Ann Roux, Marieanne Lee & Lionel Desmeules - Capron: First book of Sonatas for Violin Solo & Basso Continuo (2018) [24/192]

Descendant of a prominent family from Buerglen in Thurgau, Louis-François Guiguer, baron of Prangins, was born in Paris on December 1st, 1741 and lived in opulence thanks to the wealth of his great-uncle, the banker Louis Guiguer. From 1753 on he studied at the Collège de Genève, and Voltaire who, awaiting completion of the purchase of the Délices, was a guest of the Guiguer family at Prangins Castle 1, wrote to the young man’s father in February 1755: “I am hearing from various sources that they have never seen a child so precocious for his age” 2. Louis-François Guiguer joined the regiment of the Swiss Guards in 1757 and took part in the Hesse Campaign three years later. When his father died in February 1770, he inherited the Barony of Prangins, largest noble property of the Pays de Vaud, which included the villages and territories of Prangins, Bénex, Gland, Vich, Promenthoux and extended to the Dullive river.

Taking possession of his domain in the spring of 1771, Louis-François Guiguer wrote the first words of his Journal : “Arrived in Prangins” 3, and continued writing it until his death in 1786, first with his steward and friend Christophe-Daniel Renz, a lawyer from Tübingen and virtuoso harpsichordist, then with his spouse Matilda Clevland. The thousand odd pages of this Journal record the life of a lordship associated to the high society of La Côte and Geneva at the end of the Old Regime, daily life in which music playing was present in all its various forms.

Our curiosity is piqued by the presence of composer-musicians hosted by the Baron in Prangins Castle, nowadays Musée national suisse – château de Prangins. Their names, revered in those times, have since been forgotten; their works having been acclaimed by the well-informed public to whom they were destined, our wish is to lift a corner of the veil of the “small history of music” with this recording project and bring these compositions, which were part of Louis-François Guiguer’s musical world, back to life, with due respect and a historically informed interpretation.

Tracklist:
01. Sonata I in A Minor: I. Allegretto
02. Sonata I in A Minor: II. Poco andante
03. Sonata I in A Minor: III. Pastorale
04. Sonata II in B-Flat Major: I. Allegro
05. Sonata II in B-Flat Major: II. Adagio
06. Sonata II in B-Flat Major: III. Allegro
07. Sonata III in G Minor: I. Allegro
08. Sonata III in G Minor: II. Adagio
09. Sonata III in G Minor: III. Pastorale
10. Sonata IV in D Major: I. Allegro
11. Sonata IV in D Major: II. Adagio
12. Sonata IV in D Major: III. Poco presto
13. Sonata V in C Major: I. Allegro
14. Sonata V in C Major: II. Cantabile
15. Sonata V in C Major: III. Tempo di minuetto
16. Sonata VI in E-Flat Major: I. Allegretto
17. Sonata VI in E-Flat Major: II. Andante
18. Sonata VI in E-Flat Major: III. Variatione

Personnel:
Ann Roux (violin)
Marieanne Lee (cello)
Lionel Desmeules (harpsichord)