Music

  1. Lecons de Tenebres [UK-Import]
  2. Vivid
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  14. Liverpool Sessions
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  17. One Hundred Percent Two Fingers in the Air Punk Rock
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  21. Back With a Bong!
  22. Ignorance
  23. Wer Frisst Wen?
  24. British Psychedelic Trip 3
  25. 154 Pink Chairs
Lambert - Leçons de Ténèbres / Brett, Crook, Rime & Stutzmann
Average customer rating: 4 out of 5 stars
  • Puristic Recording for Specialists
 Lambert - Leçons de Ténèbres / Brett, Crook, Rime & Stutzmann
Michel Lambert , Howard Crook , Ivète Piveteau , Noémi Rime , Philippe Foulon , Charles Brett , Nathalie Stutzmann , and Mauricio Buraglia
Manufacturer: Virgin
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

GeneralGeneral | Baroque (c.1600-1750) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
PartsongsPartsongs | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
GeneralGeneral | Songs & Lieder | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
ASIN: B000005GND
Release Date: 1995-01-01

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars Puristic Recording for Specialists.......2004-12-17

“Leçons de Ténèbres” are a special genre within the French baroque. During the Middle Ages it had become a custom for selected passages from the biblical book of Lamentations to be chanted at early-morning vespers during Holy Week. In the course of time, these readings began to be held on the evening before by candle-light, the candles being slowly extinguished as the lessons proceeded. By the second half of the seventeenth century it had also become a custom to have these readings, now specially composed on Gregorian themes by the leading composers of the day, sung by opera singers instead of monks and nuns; according to eye-witness reports that have survived, these singers used to sit behind a curtain which they would occasionally open in order to wave to their enthusiastic supporters in the congregation. No wonder that some of the more pious clergy were not edified!

If you are new to this rather specialised genre, I would suggest that you sample the recordings of Marc-Antoine Charpentier’s Leçons de Ténèbres produced by Gérard Lesne and his Il Seminario Musicale on Virgin. These are unforgettable performances that have been exquisitely planned and recorded and are never in the slightest monotonous. In second place, it would probably be advantageous to turn to the Leçons by François Couperin, available in several excellent editions.

Ivète Piveteau’s 1988 recording of these Easter works by Michel Lambert (1610 – 1696) are really directed at specialists and lovers of this baroque period. Lambert is famous for his courtly Airs, of which he composed almost three hundred, but he also left us two cycles of Leçons. Piveteau gives us here three readings for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday of Holy Week in a fairly puristic recording. That means almost 140 minutes of solo chant, accompanied by a single viola da gamba, a theorbo and, alternatingly, by a harpsichord or an organ. The soloists are Charles Brett, countertenor, Nathalie Stutzmann, deep alto, Noémi Rime, mezzo-soprano, and Howard Crook, tenor. Brett, Rime and Crook are early music specialists and do an excellent job with this difficult, meditative music with its complicated system of decorations. Ms Stutzmann, although having a wonderfully deep alto voice, does not convince me here: she uses too much vibrato, making her lessons too dramatic, too much like opera recitatives (and the Hebrew letters are turned into mini-arias).

The recording is present and clear, but there is a considerable amount of background tape noise which does occasionally interfere with the musical enjoyment. On the whole, it is probably wiser to listen to these two discs in several sittings and to take the time to study the texts, which are interesting not only from the point of view of musical realisation but also from a theological standpoint.
Couperin: Leçons de Ténèbres
Average customer rating: Not rated
    		Couperin: Leçons de Ténèbres

    Manufacturer: Harmonia Mundi Fr.
    ProductGroup: Music
    Binding: Audio CD

    GeneralGeneral | Couperin, François | ( C ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
    GeneralGeneral | Baroque (c.1600-1750) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
    Chamber MusicChamber Music | Forms & Genres | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
    GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
    GeneralGeneral | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music
    GeneralGeneral | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
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    Couperin, FrançoisCouperin, François | ( C ) | Composers, A-Z | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
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    ASIN: B00005B6RO
    Release Date: 2001-07-10
    Couperin: Leçons de tenébres pour le Mercredi Saint (Tenebre for Holy Wednesday); Motet pour le Jour de Paques (Motet for Easter Sunday); Magnificat
    Average customer rating: Not rated
      		Couperin: Leçons de tenébres pour le Mercredi Saint (Tenebre for Holy Wednesday); Motet pour le Jour de Paques (Motet for Easter Sunday); Magnificat

