Musique pour le Roy Soleil, Robert de Visee, Works for Theorbo : Francesca Torelli

Musique pour le Roy Soleil, Robert de Visee, Works for Theorbo by Francesca Torelli

Francesca Torelli : Musique pour le Roy Soleil, Robert de Visee, Works for Theorbo.
Deep interpreter of lute music.

Robert De Visée was the perfect incarnation of the complete, wholly fulfilled, long-lived and acclaimed musician of his times: guitarist, theorbist, lutenist, violist, cantore and composer. We do not have certain information concerning his birth and musical education, but all of the historical sources note that he was active in the Parisian area.

Born sometime between 1650 and 1660, he most probably studied guitar with Francesco Corbetta. Around 1680 he became a chamber musician in the service of Louis XIV, though with no formal title. In 1709 he obtained the post of singer of the royal chamber and only in 1719 he was officially recognised as having been the Roy-Soleil's guitar teacher, though he had in reality taught him the instrument since the death of Corbetta in 1681.

His theorbo music is contained in roughly forty manuscripts and in one printed volume. This recording includes pieces contained in the Besancon "Vaudry de Saizenay", Agen, Pn Rés 1106 manuscripts.

Today we appreciate the grandeur of the Roi-Soleil's era through its arts, literature and historical documents. Even before coming to know the music of this age we might imagine it was solemn, sustained and grandiose. On the contrary, the music that you will hear through Francesca Torelli's theorbo represents less the flamboyant side of court art and more its intimate aspect.

De Visée's relationship with the Roi-Soleil was rather private, and reached its daily culmination in a solo concert for the King's ears only. We can imagine the soave and 'insinuating' tone (as it was described by a renowned musician of the time) of the plucked stringed instrument as it lured the King into a mood of care-free relaxation.

In these compositions by de Visée the musical discourse is at times mainstream, reflecting the stylistic norms of the suite of that era, whilst at other times it reveals pure and innovative expressive liberty. The ornaments abound throughout, not as superfluous embellishments but rather as an integral part of the musical language, resulting in sinuous phrasing. De Visée follows the practice already established by French lutenists to compose non-metrical Preludes, meaning that they are not subdivided by bar-lines, allowing for freedom of interpretation. He takes this musical form to extremes by including strong dissonances and free 'flights' of musical fancy. Les Sylvains is a piece by Francois Couperin for harpsichord which de Visée transcribed for the theorbo. In turn Couperin bore witness to the reciprocal esteem of these two worthy musicians, active in the same years, by taking a gavotte by de Visée and adapting it for the harpsichord.

Even though modern listeners might be immersed in the sonorities of pop and rock, I believe that they may fully grasp the sentiments and the atmosphere of de Visée's music, which is capable of transporting us far from daily life into a dimension of passionate intimacy.

Songs:

License Deep interpreter of lute music by Francesca Torelli for your project.
Play the music of Francesca Torelli in your restaurant or store.

Release date: 8/20/2012
Francesca Torelli lives in Reggio Emilia Italy

Tagged as: Classical, Renaissance, Baroque, Instrumental, Composer: Francois Couperin, Composer: Jean-Baptiste Lully, Composer: Robert de Visee, Theorbo

Recommended albums:

Viva Mediva by Mediva: medieval music made enticingly modern
Allemande by Edward Martin: vihuela, renaissance and baroque lute
Classic Giuliani by AlmaNova: lively flute/guitar duo
Peter Philips - The English Exile by Colin Booth: solo harpsichord music
Grounds for Pleasure by Colin Booth: solo harpsichord music
Dowland's Dialogues, Volume One by English Ayres: traditional early English music
Louis Couperin Harpsichord Music by Colin Booth: solo harpsichord music
Patrons of the Lute by Daniel Shoskes: A feast of Baroque lute
Essential Scarlatti by Colin Booth: solo harpsichord music
Litha by Skarazula: medieval European, Turkish and Arabic music
Michelagnolo Galilei by Paul Beier: solo lute of the Italian renaissance.
Passion, Pestilence and Polyphony by Misericordia: sickeningly good Medieval
Siena Lute Book by Jacob Heringman: renaissance lute
Jane Pickeringes Lute Book by Jacob Heringman: renaissance lute
La Superbe by Thomas Walker: Lute music of 17th century France and Italy
Rondeau Melancolique by Alex McCartney: Reflective, historically-informed performance on the lute
The Laughing Cavalier by English Ayres: traditional early English music
Conversations Galantes by Ensemble Mirable: rare and extraordinary music of the Baroque
Hidden Sky by Jami Sieber: enchanting cello compositions
Musical Incense - volume one (Hang and Guitar Duets) by Laura Inserra: the Hang, a new instrument from Switzerland

Downloads:

MP3: High quality MP3 variable-bit-rate files. Most people download these: they are audiophile files that play everywhere.
ALAC: Perfect quality Apple Lossless format files. If you use iTunes or an iPod, get these. They're an exact audio copy of the original CD, and include the CD artwork and artist info. This is the same format as High Definition audio provided by the iTunes store.
AAC: High quality Apple Audio Codec files. If you use iTunes or an iPod, these files sound great and include CD art and artist info. This is the standard format provided by the iTunes music store.
WAV: Perfect quality WAV files. This format works everywhere, and is an exact audio copy of the original CD. It sounds fantastic. Album art and artist info is unfortunately not possible with this format.
FLAC Perfect quality open source FLAC files. This is an open source audio format. It is an exact copy of the original CD, and includes CD artwork and artist info. Works great on Linux, VLC and many audio players based on open source.
OGG: High quality open source OGG files. This is an open source audio format. It is a compressed (smaller file size) version of the original CD, and includes CD artwork and artist info. Works great on Linux, VLC and many audio players based on open source.
128k: Medium quality 128K MP3 files. These are medium audio quality MP3 files that will work on every device. The audio quality is good enough for most uses. These files are intended for cases where you want to conserve disk space.