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Concerto da Camera presents
Special support from the Alliance Française de Hong Kong and Centre de Musique Baroque de Versailles
Film documentary created by Karen Kwok
“Synergy à la française”
Introduction to French Baroque Music and Dance
This video is part of a series celebrating the 20th anniversary of Concerto da Camera’s establishment. French Baroque music, with its beauty, richness and uniqueness, has been a constant source of inspiration as we strive to deliver innovative musical experiences to our audience. It is only fitting that we have chosen it as the theme of our celebration.
Originated in Italy, the Baroque age sprawled throughout Europe across the 17th century and well into the 18thcentury.
The word Baroque, derived from the Portuguese term baroco, which means an irregularly shaped pearl, had originally a derogatory meaning – the Baroque was taken to be a degeneration of the Renaissance.
Today, of course, our concepts have radically changed. The Baroque is now recognised as a period that had spawned some of the greatest arts in human history, from painting to architecture, from literature to music and beyond.
When it comes to the realm of music, Bach, Vivaldi, Handel and Purcell are usually cited as representatives of the Baroque era, while French composers are more often than not left in obscurity.
The omission is quite baffling especially if we consider the fact that France at the time, under the reign of Louis XIV, was the most powerful monarchy in Europe, and that its artists and musicians had developed some of the most magnificent and beautiful styles and idioms that swept the whole of Europe, prompting imitations in countries like England and Germany.
That is why we made this documentary. We try to shed light on the musical style of French Baroque music, which is often described by (non-French) musicians and art historians as “distinctive”, almost as if there is a national barrier separating it from other Western music.
Music does not exist in isolation. The greater political-social dynamics always have an impact on it. By the 1660s, the cultural leadership in Europe had shifted from Italy to France. King Louis XIV deployed huge resources to concentrate his court politically and socially in one place – Versailles, and he used all forms of art to marshal them.
There was a deliberate act on the part of Louis XIV, the ultimate patron of arts, and his cultural team to create a style which has a distinctively French flavour. He established academies for virtually all the creative arts, including dance and music. Inside the academies, arts were organised, rules were drawn up, and so, a kind of unofficial style was developed.
Emerging at the same time was what is said to be the quintessential Baroque art form – opera. It is flamboyant, theatrical, and dramatic. It aims at a total work of art to represent the glory and the splendour of the patron.
The opera, unsurprisingly, held a dominating position at the French court. One prominent figure in the cultural life of the French court was Jean-Baptiste Lully, Master of the King’s Music. He brought baroque music in France to an acme of stylization, establishing an uniquely French operatic style, by mering elements of the local theatre tradition with court ballet.
For instrumental music in France traditionally bound up with the dance, and the influence of dance patterns is always noticeable and often dominant in the music of Lully as well as other French composers of the Baroque period, one must also explore the Belle Danse (also known as Baroque dance nowadays), in order to better understand French Baroque music.
In this video, we had the pleasure of interviewing artistic director of the Centre de Musique Baroque de Versailles, Benoît Dratwicki; conductor of Ensemble il Caravaggio, Camille Delaforge; baroque dance expert, Pierre-François Dollé, and sujet of the Paris Opera Ballet, Chun Wing Lam. They will guide us through various avenues to better understand and appreciate French Baroque music and dance. In addition, we visited the pinnacle of French Baroque – the Palace of Versailles. We hope you will be dazzled.