      Manufacturer: Elektra / Wea
      ProductGroup: Music
      Binding: Audio CD

      GeneralGeneral | Couperin, François | ( C ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
      GeneralGeneral | Baroque (c.1600-1750) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
      GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
      GeneralGeneral | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
      MotetsMotets | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
      ASIN: B000005E5P
      Release Date: 1992-05-01
      Charpentier: Lecons de Ténèbres: Office du Vendredi Saint H. 226, 105, 99, 100, 133, 140, 130, 95
      Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
      • Intimate, emotional, spiritual ... and breathtaking
      		 Charpentier: Lecons de Ténèbres: Office du Vendredi Saint H. 226, 105, 99, 100, 133, 140, 130, 95
      Marc-Antoine Charpentier , Gérard Lesne , G. G. Nivers , Agnès Mellon , Ian Honeyman , Jacques Bona , and Il Seminario Musicale
      Manufacturer: EMI Int'l
      ProductGroup: Music
      Binding: Audio CD

      All Works by CharpentierAll Works by Charpentier | Charpentier, Marc-Antoine | ( C ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
      GeneralGeneral | Baroque (c.1600-1750) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
      Chamber MusicChamber Music | Forms & Genres | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
      GeneralGeneral | Early Music | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
      Sacred & ReligiousSacred & Religious | Early Music | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music | Requiems
      Vocal & SongVocal & Song | Early Music | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music | Requiems
      GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
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      GeneralGeneral | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
      ChantsChants | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
      MotetsMotets | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
      ClassicalClassical | Imports | Stores | Music
      ASIN: B00000DNWS
      Release Date: 2002-12-23

      Tracks:

      1. Antienne (Astiterunt)
      2. Psaume 26: Dominus Illuminatio Mea
      3. Premiere Lecon
      4. Premier Repons: Tanquam Ad Latronem
      5. Deuxieme Lecon
      6. Deuxieme Repons: Jerusalem Surge
      7. Troisieme Lecon
      8. Troisieme Repons: Vinea Mea Electa
      9. Psaume 50: Miserere

      Customer Reviews:

      5 out of 5 stars Intimate, emotional, spiritual ... and breathtaking.......2004-10-25

      This is one of those rare CD productions for which even Amazon's top evaluation of five stars seems stingy, for it achieves a level of 'perfection' (if such a thing is possible in such a subjective area as music) that merits distinction above and beyond the praise one would normally lavish on a successful recording. Let me try and justify this remark with some facts: Firstly, there is Charpentier's music. Over the last 30 years or so, there has been a revival of Baroque music which has gone hand in hand with the re-discovery of certain composers who had almost been forgotten. One of these was Marc-Antoine Charpentier (1643 - 1704), second in the 17th century French pecking order only to Lully. Charpentier's prolific output for the stage has been made known to a wider public chiefly through the efforts of William Christie. His sacred music has been slower to find interpreters, but first progress was made by René Jacobs and Philippe Herreweghe with recordings of motets. The 'Leçons de ténèbres' were written for Holy Week, there being in Catholic France a tradition of reading or singing passages from the Lamentations of Jeremiah on the Wednesday, Thursday and Friday before Easter. The most famous 'Leçons' were by Michel Lambert and François Couperin, but Charpentier, too, wrote quite a large amount of music for the services associated with these readings (which were sung not only by monks and nuns, but also by opera singers). Charpentier's miniatures are based on the original Gregorian melodies but combined with the Italianate style for which he was famed, the scores being carefully marked to show the singers how to perform the elaborate vocal decorations of the numerous melismas. The whole is given an instrumental accompaniment that can vary according to the availability of instruments and musicians. This is music of incredible high beauty.

      Secondly, there is the performance and/or interpretation, which I can only describe as exquisite. Gérard Lesne, known for his natural-sounding countertenor, is here joined by an excellent team of vocalists. The introductory Gregorian chant is brilliantly mastered by bass Jacques Bona; the first 'Leçon' is given breathtaking treatment by French soprano Agnès Mellon, whose soft, sensuous voice (known to many listeners for her part in Philippe Herreweghe's recording of Bach's 'Magnificat') seems absolutely ideal for this intimate, emotional and spiritual music. The inclusion on this CD of some of Charpentier's three-part compositions of the Hebrew letters of the alphabet is an extra goodie: they are beautiful beyond description. As are also the instrumental introductions to individual sections, where the combination of treble viol, recorder, bass violin and organ can, on occasion, be almost ecstatic. One or two unaccompanied sections of Gregorian chant achieve much the same effect, so that this CD is, in sum, a real winner.

      Thirdly, there is a more than adequate booklet. The Good Friday volume contains only one introductory essay (the Wednesday and Thursday have two), but it is informative and helpful, and here, too, all the texts are printed in Latin, French, English and German. The whole production reveals considerable musicological expertise, as many of Charpentier's works are still only available in manuscript.

