L'élite des bons mots
Concerti op. 7 & 10 by Jean-Marie Leclair
The work of Jean-Marie Leclair (1697 - 1764) manifests itself in one of the most brilliant periods in the history of the French violin school and plays a major role there. In addition, period critics testify that Jean-Marie Leclair was one of the greatest violinists - virtuosos in Europe and that “his brilliant and delicate playing was extremely applauded” by the public during his performances within the Concert Spirituel in Paris, at the Dutch court or in Turin. By choosing to create this program dedicated to concertos op. Leclair 7 and Op.10, The Beggar's Ensemble is committed to seducing today's amateur and professional audiences with an innovative approach to this exceptional repertoire.
In its artistic approach, The Beggar's Ensemble aims to shed light on the interpretation and listening of Leclair's concertos from a new angle by highlighting the French taste for the art of playing the violin as well as a strong commitment . This program offers an inventory of a 10-year period during which Leclair publishes his opus 6 to 10, including his very first concerto (Op.7 n ° 1), and his last (Op. 10 n ° 6). . According to our analysis of the writing of these pieces, it is impossible to omit the presence of supports, counterpoint and harmonies specific to French music. The form of certain movements such as slow movements (aria gracioso) or overture were in our opinion composed with the same refinement as French baroque dance if we take into account that Leclair was a master in dancing before devoting himself to the violin. He
is also interesting to note that not only
the Op.7 concertos (1737) are the first concertos for solo violin published in France, but were also written before
that Leclair does not meet Locatelli.
Program
Jean-Marie Leclair (1697-1764)
Overture in D major Op.6
Chaconne in G minor Op.8
Violin Concerto No. 2 in D major Op.7
Violin Concerto No. 6 in G minor Op.10
Violin Concerto No. 1 in D minor Op.7
Jean-Baptiste Barrière (1707-1747)
Sonata No.6 in C minor
Duration: 1:30 with intermission
Album to be released in 2022
In the preface to Opus 7, Leclair writes a very touching dedication to his former counterpoint and harmony teacher André Chéron (1695-1766), with words such as: “My dear master,…”, “… I am your student. », Or by presenting his music; "If there are some beauties there, I owe them to the learned lessons I have received from you." A pupil of Nicolas Bernier (c1664 - 1734), André Chéron was recognized among his contemporaries as a keyboardist, composer and bar drummer at the Royal Academy of Music. He created there operas such as Zoroastre by Rameau or Scylla and Glaucus by his former pupil. Wasn't it he who could have transmitted to Leclair a great love of opera? His opera Acis et Galaté was warmly received by the public in 1746, an audience who noticed similarities in the air with those of Jean-Philippe Rameau. During his position as violinist at the Concert Spirituel, Leclair performed a lot of Lullist repertoire (Roland, Atys, Armide, Persée, Isis, Phaëton…) thus marking his strong attachment to the French school.
Indeed, Leclair was very inspired by the novelties coming from Italy, this is manifested in his choice of forms by the publication of concerto or the presence of adagio adorned à la Corelli. In order to underline the common thread of the mixture of Italian and French aesthetics, and to color the program of the disc, we have added a sonata for cello and bass by Jean-Baptiste Barrière (1707 - 1747), student of the Italian virtuoso Francesco (Fransicello) Alborea, and who was one of the pioneers of solo cello art in France.
The title of the disc "L'Élite des bons mots", chosen by The Beggar's Ensemble, refers to the scene of the assassination of Jean-Marie Leclair (a matter that has never been elucidated yet), because this book of various little thoughts was found at side of the lifeless body of the composer on October 22, 1764.
Distribution
Augustin Lusson : Solo violin / Conductor
Louise Ayrton : Violin
David Rabinovici : Violin
Tatsuya Hatano : Violin / Viola
Daria Zemele : Harpsichord
Yuka Saïto : Viole de Gambe
François Gallon : Cello
Matthieu Lusson : Violone / Viola da gamba
Youen Cadiou : Double bass