This third release in the Prix de Rome series by Glossa is set to demonstrate a composer whose range of talents far extends beyond his famous opera 'Louise'. After Debussy and Saint-Saëns, Hervé Niquet now turns to the dramatic realism of the late 19th century. The Italian period in Charpentier’s life (1888-1890) was actually his most fruitful creative. It was there, in Rome, that he worked on two masterly symphonic works: the one elaborating his 'Impressions d’Italie' which was to enjoy significant success right up until the Second World War; whilst the other, 'La Vie du poète', more experimental, called for three soloists, a chorus and a large symphonic orchestra.

In this recital, Véronique Gens and Hervé Niquet bring back to life a neglected aspect of France’s Romantic heritage: songs with orchestral accompaniment. Aside from a few pieces by Debussy and Duparc, and Berlioz’s famous Nuits d’été, orchestral mélodies form a virtually forgotten continent. In collaboration with the specialists of the Palazzetto Bru Zane, Alpha Classics now revisits these musical landscapes, taking us from Brittany (Hahn) to Persia, whose beauties Fauré and Saint-Saëns exalt in very different ways. Mélodies by Chausson, Gounod and Dubois and rarely heard instrumental pieces by Massenet, Fauré and Fernand de La Tombelle round out the journey with their musical reveries.

Following the Revolution of 1789, it was no longer His Majesty's professional army, but the living body of the nation carried the flag of its new National Guard on the battlefield. Military music flourished as never before and influenced the entire musical scene of the time, resulting in a musical legacy dedicated to the triumphant glory of the Republic. This recording, featuring trumpets and drums, harmony orchestras, military rhythms and patriotic choruses, provides a 'very French' anthology: the French Army Choir and the Symphonic Orchestra of the Garde Republicaine, conducted by Herve Niquet, invite us to sing these odes to France, the immortal legacy of our forefathers, with panache and a hand on our hearts.

In 1743, two years before Rameau's Platee, Boismortier created an extraordinarily modern and madcap "comic ballet", Don Quichotte chez la Duchesse. As the exuberant plot unfurls, Cervantes' hero encounters monsters, enchanters, princesses and people from Japan, making for plenty of offbeat and audacious dances and choruses. Musical beauty rubs shoulders with satirical and irreverent comedy. A choice work for Herve Niquet, who leads his Concert Spirituel with unparalleled energy!

Ensembles specializing in the French Baroque have been busy resurrecting music that's both of interest to specialists and a lot of fun for anybody discovering that much of this repertory makes good party music – just as it did when it was composed. Boismortier was a composer from Lorraine who went to Paris and made good by pleasing well-situated patrons with attractive, somewhat kaleidoscopic music that was well suited to the needs of the instrumentalists they employed. Included on the rather confusingly titled Boismortier: Sonates pour basses are pieces for low-register instruments – viola da gamba, cello, and bassoon, as well as several pieces of perhaps didactic nature, with unspecified and thus adaptable instrumentation.

‘Well, what a surprise – a divine surprise! I have delighted in immersing myself in the world of Handel for more than forty years now. But I must admit that I experienced yet another lesson in strength and joy when I toured and recorded the Dettingen Te Deum and the Coronation Anthems ’, says Hervé Niquet. As a lover of large orchestral formations, he has assembled a number of instrumentalists and singers close to the (gigantic) forces used at the premiere, with a large band of oboes, bassoons and trumpets, and assigned the solo arias to the entire ‘chapel’. Niquet speaks of ‘the glittering power of this ceremonial music concocted by a Handel conscious of placing the best of his genius at the service of the crown and of history’, and he in turn invests all his enthusiasm and expressiveness in these works combining ‘grace and strength’. Fans of Champions League football will recognise in Zadok the Priest the theme of that competition’s anthem!