Music at Versailles

[doversoul1]

Donald Macleod meets baroque specialist Olivier Baumont at the Palace of Versailles. Together they walk through the landscaped elegance of the gardens, famous for their spectacular water features, where three of Louis XIV's biggest outdoor extravaganzas took place.

This is a repeat but it makes an interesting listening following last week’s Monteverdi.

[Flosshilde]

Yes - a fascinating series of programmes, with lots of insights into life at Versailles, as well as the music. Olivier Baumont was an excellent guide, not above commenting on the smell of 'pee pee' & 'ka ka' which required periodic decamping to one of the other palaces while Versailles was cleaned up , but also giving more serious information.

[vinteuil]

Very much agree - Donald MacLeod, Olivier Baumont, and Hervé Niquet were excellent in their presentation of how music was actually used in the extraordinary daily routine of life at Versailles. The more I learn about Versailles the more I think it must have been mind-numbingly awful to have been a courtier there...

[Flosshilde]

But not bad if you were the King

[bicycledave]

I unfortunately missed episodes #4 and #5 of the "Music at Versailles" programs. Does anyone know if Composer of the Week programs are played on other stations? - Thanks.

[FFAdminMKS]

I unfortunately missed episodes #4 and #5 of the "Music at Versailles" programs. Does anyone know if Composer of the Week programs are played on other stations? - Thanks.

Hello, bd

No, I'm afraid CotW is only on Radio 3, and the Music at Versailles programmes were already repeats from about two years ago so are unlikely to be broadcast again in the near future.

If you miss any programmes, you have just seven days from the time of broadcast to catch them on Listen Again in the iPlayer (as you probably know).

[MickyD]

I went to see Hervé Niquet and his Concert Spirituel yesterday morning at a concert given as part of the Arles Holy Week music festival. The performances excellent, but the programme a very lugubrious one, with pieces by petits maîtres of Louis XIVs court. Niquet is a bit of a clown - yesterday he was dressed in a tightly waisted long black frock coat with high collars, which, with his bald head and sharp features, gave him the alarming appearance of the old Nosferatu character!

[Nick Armstrong]

I went to see Hervé Niquet and his Concert Spirituel yesterday morning at a concert given as part of the Arles Holy Week music festival. The performances excellent, but the programme a very lugubrious one, with pieces by petits maîtres of Louis XIVs court. Niquet is a bit of a clown - yesterday he was dressed in a tightly waisted long black frock coat with high collars, which, with his bald head and sharp features, gave him the alarming appearance of the old Nosferatu character!

[bicycledave]

Hello, bd

No, I'm afraid CotW is only on Radio 3, and the Music at Versailles programmes were already repeats from about two years ago so are unlikely to be broadcast again in the near future.

If you miss any programmes, you have just seven days from the time of broadcast to catch them on Listen Again in the iPlayer (as you probably know).

Thanks for the answer. -- That's too bad, I was hoping the programs existed elsewhere. Rameau is one of my favorite composers, and I'll bet his music was features in the shows I missed. Oh well.

[MickyD]

Actually, I think there was only a small suite of Rameau dances from "Platée" that featured in the programmes, so you didn't miss a great deal of him, bicycledave. Good to learn of another fellow Ramiste!

[vinteuil]

Good to learn of another fellow Ramiste!

Indeed so! - tho' I think the great Rameau authority Cuthbert Girdlestone (such a good name... ) suggested Ramellian

[MickyD]

Hello, Vinteuil - you're right of course. Good job I didn't choose Ramoneur, which as I am sure you know means a chimney sweep!

[Nick Armstrong]

As a fellow Ramellian, I recall there was just one other short Rameau piece - as well as an extract from the Platée suite - which was an Air Polonais for harpsichord, played by Olivier Baumont, the chap who was on the programmes with DM.

[MickyD]

Caliban and Vinteuil,

You might be interested in this YouTube clip of a suite from Les Indes Galantes played by Jordi Savall's band. The recorded sound is nice but I'm not too sure about the Methuselah figure on the drums section!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hhrpzqERzFY

[Nick Armstrong]

Caliban and Vinteuil,

You might be interested in this YouTube clip of a suite from Les Indes Galantes played by Jordi Savall's band. The recorded sound is nice but I'm not too sure about the Methuselah figure on the drums section!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hhrpzqERzFY

You're a great one for spotting weird looking people in early music bands (not so difficult, you'll tell me... )! If it's not Nosferatu Niquet, now we have Terry Jones's hermit from "Life of Brian"...

I'm sure I've seen him playing in real life actually, and we had a giggle - though I haven't seen Savall so he must play for other ensembles, like most of them do. Or perhaps he just rents out the beard and wig...