Early Music Rocks with Charpentier!

4/5/2019

.Triumphal trumpets surprised us; kettle drums stirred us. It was the Te Deum by 17th c. French composer Marc-Antoine Charpentier--a glorious piece of music. I heard it Saturday March 29th at Palm Beach Atlantic University in West Palm Beach. It was the centerpiece of an Early Music Concert beautifully conducted by John Weatherspoon (conductor/artistic director of the expressivosingers.com).

Early Music Concert in the DeSantis Family Chapel featuring Chapentier's Te Deum (March 29, 2019)

There were echoes of Handel in this glorious piece of music. But rather than religious overtones, Charpentier's famous polyphonic motet sounded secular, at least to my ears. That may have reflected the fact that many believe it was composed to celebrate a French military victory--the Battle of Steenkirk in August, 1692. Three hundred years later this composition still stirs minds and souls!
Palm Beach Atlantic University

2 Comments

John Weatherspoon link

4/9/2019 07:34:49 pm

Thank you so much April. We appreciate your review. If your readers would like to hear us in concert, they may go to our webpage and click on our CONCERTS tab. We enjoyed this performance of Charpentier’s Te Deum with the Early Music Festival at PBAU. Thank you again for being there.

Peter Hartman link

4/13/2021 07:52:49 am

Thanks foor a great read

"Art washes away
from the soul the dust
of everyday life."
-Pablo Picasso

Dear Art Lover:
Welcome back!
The pandemic shocked and slowed down the art world for many months. But now, artists, museums and galleries have adapted. They are providing new ways for you to enjoy the work of your favorite classic or new artists...and keep on top of cultural trends and developments.
Here in Palm Beach County art venues from the Norton and Boca Raton Museums to the Art Warehouse in Delray Beach have reopened--with new exhibitions and socially distanced, masked viewing opportunities
For those of your still reluctant to venture out (until you have your COVID-19 "shots")--the digital world will enable you to enjoy elements of the collections and exhibitions of prestigious institutions such as the Fricke, as well as opportunities to join docents on art tours from France to China.
So, I'm back again! To let you know what I consider "the best" of all these opportunities. Keep an eye on my blog to enhance your art-viewing pleasure!

April Klimley
February 12, 2021