      Last but not least there is the excellent recorded sound which leaves absolutely nothing to be desired.
      François Couperin: Leçons de Ténèbres
      Average customer rating: Not rated
        		François Couperin: Leçons de Ténèbres

        Manufacturer: K617 Records France
        ProductGroup: Music
        Binding: Audio CD

        GeneralGeneral | Couperin, François | ( C ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
        GeneralGeneral | Baroque (c.1600-1750) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
        Chamber MusicChamber Music | Forms & Genres | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
        GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
        GeneralGeneral | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music
        GeneralGeneral | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
        ClassicalClassical | Imports | Stores | Music
        ASIN: B00008OE1K
        Release Date: 2003-07-08
        Couperin: Leçons de Ténèbres
        Average customer rating: Not rated
          		Couperin: Leçons de Ténèbres

          Manufacturer: Harmonia Mundi Fr.
          ProductGroup: Music
          Binding: Audio CD

          GeneralGeneral | Couperin, François | ( C ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
          Purcell, HenryPurcell, Henry | ( P ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
          GeneralGeneral | Purcell, Henry | Composers | Baroque (c.1600-1750) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
          GeneralGeneral | Baroque (c.1600-1750) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
          Chamber MusicChamber Music | Forms & Genres | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
          GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
          GeneralGeneral | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music
          GeneralGeneral | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
          AnthemsAnthems | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
          ClassicalClassical | Imports | Stores | Music
          $6.99 and Under$6.99 and Under | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
          All Classical Music BlowoutAll Classical Music Blowout | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
          Couperin, FrançoisCouperin, François | ( C ) | Composers, A-Z | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
          Purcell, HenryPurcell, Henry | ( P ) | Composers, A-Z | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
          Opera & VocalOpera & Vocal | Classical Music Blowout | Stores | Music
          ASIN: B00026KH3M
          Release Date: 2004-08-10
          M-A Charpentier: Te Deum / Leçons de Ténèbres / Messe de Monsieur de Mauroy
          Average customer rating: Not rated
            		M-A Charpentier: Te Deum / Leçons de Ténèbres / Messe de Monsieur de Mauroy
            Marc-Antoine Charpentier , Hervé Niquet , Le Concert Spirituel , and Michel Chapuis
            Manufacturer: Glossa
            ProductGroup: Music
            Binding: Audio CD

            All Works by CharpentierAll Works by Charpentier | Charpentier, Marc-Antoine | ( C ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
            GeneralGeneral | Baroque (c.1600-1750) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
            Chamber MusicChamber Music | Forms & Genres | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
            GeneralGeneral | Sacred & Religious | Classical | Styles | Music
            GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
            GeneralGeneral | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music
            GeneralGeneral | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
            MotetsMotets | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
            Te DeumTe Deum | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
            ASIN: B0001DMWY8
            Release Date: 2004-02-24
            Charpentier: Nine Lecons De Tenebres
            Average customer rating: Not rated
              		Charpentier: Nine Lecons De Tenebres
              Widmer , Verschaeve , Crook , Meulenaere , Caals , Devos , and Musica Polyphonica
              Manufacturer: Apex/Warner Classics
              ProductGroup: Music
              Binding: Audio CD

              GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
              ASIN: B0002JNLRS
              Release Date: 2006-04-14

              Tracks:

              1. Premiere Lecon De Tenebres Du Mercredi Saint, H120
              2. Premiere Lecon De Tenebres Du Jeudi Saint, H121
              3. Premiere Lecon De Tenebres Du Vendredi Saint, H121
              4. Troisieme Lecon De Tenebres Du Mercredi Saint, H123
              5. Troisieme Lecon De Tenebres Du Jeudi Saint, H124
              6. Troisieme Lecon De Tenebres Du Vendredi Saint, H125
              7. Troisieme Lecon De Tenebres Du Mercredi Saint, H135
              8. Troisieme Lecon De Tenebres Du Jeudi Saint, H136
              9. Troisieme Lecon De Tenebres Du Vendredi Saint, H137
              Charpentier: Lecons de Ténèbres. Office du Jeudi Saint H. 121, 144, 510, 139, 128, 135, 521
              Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
              • Incredible Beauty
              		 Charpentier: Lecons de Ténèbres. Office du Jeudi Saint H. 121, 144, 510, 139, 128, 135, 521
              Marc-Antoine Charpentier , Gérard Lesne , Il Seminario Musicale , Sandrine Piau , Ian Honeyman , and Peter Harvey
              Manufacturer: EMI Int'l
              ProductGroup: Music
              Binding: Audio CD

              Chamber MusicChamber Music | Forms & Genres | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
              GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
              GeneralGeneral | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music
              ClassicalClassical | Imports | Stores | Music
              ASIN: B000025M0X
              Release Date: 2002-12-23

              Tracks:

