Post by Mikhail Z.

Jean-Baptiste Lully — Miserere mei Deus, grand motet (LWV 25) is a sacred work by Jean-Baptiste Lully (1632–1687), the Italian-born composer (originally Giovanni Battista Lulli, from Florence) who became the dominant musical figure at the court of Louis XIV. The motet sets the penitential Psalm 51 (Psalm 50 in the Vulgate/Septuagint numbering) — "Have mercy on me, O God" — one of the great prayers for mercy and forgiveness. First heard in the early 1660s, it made a strong impression when performed before the court. Madame de Sévigné, hearing it at Chancellor Séguier's funeral service in 1672, said she did not believe there was any other music in heaven. All the more regrettable, then, that works like this are rarely heard in concert today — though, happily, several fine recordings now exist. Music source: https://lnkd.in/etfbCsgH Picture: Philippe de Champaigne (French, 1602-1674) / The Repentant Magdalen, 1648