Radiant Majesty

French Baroque Sacred Music

Saturday 9 May 2026 at 7.30 pm
All Saints, Weston

Tickets
£20 (£16 in advance)
£5 for ages 18 to 30 (photo ID / proof of age to be shown on entry)
Free for under 18s
Buy tickets online

Box office
✆ 020 8399 2714
✉ ku.gro.riohconeipirnull@xov

The Sun King, Louis XIV, ruled France for over 70 years, where he made himself the centre of political and cultural life. Music played a key role in his court, embodied by a grand, high-ceremonial sacred style. This was the music of great occasions, written for vast spaces and important ceremonies. Its expressive use of harmony, elaborate ornamentation, and dramatic effects, often alternating musical textures between solo, choir, and instruments, evolved into a distinctive sound that conveyed emotional depth and royal grandeur.

At the heart of our Radiant Majesty concert is Marc-Antoine Charpentier’s magnificent Missa assumpta est Maria: a work of architectural scale and luminous beauty, designed for vast, resonant spaces capable of matching its expressive range. Widely considered his finest mass setting, it unfolds as an immersive journey from quiet supplication to joyful affirmation. Mondonville’s Dominus regnavit and Lully’s Regina caeli complement the Charpentier with distinctive elegance, transforming their sacred texts into music of striking ceremonial presence.

Join us, together with a period instruments ensemble of strings, woodwinds, theorbo and organ, as we recreate the rich colours, majestic textures and immersive sonorities of the French royal chapel.

Repertoire

Charpentier
Missa assumpta est Maria (H11)
Dominum salvum (H303)
Overture (H536)

Mondonville
Dominus regnavit (excerpts)

Lully
Regina caeli
Plaude laetare Gallia