🎵 Work: Platée, opéra-ballet by Jean-Philippe Rameau
🎙️ Performers: Mathias Vidal, Marie Lys, Zachary Wilder, Alexandre Duhamel, Juliette Mey, David Witczak, Cécile Achille, Cyril Costanzo
🎻 Ensemble: La Chapelle Harmonique
🎧 Conductor: Valentin Tournet
🏷️ Label: Château de Versailles Spectacles
🔗 Available on all streaming platforms
By Damián Autorino
Editor at Moto Perpetuo
Among Jean-Philippe Rameau’s stage works, Platée stands out for its singular mix of satire, dance, and vocal invention. Originally composed for royal wedding festivities in 1745, the opera-ballet turns expectations upside down, telling the story of a nymph mocked by the gods in a plot that blends comedy with social commentary. The music is full of invention, alternating lyrical ariettes, choral scenes, and descriptive orchestral writing—all characteristic of Rameau’s theatrical style.
This new recording is part of the ongoing work of La Chapelle Harmonique, a period-instrument ensemble founded in 2017 by Valentin Tournet. The group focuses primarily on French Baroque repertoire, particularly the music of Rameau and his contemporaries, while also engaging with major sacred works by composers such as J.S. Bach.
At the center of the opera is the nymph Platée, a character both comic and tragic, whose misplaced confidence becomes the object of an elaborate deception. The role is sung by Mathias Vidal, a a haute-contre whose interpretation brings out the character’s blend of irony and vulnerability. Another highlight is the character of La Folie, introduced by Rameau to reflect on music’s expressive potential, here performed by Marie Lys. She underlines Rameau’s engagement with opera as an art form capable of parodying itself. This recording brings out these contrasting tones with balance, allowing the humor and complexity of the score to come through.
With Platée, La Chapelle Harmonique continues its exploration of French operatic repertoire, offering a version that is attentive to the style and spirit of Rameau’s writing, while presenting the work in a clean and accessible format.
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