphanie Brochard and Marie-Nathalie Lacoursière: choreographers and stage directors
Stéphanie Brochard, Marie-Nathalie Lacoursière, Pierre-François Dollé: dancers
Ensemble ArtChoral
Matthias Maute: direction
Marie Magistry, Ellen Torrie: soprano I
Janelle Lucyk, Dorothéa Ventura: soprano II
Claudine Ledoux, Ian Sabourin : altos
Jean-Sébastien Allaire, Arthur Tanguay-Labrosse : tenors
Alasdair Campbell, John Giffen: basses
Bande Montréal Baroque
Vincent Lauzer: recorders
Olivier Brault, Tanya LaPerrière: violins
Susie Napper: violoncello
Sara Lackie: triple harp
Esteban La Rotta: lute
Ziya Tabassian: percussion
Ricercata quinta (Il Dolcimelo, c.1600)
O vos omnes (Sacræ cantiones I, 1603)
Io pur respiro in così gran dolore (Madrigali a 5 voci, libro sesto, 1611)
Recercada quinta sopra tenores italianos (Il trattado de glosas, 1553)
Zefiro torna e'l bel tempo rimena (ll sesto libro de madrigali a cinque voci, 1614)
Passacalio op. 22, no. 25 (Per ogni sorte di strumento musicale, 1655)
Lasciatemi morire (ll sesto libro de madrigali a cinque voci, 1614)
Gagliarda del Principe di Venosa
Crudel, perché mi fuggi? (Il secondo libro de madrigali a cinque voci, 1590)
Baci soavi e cari (Il primo libro de madrigali a cinque voci, 1587)
Recercada segunda sobre tenores Italianos (Il trattado de glosas, 1553)
Io mi son giovinetta (Quarto libro de madrigali a cinque voci, 1603)
La Montovana (Scolaro di Gasparo Zanetti per imparar a suonare di violini et altri stromenti, 1645)
La Bataille de Marignan (Chansons de maistre Clement Janequin, 1528)
Folias echa para mi Señora Doña Tarolilla de Carallenos (Il primo libro di Canzone, 1650)
Amor che deggio far (Il settimo libro de madrigali, 1619)
Aria no. 5 sopra la Bergamasca, op. 3 (Sonate, Arie e Correnti, 1642)
Sì dolce è'l tormento (Madrigali e canzonette, libro nono, 1651)
Discord and Alliance follows Italy’s musical transition from the Renaissance into the Baroque through the vocal works of Claudio Monteverdi, considered the last great Italian madrigal composer. These pieces include both the old style or prima prattica, which favoured contrapuntal writing for unaccompanied voices, and forays into the new style or seconda prattica. For instance, the madrigal Amor che deggio far uses the Baroque stile concertato, adding two violins and basso continuo to accompany the voices. Monteverdi’s contemporary Carlo Gesualdo di Venosa, meanwhile, demonstrated his mastery of vocal counterpoint through free and dissonant vocal writing. An innovative and daring composer, Gesualdo’s chromaticism has lost none of its potency today.
The concert’s instrumental components follow a gradual progression: from a solo ricercata with diminutions (or passaggi) by Aureliano Virgiliano, to four-part works by Biagio Marini and Gasparo Zanetti that straddle Renaissance and Baroque music styles. Spanish influences on Italian music are represented by the Toledo-born composer Diego Ortiz, who lived and worked in Naples for some time. His Tratado de glosas collection, published in Rome, contains recercadas on Spanish and Italian themes that can be played by small instrumental ensembles. Falconieri spent several years in Spain and France and was thus no stranger to Spanish music, writing variations on la Folia in his first book of canzone, sinfonias and fantasies.
Dance carves a path through this space, where musical experimentation and a kind of chaos reign. Weaving their way between voices and instruments, dancers forge alliances that open onto new creative possibilities.
Bande Montréal Baroque
Bande Montréal Baroque brings together preeminent period instrument players in Montreal. The ensemble was created specifically for the Montreal Baroque Festival, which takes place in Old Montreal every June. Founded in 2003 by violoncellist and gambist Susie Napper, the Festival’s goal is to establish Montreal as a world centre for early music, inviting the leading early musicians of our time to perform in unique, world-class concerts. The Festival devotes much of its programming to both widely beloved and lesser-known works from the 17th and 18th centuries.
Ensemble vocal Arts-Québec
Ensemble ArtChoral is a professional choir steeped in the grand tradition of choral music in Québec. After almost 40 years under the baton of founder Yves Courville, the choir appointed Matthias Maute as its new music director. The Ensemble has since performed extensively across Quebec and Canada, including notable appearances at the Montréal Baroque Festival and the Music and Beyond festival in Ottawa. Since its inception, Ensemble ArtChoral has been bringing masterpieces from the choir and orchestra repertoire to life. After several highly successful performances of Handel’s oratorio The Triumph of Time and Truth, the choir took part in Ensemble Caprice’s 30th-anniversary celebration, singing Bach’s B Minor Mass in Bourgie Hall. Since 2018, the choir’s frequent collaborations with Caprice have led them to perform in Saint-Jérôme, Saint-Jean-sur- Richelieu, Terrebonne, Westmount and Montreal. On one recent tour, the Ensemble presented Handel’s Messiah in numerous locations across Québec.
Les Jardins chorégraphiques
Founded in 2007 by dancer, choreographer and director Marie-Nathalie Lacoursière, Les Jardins chorégraphiques is uniquely situated within the Quebec, Canada, and worldwide early music and dance communities. In 2018, contemporary and Baroque dancer Stéphanie Brochard, who had been collaborating with Les Jardins for years, joined the company as an artistic co-director. Les Jardins chorégraphiques flirts with history, striving to create, renew and share early dance with both fantasy and finesse. It has received grants from the Canada Council for the Arts and the Conseil des Arts de Montréal and is widely acclaimed for its original and diverse accomplishments.
Les Jardins chorégraphiques works closely with musical ensembles to produce both new works and pieces from the repertoire. Clavecin en Concert, Les Boréades de Montréal, the Toronto Masque Theatre, Le Nouvel Opéra, Les Idées heureuses and the Opéra de Montréal are all among its treasured collaborators. The company has also been invited to perform at festivals such as the Montreal Baroque Festival, the Festival de Saint-Riquier and Early Music Alberta’s annual festival. Its accomplishments include the first modern-day performance of Lully’s Ballet royal de l’Impatience, productions of Rebel’s Les Élémens, Handel’s Apollo e dafne and Grétry’s Zémir et Azor, and original works such as Les Indes galantes ou les automates de Topkapi and La Veuve Rebel. Both co-directors constantly strive to refresh their approaches to early dance, taking on daring projects that are both resolutely contemporary and accessible to everyone. This innovative outlook has led to productions such as Écoute comme je danse, De la Pavane au Swing and, for young audiences, the stunning VIVA les quatre saisons – une abeille en mission. Les Jardins Chorégraphiques has also turned its attention towards producing digital works.