Grace Notes

ABOUT The Piece: Marc-antoine charpentier’s Te Deum : H.146

DONNA REILLY

The Te Deum is a Latin Christian hymn with antecedents to the Ambrosian Hymn  named for St. Ambrose—although he was probably not the author—and it dates back to the 6th-8th centuries. The hymn, which follows the outline of the Apostles’ Creed, is still in use today in the Catholic, Lutheran, Anglican, and Methodist Churches. The term Te Deum is also used to describe a short religious service of blessing or thanks. That description more accurately defines the Charpentier work we will hear performed in October, as part of the UV Baroque program, “Baroque Celebrations.”

Te Deums were often composed to celebrate military victories, or for other grand occasions attended by the public, but we don’t know the specific reason for this one. It was probably composed between 1688 and 1698, when Charpentier was musical director at the Jesuit Church of Saint-Louis in Paris, so it might have been written to honor Louis XIV’s victory in 1692 at the Battle of Steinkirk in Flanders. 

Charpentier composed six Te Deum settings, but only four of them have survived. The Te Deum in D major, H. 146 is considered the best known. It is a grand motet for soloists, choir, and instrumental accompaniment, with a Prelude that has become familiar to European audiences as the theme song of a popular program on Eurovision.

Sources: Wikipedia, and Martin Pearlman for Boston Baroque