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Music to live by: Eating, drinking and singing en français with TORONTO, October 26, 2005 — Drinking, feasting, drinking, hunting, more drinking and seduction are at the heart of a concert by France’s renowned all-male vocal Ensemble Clément Janequin entitled Les Plaisirs du Palais (The Pleasures of the Palace), at 8:00 pm on November 11 and 12, at Trinity St Paul’s Centre. The concerts are presented by The Toronto Consort as part of its 2005/06 season, and tickets are available through the Box Office at (416) 964-6337. Led by counter-tenor Dominique Visse, the Ensemble Clément Janequin is recognized world-wide for its earthy, dynamic, no-holds-barred approach to music. Known for its seamless blending of popular and high Renaissance culture, the Ensemble performs with a “pungent vocal style and healthy enjoyment of singing … which provide the perfect antidote to an overdose of wistful plainchant and hypnotic devotional songs.” (The Independent, London). Les Plaisirs du Palais features music that was intended primarily for private enjoyment at home. With a nod to this custom, the Ensemble Clément Janequin performs the concert seated around a table, since originally the music would have been sung as a playful, after-dinner entertainment. While some songs reflect the subtle, intellectual aspects of the Renaissance, others graphically describe more immediate pleasures: Martin Menoit which tells the story of a man who ties his precious pig to his lover’s leg during an amorous encounter, while the Ensemble’s signature tune, Du Beau Tétin, contemplates the beauty of the female breast. Songs depicting animal noises, hymns, and tavern ditties round out the programme, which alternates between sublime sounds and startling vocal effects. Les Plaisirs du Palais has been recorded as part of the Ensemble’s extensive discography on the prestigious French label, Harmonia Mundi. The Ensemble’s most recent release, LaJeune, Master of the King’s Music to Henry IV, includes the chanson Autant en emporte le vent with its famous refrain, later translated as Gone with the Wind. Les Plaisirs du Palais is part of the Ensemble Clément Janequin’s Canadian tour November 4 through 12, with stops in Québec City, Montréal, Lennoxville, Joliette, Ottawa, and winding up with the Toronto engagement. Listing information: Media Contact:
© 2005, Toronto Consort |
The Toronto Consort
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