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Le Concert Spirituel

Le Concert Spirituel traces not its ancestry, but rather its spirit back to the famed French concert series of the 18th century, offering performances of Baroque music, including opera, on historically appropriate instruments. Le Concert Spirituel is the resident ensemble of the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées and has a prolific recording catalog, offering multiple releases yearly. In 2024, it was heard on a recording of Fauré's Requiem and Gounod's Messe de Clovis.Le Concert Spirituel was founded in 1987 by harpsichordist and choral conductor Hervé Niquet, who remains its director. Le Concert Spirituel has naturally focused on French music but has also performed Italian, English, and other works. Its initial impetus was Niquet's desire to perform and record works from the neglected grand motet repertory. In association with the Centre de Musique Baroque de Versailles, it has focused on performance in situ of the music of French composers of the 17th century from Charpentier to Lully. However, it has also given many performances elsewhere, from the Salle Pleyel and the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées in Paris (where it is in residence) to the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, London's Royal Albert Hall (for the BBC Proms), the Luxemburg Philharmonie, the Auditorio Nacional in Madrid, the Tokyo Opera, and the Shanghai Concert Hall.After its debut in 1989 with a recording of the Requiem of Jean Gilles, Le Concert Spirituel recorded for Adda, Virgin, and Naxos, for which it issued cycles of grands motets and other large-scale sacred works by Lully and Charpentier. The latter cycle continued on Glossa, for which Le Concert Spirituel recorded exclusively from 2000 to 2015, beginning with a 2001 recording of the Charpentier Te Deum. It also recorded operas for Glossa, including Boismortier's Daphnis et Chloé, Destouches' Callirhoé, Marais' Sémélé, and Grétry's Andromaque. The group also emphasizes the continuity of the French heritage by performing and recording music composed for the French Prix de Rome competition by Saint-Saëns, Debussy, Gustave Charpentier, and others. It has mounted large-scale productions in collaboration with directors and choreographers including Gilles and Corinne Benizio (Shirley et Dino), Karole Armitage, and Joachim Schlöemer, and it has presented full-size performances of Striggio's Mass for 40 and 60 Voices and Handel's Water Music and Music for the Royal Fireworks.In 2015, Le Concert Spirituel began recording exclusively for the Alpha label, kicking off that relationship with a recording of Vivaldi's Gloria and Magnificat. The group also regularly appears in operatic productions at the Château of Versailles and has been heard on several recordings on the Château's in-house label, including productions of Mozart's The Magic Flute (2021) and Gluck's Écho & Narcisse (2023). Le Concert Spirituel returned to Alpha in 2024 for the recording Fauré: Requiem; Gounod: Messe de Clovis.
© James Manheim & Keith Finke /TiVo

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