Paul Figuier / Consort Les Lucioles

Paul Figuier, countertenor

Consort Les Lucioles

Garance Boizot, tenor viol

Myriam Rignol and Manon Papasergio, bass viols

Lucile Boulanger, treble viol & direction

On the program:

Dowland, Purcell, Simpson...

Music for viol consort & consort songs

The reign of Elizabeth I constituted a golden age for the arts, particularly for music. The viol held a central place in this blessed era: an instrument eminently suited to domestic practice, cherished also by aristocratic circles, it developed both in solo repertoire and in pages with dense counterpoint inherited from the great English polyphonists. The voice frequently joined the bows to showcase often magnificent texts, with that melancholy typical of a John Dowland or, later, the melodic beauty that was the hallmark of Henry Purcell. But it is also urgent to discover the art of Christopher Simpson, who delivered with The Seasons and The Months true philosophical reflections on the passing of time.

Gathered around Lucile Boulanger, exceptional musicians revive sublime literature, made of refined yet bold harmonies, lovingly surrounding the subtle and eloquent singing of Paul Figuier.