French Viol Muse, Part 1

Marin Marais is the most beloved composer by players of the viola da gamba. He lived and worked for Louis XIV at the height of the French baroque era, and his music exemplifies the grace and delicacy of French music, as defined by his friend and colleague Jean Baptiste Lully. His five books of Pieces de Viole contain hundreds of dances, fantasies and character pieces, organized into suites by key. The techniques, decorations and musical idioms contained in these pieces were passed along by Marais to his students, several of whom became renowned viol players and composers themselves. These students include Charles Dollé, Jacques Morel, Louis de Caix-d’Hervelois, and of course his son Roland Marais.

We will perform for you music by Marais and his students, as well as the violinist Antoine Dauvergne, whose compositional styles reflect the evolving musical tastes of France under Louis XV.

Prepare to be transported to the court of Versailles, to dance and be moved by the gentle, refined and elegant music of the French baroque!

Program:

Marais’ Suite d’un Gout Etranger, or Suite in a Foreign Taste
his son Roland Marais’ Suite in C, amiable and friendly
his student Dollé’s Tombeau de Marais le Père, a memorial for the great teacher after his death,
and contemporary Dauvergne’s Opus 2 Sonata #1, a fun violin sonata from the tail end of the Baroque era.

What's the music?

Guts Baroque baroque violin and 7-string bass viol

Attendees

Lily P. Emcee

Sylvia V.

Karin P.

Leni S.

Denys C.

Sharon B.

Philip F.

Sheri R.

+1

Rachel D.

Elizabeth B.

Marc G.

Bruce T.

Angela Jihee K.

Jong K.

Margo S.