Marc Antoine Charpentier

The works of the French composer Marc Antoine Charpentier (1634-1704) are generally considered to be the epitome of the formal, learned style cultivated in French music in the late 17th century.

Marc Antoine Charpentier was born in Paris. He came from a family of painters and went to Italy to study painting when a very young man. During a stay in Rome he came under the spell of the famous Italian composer of oratorios Giacomo Carissimi, with whom Charpentier is reputed to have studied. He then changed his allegiance from painting to music and spent several years in Italy perfecting his musical skills.

On Charpentier's return to Paris he collaborated with the playwright Molière on comedy-ballets after the latter's break with Jean Baptiste Lully; Charpentier was responsible for the music for La Mariage forcé (1672) and Le Malade imaginaire (1673). Following Molière's death in 1673, Charpentier passed through a series of appointments as music teacher and conductor to several aristocratic families. In 1679 he became music master to the Dauphin, only to lose this rich post allegedly because of Lully's opposition. Between 1686 and 1688 Charpentier served in a similar position in the establishment of Mademoiselle de Guise. After 1684 he was also involved in the musical life of several Jesuit foundations in Paris. His tragédies spirituelles, written to be performed during Lent, brought him considerable fame. In 1698 Charpentier became director of music at Ste-Chapelle, Paris, and in this post he served until his death on Feb. 24, 1704.

While generally acclaimed for his sacred music, Charpentier's masterpiece is acknowledged to be his most successful opera, Médée, based on the drama by Pierre Corneille and mounted in Paris in 1693. Although Médée was lauded as the best dramatic work to be produced in France after Lully's death, Charpentier was not to enjoy a similar success with any of his other operas.

In general, Charpentier was acknowledged to be a learned but talented composer. He was considered by La Cerf de Vièville (1709) to be the superior of any Italian musician, but his music was nonetheless described as very "dry and stilted." Charpentier's formal, learned style found its best expression in church music. He was particularly acclaimed for his solution to problems involved with musical realizations of Latin prosody. His talent was unsuitable for the exigencies of the music theater, despite his attempts to prove otherwise. Since it would seem he incurred the hostility of the all-powerful Lully, Charpentier did not secure a court appointment and hence passed his life in the service of the aristocracy and the Church.

Further Reading

Most of Charpentier's music remains in manuscript. His contributions to French music are discussed in Manfred F. Bukofzer, Music in the Baroque Era: From Monteverdi to Bach (1947). See also Donald J. Grout, A History of Western Music (1960). □

Charpentier, Marc-Antoine (b Paris, ?1645; d Paris, 1704). Fr. composer. Maître de musique and court singer to Duchess of Guise until her death in 1688. In 1672 began an association with Molière's theatrical co. which lasted until 1686. Wrote prologue and intermèdes for Le malade imaginaire (1673). Never held a court post but in 1698 became master of the music of Sainte-Chapelle, for which he wrote many of his finest religious works. These incl. 10 Magnificats, 4 Te Deums (one of which, comp. c.1690, has become popular), 37 antiphons, 84 psalms, and over 200 motets, some of them as extensive as oratorios. His early style was Italian based, but he soon adopted a Fr. tone of voice. His mus. is noted for harmonic richness and colour contrasts, also for the vividness of his word-painting. His 17 stage works incl. Andromède (1682); Actéon (1683–5); La descente d'Orphée aux enfers (1685–6); Les arts florissants (1685–6); David et Jonathas (1687); Médée (1693); Philomèle (?1694). His other th. pieces (intermèdes and incid. mus.) are notable for lightness of texture and for wit and humour.

Charpentier, Marc-Antoine

Charpentier, Marc-Antoine, significant French composer; b. Paris, c. 1647; d. there, Feb. 24, 1704. He studied with Carissimi in Italy. After returning to Paris, he became active as a composer to Molière’s acting troupe; he was also in the service of Marie de Lorraine, the Duchess of Guise, later serving as her haute-contre, and finally as her maître de musique until her death (1688); likewise he was in the service of the grand Dauphin. Louis XIV granted him a pension (1683), and he subsequently served as music teacher to Philippe, Duke of Chartres, was maître de musique to the Jesuit church of St. Louis, and finally held that post at Sainte-Chapelle (1698–1704). Charpentier was one of the leading French composers of his era, distinguishing himself in both sacred and secular works. He wrote some 30 works for the stage, including the tragédies lyriques David et Jonathas (1688) and Médée (1693), cantatas, overtures, ballet airs, pastorals, incidental pieces, airs sérieux, airs a boire, etc. H. Hitchcock has prepared Les OEuvres de Marc-Antoine Charpentier: Catalogue raisonné (Paris, 1982).

Bibliography

D. Loskant, Untersuchungen ü’ber die Oratorien M.-A. C.s (diss., Univ. of Mainz, 1957); A. Parmley, The Secular Stage Works of M.-A. C.(diss., Univ. of London, 1985); H. Hitchcock, M.-A. C.(Oxford, 1990); P. Ranum, éd., Vers une chronologie des oeuvres de M.-A. C.(Baltimore, 1994); C. Cessac, M.-A. C.(Portland, Ore., 1995).

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire