Search - Mignarda :: Divine Amarillis: Airs de Court 1570-1640

A haunting, tender and intimate collection of airs and lute solos of the early 17th century French court, this recording was selected soon after its release by Cleveland classical radio station WCLV as a Choice CD. The songs, known as airs de cour, were mostly gleaned from the lavish courtly entertainments called Ballets. Some 800 published airs survive from circa 1600-1660. True to theatrical form, themes in the poetry seem to dwell upon one of three subjects: unrequited love, the sometimes inexplicable interactions of mythological deities, or idyllic scenes of nymphs and shepherds. The descriptor, airs de court, is taken from Jean-Baptiste Besard's Thesaurus Harmonicus (Cologne, 1603), one of the earliest sources for the airs performed here. While most of the pieces on this disc were originally published to represent music that was sung and played at the royal courts, the audience for these publications was the merchant class, who were eager to invest their wealth in emulating the trappings of the noble houses. Also included are two psalm settings for voice and lute to emphasize the significant role psalm singing played in domestic life in the 16th and 17th centuries. Understanding these crucial links enables the performers to take the music one step closer from the museum to the present moment by redefining the repertory as domestic music.