Composition for SMA a cappella choir by Jacques Arcadelt (1507? - 1568); rendering by Jacques Barbier
The Tiers Livre de chansons published by Le Roy & Ballard in 1554 contains sixteen of Arcadelt's twenty-two chansons. Lesser-known composers such as De Bussi, Entraigues and Leschenet benefited, with two songs each, from the fame of a composer who, having ended his career in Italy, returned to France in the middle of the century, probably in the service of the Cardinal of Lorraine. He published a large number of songs in the fashionable style.
The pieces were short and based on a strophic scheme, and the polyphonic setting eschewed complex devices in favour of an airy texture (three or four voices maximum), thus making it easier to understand the text through vertical, syllabic writing. Clearly, Jacques Arcadelt's experience in writing madrigals favours a fluid discourse that privileges the primacy of the text and its meaning, even from the lips.
Duration : 2'
