Trumpet player Christopher Wilhite and organist Eric Tuan offer the joyful Prélude from Marc-Antoine Charpentier’s Te Deum at Christ Episcopal Church, Los Altos. The arrangement is by Frédéric Quinet.
One of the leading French composers during the era of the “Sun King,” Louis XIV, Marc-Antoine Charpentier composed in all the major genres of his time. Yet his undoubted focus was to be found in music for the liturgy. During his time as a chapel musician - which included stints as maître de musique at the churches of Saint Louis and Sainte-Chapelle, as well as various chapels of the French aristocracy - Charpentier composed an astounding array of sacred music, including 34 oratorios, 84 psalm settings, and over 100 motets. Among these works were six settings of the Te Deum, the hymn traditionally sung to celebrate victories in battle. Charpentier’s setting H. 146 is thought to have been composed to mark the French victory at the Battle of Steenkerque and is best known for its ebullient opening orchestral Prélude.
