Henry Purcell (1659-1695)
Ode pour l'anniversaire de la Reine Marie (1690) "Arise, my Muse"
Ode pour l'anniversaire de la Reine Marie (1692) "Love's goddess sure was blind"
Ode pour l'anniversaire de la Reine Marie (1693) "Celebrate this festival"

Carolyn Sampson, soprano
Emily Owen, soprano
Iestyn Davies, contreténor
Hugh Cutting, contreténor
Charles Daniels, ténor
David de Winter, ténor
Matthew Brook, basse
Edward Grint, basse
The King's Consort
Robert King, direction

Second volume des Odes d'Henry Purcell enregistré par Robert King, cet album nous propose trois nouvelles Odes parmi les six composés par Purcell destinés à célébrer avec fastes musicaux et arguments littéraires les anniversaires de la Reine entre 1689 et 1694. On retrouve les mêmes chanteurs dont Carolyn Sampson, l'excellent ténor David de Winter, le vétéran Charles Daniels et un ensemble instrumental, le King's Consort, remarquable de verdeur et d'exactitude dans la restitution musicale. On passera sur une basse aigrelette et souffreteuse (Edward Grint) qui fonctionnerait davantage au théâtre (Dioclesan, King Arthur). Ces Odes se caractérisent avant tout par la grande diversité des affects (humour, ironie, tendresse) et des formes, de la symphony en imitation à la ballade écossaise en passant par la fugue chorale (Love's Goddess sure was blind). "Arise my Muse" offre outre une ouverture d'une facture admirable, un long et beau dialogue entre un haute-contre et deux flûtes à bec (But ah Isee Eusebia drown'd in tears). On appréciera dans la dernière œuvre au programme "Celebrate this Festival" (composée en partie pour John Shore le Louis Amstrong de l'époque) la prééminence de la trompette et de la soprano (Carolyn Sampson toujours délicieuse) qui enquille les airs dont un épatant duo avec trompette. Un volume aussi réjouissant que le précédent (Royal Odes - VIVAT121) publié par Vivat, un label qui porte bien son nom ! (Jérôme Angouillant)

Following their much-lauded recent recording of Purcell Royal Odes, The King’s Consort gathers together the same world-class vocal and instrumental ensemble in three more of Purcell’s finest odes written to celebrate the birthday of Queen Mary. Purcell’s odes for Queen Mary show him at his best. A glorious succession of overtures, choruses, arias and delicious ritornelli display astonishing imagination and ingenuity: whilst overtly celebratory, never far beneath the surface lies the sense of melancholy which is the hallmark of Purcell’s greatest music. “Arise, my Muse” (1690), “Love’s goddess sure” (1692) and “Celebrate this festival” (1693) are amongst his finest works. For more than three decades TKC has been renowned across the globe for its performances of the music of Henry Purcell. In 1988, TKC recorded its first disc of Purcell’s odes: that ground-breaking series was followed by complete series of the sacred music and the secular songs, and changed the musical world’s perception of Purcell. Since then there has been hardly a year in which the odes haven’t appeared in TKC’s concert programmes: this is music which runs through the ensemble’s veins. In April 2021, TKC returned to the studio to record three substantial odes written for the birthday of Queen Mary. An outstanding team of soloists (led by Carolyn Sampson, Iestyn Davies, Charles Daniels and Matthew Brook) included one member of the ensemble who took part in that first recording, alongside others who have been performing these works with TKC for twenty years. On the other hand, three of the singers were not even born when TKC first recorded Purcell odes. A superlative instrumental ensemble provides equally outstanding contributions.