"God save the King!" - Handel

The long tradition of musicians attached to princes or kings tends to prove that music was for a long time an essential element in establishing political power.

Handel was no exception to the rule, and both the Coronation Anthems, composed for the coronation of George II, and the Dettingen Te Deum, which celebrates England's victory over the French army at Dettingen in 1743, were intended to reinforce the power of the English crown.
In fact, the two pieces in this concert successfully fulfilled this role, as the rehearsals of the Coronation Anthems attracted an unprecedented number of enthusiastic onlookers. Generating enthusiasm and amazement for the powers that be is what makes music so indispensable to princes. The Coronation Anthems and the Dettingen Te Deum appeal above all to the listener's senses. By playing on energy, they seek to provoke in the audience a physical, unanimous and enthusiastic support that they could not obtain by addressing the intellect alone.

It is his own vision of these "grand spectacle" pieces that the founder of Le Concert Spirituel, backed by his expertise in the Haendelian repertoire (his interpretation of Water Music & Music for the Royal Fireworks won the Edison Award, and is regularly performed before thousands of spectators internationally, while his Messiah, just released by Alpha, was voted "BBC Radio 3's Record Review of the Week") now wishes to offer. Le Concert Spirituel choir and orchestra promise an enthralling evening, beginning with spectacular marches for drums a

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This programme has been recorded and is available on Alpha Classics / Outhere music under the title Coronation Anthems more info here

‍MIDSUMMER FESTIVAL | la presse en parle >>compte-rendudu concert par Emmanuel Deroeux pour Olyrix