Mariamielle Lamagat, Lucie Chabard, Alice Trocellier, Adèle Charvet (mezzo-soprano), Ensemble Théodora

Lully: Entrée de la Gloire et de la Sagesse d'Armide
Lully: Ballet des Arts: Duo de la Paix et de la Félicité
Campra: Ecce quam bonum, Motet à voix seule
Krieger, J P: Surgite cum gaudio a 3
Fischer, J: Suite en trio
Bach, J S: Couperin Aria in F major, BWV 587

In 2018, four friends studying at the Royal Academy of Music in London decided to form an ensemble they called Théodora. For their first recording, part of Alpha Classics' "Baroque Stories" series, they decided to trace the French style in Germanic lands in the 18th century, where the dance forms, dotted rhythms, and harmonies in vogue at the court of Louis XIV inspired composers to create numerous transcriptions and new instrumental practices. Johann Fischer and Johann Philipp Krieger make no secret of their admiration for Campra and Lully, whose music enjoyed considerable success across the Rhine. This programme features a magnificent version of the ‘Duo de la paix et de la félicité’ performed with mezzo-soprano Adèle Charvet, and highlights Bach’s admiration for the French organ school. Ensemble Théodora explores this repertoire with elegance, capturing the transition of style from the heart of Versailles to the courts of Germany.