William Christie and Charpentier’s Grands Motets

Of all the composers of the grand siècle to whom William Christie and Les Arts Florissants have tirelessly devoted themselves for over 40 years, Marc-Antoine Charpentier is perhaps the most emblematic. This concert is the sacred counterpart to the secular “feast” of the previous Saturday at the Amphithéâtre: an immersion in the religious music of a great master of the French Baroque, a moment of grace between fervour and contemplation. Among other gems, the public will have the opportunity to rediscover the majesty of the Magnificat, H. 77, the awe-inspiring serenity of the Litanies à la Vierge, and the virtuoso writing of the Nuptiae sacrae—a nuptial dialogue evoking the relationship of Christ to His Church.