Idylle

by Lea Desandre, Thomas Dunford

Overview

"French love songs from three centuries, interspersed with reflective lute solos," reads the publicity for this 2023 release by mezzo-soprano Lea Desandre and lutenist Thomas Dunford. That is true enough, but it hardly begins to scratch the surface. The French love songs are an eminently varied group, ranging from 17th century chansons through the late Romantic era, all the way up to popular songs by Francoise Hardy and contemporary French chanteuse Barbara. A good-sized share of the credit goes to Dunford, who keeps up with all the stylistic changes here and generates a striking range of sounds from the lute. Hear the vaguely electric guitar low notes in, especially, one of the Hardy songs, Le temps de l'amour. Even more varied is Desandre herself, who is emerging as a major star; this album is going to do nothing to slow the process down. Her voice sounds almost colorless when it is in its basic mode, quiet and with little vibrato or expression. However, other layers come out almost immediately after a song begins, and she is in complete control of the hugely varied material here, delivering distinctive styles in the Renaissance pieces, the Baroque cantatas by Charpentier, the Romantic songs, and the pop compositions. At the end, one has the feeling of having traversed a huge distance with just one singer and a lute. An extraordinary performance, enhanced by Erato's engineering at the La Chaux de Fonds auditorium in Switzerland. ~ James Manheim

Product Details

Release Date:	04/26/2024
Label:	Erato
UPC:	5054197751462
Rank:	30782

Tracks

1. Le doux silence de nos bois
2. Études latines~Néère
3. Le temps de l'amour
4. Gnossienne No. 1
5. Celle qui fait tout mon tourment
6. Auprès du feu l'on fait l'amour
7. Tristes déserts, sombre retraite
8. L' Amour masqué~Act I: J'ai deux amants
9. Gymnopédie No. 1
10. Ma bergère est tendre et fidèle
11. À Chloris
12. Sans frayeur dans ce bois
13. Suite No. 7 in D minor~Sarabande
14. Le premier bonheur du jour
15. On n'entend rien dans ce bocage
16. Pelléas et Mélisande~Act III: Mes longs cheveux descendent
17. Ombre de mon amant
18. Vos mépris chaque jour
19. Suite No. 7 in D minor~Chaconne
20. Dis, quand reviendras-tu?
21. Laissez durer la nuit
22. La Belle Héléne~Act I: Amours divins!

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Lea Desandre   Primary Artist,Soprano (Vocal),Mezzo-Soprano (Vocal)
Thomas Dunford   Primary Artist,Lute,Vocals,Theorbo

Technical Credits

Andre Salvet   Poetry,Lyricist
Jacques Offenbach   Composer
Claude Debussy   Composer
Jean Renard   Composer
Frank Gerald   Poetry,Lyricist
Honore D'Ambruys   Composer
Marc-Antoine Charpentier   Composer
Reynaldo Hahn   Composer
Ludovic Halevy   Poetry,Librettist
Michel Lambert   Composer
Maurice Maeterlinck   Poetry,Librettist
Andre Messager   Composer
Sebastien Le Camus   Composer
Alfred de Musset   Liner Notes
Ivan Caryll   Original Lyrics
Daniel Zalay   Producer
Hughes Deschaux   Engineer
Alain Lanceron   Executive Producer
Lucien Morisse   Poetry,Lyricist
Jacques Dutrone   Composer
Sacha Guitry   Poetry,Librettist
Theophile de Viau   Poetry
Robert de Visee   Composer
Saul Lipetz   Liner Note Translation
Henri Meilhac   Poetry,Librettist
Barbara   Composer
Jacques Dutronc   Composer
Erik Satie   Composer
Julien Benhamou   Photography