A French classical composer, important in the development of polyphonic music. His works include La Messe De Notre Dame, one of the earliest masses, probably composed in 1364, several motets and many songs.
Machaut was born around 1300 in the Champagne region of France. He had a clerical education and took holy orders. In 1323 he joined the royal household of John of Luxembourg, King of Bohemia, and served as secretary in the the king's retinue. He traveled with King John's court, but increasingly spent his time composing rather than in administration, becoming widely respected as a poet and a composer. His first verified composition was a motet written in 1324 for the election of the Archbishop of Rheims. Through the efforts of King John, Machaut was granted several benefices, in particular the canonry of the new Gothic cathedral in Rheims, which was granted in 1337, eventually taking up residency there in 1340. He left his formal work with the king, though remaining in service until the monarch's death at the battle of Crecy in 1346. Machaut had accompanied the king on several military campaigns, including the disastrous battle of Crecy where the king fulfilled his chivalric destiny by charging into the fray, even though he was blind. After the outbreak of the Black Death in France at the end of the 1340's, Machaut prepared eleborate collections of his compositions for his patrons, who included John, Duke of Berry, and the future King Charles V of France. These unique, beautifully illuminated manuscript editions combined motets, ballads, and many other forms with a wide selection of his poetry.
Ensemble Gilles Benchois
Carlos Mena / José Hernandez Pastor / Stephan Van Dick / Hervé Lamy / Jacques Bona / Dominique Vellard
Dir. Dominique Vellard.
1 » 5min 56seg
2 » 7min 06seg
3 » 5min 01seg
4 » 3min 48seg
5 » 5min 52seg
6 » 2min 36seg
7 » 7min 09seg
8 » 1min 39seg
9 » 7min 38seg
10 » 1min 42seg
11 » 3min 42seg
12 » 5min 08seg
13 » 1min 22seg
14 » 1min 39seg
