Composer: André-Ernest-Modeste Grétry, Louis-Nicolas Clérambault, Nicolas Dalayrac
Performer: Pauline Warnier, Les Monts du Reuil, Jeanne Zaepffel, Guillaume Gutierrez, Louison Costes
Conductor: Hélène Clerc-Murgier
Format: FLAC (tracks)
Label: Aparté
Catalogue: AP302
Release: 2022
Size: 1.1 GB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes
Gretry: Le Magnifique, Ouverture
01. Fuga. Allegro assai
02. Andante
03. Tempo giusto
04. Marche
Gretry: Le Magnifique
05. Ariette “Jour heureux, douce espérance ! ” (Clémentine)
06. Ariette “Ah, c’est un superbe cheval” (Fabio)
07. Air “Pourquoi donc ce Magnifique” (Clémentine)
08. Entracte. La fanfare des courses
09. Air “Ah, que je me sens coupable !” (Clémentine)
Clérambault: Fables dans le goût de La Fontaine
10. Le Cerf
11. La Belette
12. La Grenouille et le Bœuf
13. Le Loup et l’Agneau
14. Le Corbeau et le Renard
15. Le Héron
16. La Fourmi et la Sauterelle
Nicolas: L’Éclipse totale
17. Ouverture
18. Air “Amour, bannis ma crainte” (Isabelle)
19. Air “La chanson qu’il m’apprît” (Rosette, Crispin)
20. Duo “Quoi, ce billet vient de Léandre ?” (Isabelle, Rosette)
21. Duo “Astre des nuits” (Isabelle, Rosette)
As a one-of-a kind company, standing at the crossroads between musical, lyrical and theatrical worlds, Les Monts du Reuil specialises in the forgotten treasures of French opera. Here, it offers a distinctively rare program centred around the fables of La Fontaine, which unearthes two comic operas based on the works of the fabulist: Le Magnifique by André Grétry and L’Éclipse totale by Nicolas Dalayrac, which was reconstructed for the occasion, and recorded here for the first time. In their selection of the tastiest excerpts alternating from a small aria to a duet or a horse-racing brass fanfare, the musicians highlight the refinement, lightness and humour typically found in French lyrical art from this era.
Adding to this are six arias “in the spirit of La Fontaine” by Clérambault and Desessarts, originally intended for children and directly inspired by well-known fables. We thus find the everlasting characters of the crow and the fox, the frog and the ox and also the wolf and the lamb.
The soprano Jeanne Zaeffpel, born actress and lyrical partner to the late Peter Brook, lends her voice to these various and whimsical figures. Her tone varies from candid (The Wolf and the Lamb) to mocking (The Crow and the Fox) or exultant (Quoi, ce billet vient de Léandre?) and finally remains full of grace in the arias Amour, bannis ma crainte and Astre des nuits.