From Amazon.co.uk
Philippe Herreweghe's 1981 recording of Jean Gilles'
Messe des Morts (Requiem) rescued a once-celebrated work from almost 200 years of neglect. Written in 1697, the piece seems not to have been performed until the composer's own untimely death, aged 37, in 1705. Widely praised in France throughout much of the 18th century the
Requiem was much altered and expanded until at length it fell into neglect. Herreweghe was the first to seek out the original manuscript and present the work as written by Gilles, played by his period-instrument ensemble Musica Antiqua Köln accompanied by the Collegium Vocale Gent. The result is a splendid recreation of the French Baroque, in which the formality of strict fugal passages is contrasted with joyful dances and frankly operatic solos. Michel Corrette's
Carillon des Morts from 1764 is the brief filler. The analogue sound of this disc is pleasant and warm, making the most of the occasionally scrawny orchestral textures: this was still early days for period performance; more modern recordings tend to be a little more refined (Herreweghe revisited the
Requiem a decade later with the rather more fulsome Chapelle Royale for Harmonia Mundi). Nonetheless, for anyone with an interest in Baroque vocal music this original album remains a rewarding discovery. --
Mark Walker