              1. Prelude In G Minor, H.528
              2. Antienne Habitabit In Tabernaculo
              3. Psaume 14 'Domine, Quis Habitabit': Premiere Lecon, H.121 - Jerusalem Du H.120
              4. Psaume 14 'Domine, Quis Habitabit': Premier Repons - Omnes Amici Mei, H.144
              5. Psaume 14 'Domine, Quis Habitabit': Prld in e, H.510
              6. Psaume 14 'Domine, Quis Habitabit': Seconde Lecon, H.139 - Jerusalem Du H.138
              7. Psaume 14 'Domine, Quis Habitabit': Second Repons - Velum Templi Scissum Est, H.128
              8. Psaume 14 'Domine, Quis Habitabit': Troisieme Lecon, H.136 - Jerusalem Du H.135
              9. Psaume 14 'Domine, Quis Habitabit': Troisieme Repons - Tenebrae Factae Sunt
              10. Prelude In F, H.521
              11. Psaume 50 - Miserere

              Customer Reviews:

              5 out of 5 stars Incredible Beauty.......2004-10-23

              This is one of those rare CD productions for which even Amazon's top evaluation of five stars seems stingy, for it achieves a level of 'perfection' (if such a thing is possible in such a subjective area as music) that merits distinction above and beyond the praise one would normally lavish on a successful recording. Let me try and justify this remark with some facts: Firstly, there is Charpentier's music. Over the last 30 years or so, there has been a revival of Baroque music which has gone hand in hand with the re-discovery of certain composers who had almost been forgotten. One of these was Marc-Antoine Charpentier (1643 - 1704), second in the 17th century French pecking order only to Lully. Charpentier's prolific output for the stage has been made known to a wider public chiefly through the efforts of William Christie. His sacred music has been slower to find interpreters, but first progress was made by René Jacobs and Philippe Herreweghe with recordings of motets. The 'Lecons de ténèbres' were written for Holy Week, there being in Catholic France a tradition of reading or singing passages from the Lamentations of Jeremiah on the Wednesday, Thursday and Friday before Easter. The most famous 'Lecons' were by Michel Lambert and Francois Couperin, but Charpentier, too, wrote quite a large amount of music for the services associated with these readings (which were sung not only by monks and nuns, but also by opera singers). Charpentier's miniatures are based on the original Gregorian melodies but combined with the Italianate style for which he was famed, the scores being carefully marked to show the singers how to perform the elaborate vocal decorations of the numerous melismas. The whole is given an instrumental accompaniment that can vary according to the availability of instruments and musicians. This is music of incredible high beauty.

              Secondly, there is the performance and/or interpretation, which I can only describe as exquisite. Gérard Lesne, known for his natural-sounding countertenor, is here joined by an excellent team of vocalists, of whom Peter Harvey and Ian Honeyman draw particular attention to themselves with some grand solos, all sung with great piety of feeling. (Soprano Sandrine Piau can only be heard here in an ensemble.) The singers are accompanied by an excellent team of instrumentalists (recorders, viols, theorbo, bass violin, organ) who produce some really lovely sounds: I had never before heard the discant viol in a combination like this, and I found the music absolutely enchanting: on this Maundy Thursday disc, there are three purely instrumental introductions which one would normally not get to hear but which represent another very pleasing side of Charpentier's character as a composer.

              Thirdly, there is the musicological research which has gone into this recording. This is reflected in the two informative essays in the accompanying booklet which explain both the background and the individual decisions made by Grard Lesne and his team with regard to this performance. The booklet also contains all the texts in Latin, French, English and German, plus all the information one could need about the recording venue, the instruments etc.

              Last but not least, there is the excellent engineering which has captured the performance perfectly. This is beautiful, beautiful music, well worth taking the time to listen to over and over again.
              Couperin - Trois leçons de ténèbres / van der Sluis · Laurens · Monteilhet · Muller · Boulay
              Average customer rating: Not rated
                		Couperin - Trois leçons de ténèbres / van der Sluis · Laurens · Monteilhet · Muller · Boulay
                François Couperin , Laurence Boulay , Mieke van der Sluis , Guillemette Laurence , and Marianne Muller Pascal Monteilhet
                Manufacturer: Elektra / Wea
                ProductGroup: Music
                Binding: Audio CD

                GeneralGeneral | Couperin, François | ( C ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
                GeneralGeneral | Baroque (c.1600-1750) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
                GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
                GeneralGeneral | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
                MotetsMotets | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
                ASIN: B00000IWRW
                Release Date: 1999-05-18

                Tracks:

                1. Troisieme Lecon De Tenebres
                2. Premiere Lecon De Tenebres
                3. Motet Pour Le Jour De Paques
                4. Deuxieme Lecon De Tenebres
                5. Magnificat

                Music:

                1. The Specials
                2. Backwoods [UK-Import]
                3. On the Line of Fire
                4. Happiness [UK-Import]
                5. Walk on the Wild Side (the Best of)
                6. Overflow
                7. Second Hand Daylight [UK-Import]
                8. Reflections in a Crystal Wind
                9. Ebbhead
                10. Medeiros [UK-Import]

                Music

                Music