“Synergy à la française” - Introduction to French Baroque Music and Dance will be broadcast on “ Concerto da Camera雅樂合奏團”Youtube channel coming December 2024 for worldwide audience to view.
https://www.youtube.com/@concerto_da_camera/videos
雅樂合奏團呈獻
香港法國文化協會及凡爾賽巴羅克音樂中心全力支持
郭靜君作品
音樂紀錄片《法式古樂》法國巴羅克音樂與舞蹈
本片為雅樂合奏團慶祝成立 20 週年所舉辦的節目之一。成立以來，我們致力於為觀眾提供別開生面的音樂體驗，而法國巴羅克音樂豐富的曲目、華麗的音律和獨特性，一直是我們重要的靈感來源，以之作為我們今一年的節目主題是再適合不過。
在17世紀初的義大利半島上，一股新藝術風潮逐漸形成，當時有不少人認為這種新風格並不如之前的文藝復興藝術，甚至視之為一種墮落，因此，他們以一個帶有貶義的詞將之命名 — 巴羅克，意指形狀不規則的珍珠。但這無阻巴羅克藝術在隨後的一百多年間席捲整個歐洲。
當然，到了今天，我們對巴羅克已有全然不同的評價。巴羅克現在被公認為出產了許多人類史上最偉大的藝術作品的一個時期，從繪畫到建築，文學到音樂等各個領域，無不留下珍貴的創作。
如今談及巴羅克音樂，人們每每會以巴赫、韋華第、韓德爾和普塞爾作為代表人物；奇怪的是，法國的作曲家和他們的作品卻鮮有人提及。
法國於17世紀中葉至18世紀早期在路易十四的統治下，成為歐洲最強大的帝國。她的音樂家建立了一些極具代表性、極其華麗的藝術風格和演繹方式，紅遍整個歐洲。英、德等地的作曲家亦紛紛仿效「法式音樂」進行創作。
我們製作這部紀錄片，正正是想從歷史的洪流中，重新發現和認識這些作品。法國以外的音樂家及藝術史學家經常把法國巴羅克音樂形容為「別樹一格」，彷彿是霧裏看花，終隔一層。這次我們親身前往法國，嘗試從歷史文化背景以及表演者的角度，揭開法國巴羅克音樂的面紗。
音樂並不是一種獨立的存在，政治和社會上的力量總是對它產生着影響。路易十四動用了龐大的資源把政治及社會事務集中於一個中心點 — 凡爾賽宮。藝術亦是他使宮庭貴族、官員、人民，甚至歐洲各國使者臣服的手段之一。歐洲的文化領導角色在 1660 年代便由義大利轉移到了法國。
作為最具權勢的藝術贊助人，路易十四和他的文化團隊銳意創造出一種屬於法國的獨特風格。他幾乎為所有創意藝術建立了學院，包括舞蹈和音樂。學院制定了規則，藝術在一定程度上被規範化，從而形成了某種風格。
與此同時，歌劇出現了。它華麗、富戲劇性、充滿情感，被視為巴羅克藝術的極致典範。
毫不意外地，歌劇在法國宮廷藝術中佔據了主導地位。這背後一位非常重要的人物，是路易十四的御用大樂正，呂利。他把法式巴羅克音樂推展到極致，他把當地傳統戲劇元素與宮廷芭蕾舞融為一體，創造出獨特的法國歌劇風格。
法國的傳統器樂與舞蹈關係密不可分，舞步對樂曲的影響顯而易見，舞蹈亦深深影響着呂利以及其他法國巴羅克作曲家的創作。要了解法國巴羅克音樂，我們就必須對“La Belle Danse”（即巴羅克舞蹈）有所認識。
在影片中，我們採訪了凡爾賽巴羅克音樂中心Centre de Musique Baroque de Versailles藝術總監伯努瓦·德拉特維奇、卡拉華佐樂團Ensemble il Caravaggio指揮兼藝術總監卡米爾‧德拉福奇、巴羅克舞蹈專家皮耶‧弗朗索瓦·多萊，以及巴黎歌劇院芭蕾舞團獨舞員林雋永。他們將帶領我們從不同角度更全面地理解和欣賞法國巴羅克音樂及舞蹈。此外，我們還拍攝了法國巴羅克的巔峰之作 — 凡爾賽宮。希望你會為之驚豔。
《法式古樂》法國巴羅克音樂與舞蹈將於2024年12月在「Concerto da Camera雅樂合奏團」Youtube上全球播出。
https://www.youtube.com/@concerto_da_camera/videos