Les Cris de Paris & Geoffroy Jourdain Passions: Top French choir and ensemble delves into Venetian baroque

Venice; it is not on land, but not really in the sea either. It is located in the West, but also in the East. Religious, but also theatrical: music has been innovating in this place for centuries. The French top choir and ensemble Les Cris de Paris blurs the boundaries between Venetian opera and religious music in Passions.

Geoffroy Jourdain shows with his Les Cris de Paris that innovation seemed to be in the Venetian waters. Whether music was for entertainment or written for the church did not matter: new emotions and new techniques were given plenty of space. Monteverdi is still known for this centuries later, but Les Cris de Paris also blurs the boundaries between known and unknown by including composers such as Merula and Caldara.