Marc-Antoine Charpentier was an accomplished singer and composer who returned to France a few years later with a grandiose Messe à quatre chœurs, probably composed in Rome or shortly after his return.
This concert traces the direct influences of Italy on Charpentier, with an obligatory stopover in the Vatican, where polychorality is the order of the day, but also a visit to the City of the Doges, where Venetian composers made a major contribution to the dissemination and teaching of one of the most grandiose musical styles of the 17th century.
