A small but enthusiastic audience braved the pouring rain Thursday evening to see Ensemble ad Libitum at Emmanuel Church’s Lindsey Chapel in a program of French Baroque chamber music from the court of Versailles. The ensemble concluded the penultimate week of SoHIP’s 2025 summer series at Emmanuel after having given the same concert in Lincoln and Andover earlier this week. Comprising Jesse Lepkoff (recorder, traverso), Na’ama Lion (traverso), Carol Lewis (pardessus and bass violas da gamba), and Marina Minkin (harpsichord), Ad Libitum delighted us with works for the courts of Louis XIV and XV from a variety of French Baroque composers, some well-known, others less so. In addition, the instrumentation of each piece ranged from the full quartet to various trios, duets and solos. Lindsey Chapel’s narrow space with high ceilings proved perfect for this event as the room provided some resonance in its height but did not wash out the small ensemble in excess reverberations.
Our evening at Versailles began with selected movements from a sonata by Louis-Nicolas Clérambault (1676-1749) called “La Magnifique.” Immediately, I was struck by the impeccable intonation of the quartet; not a single note seemed out of place or out of tune. In particular, Lewis’s gamba traversed a quite wide range with ease and perfect intonation. Many French Baroque compositions of this period feature exceedingly high bass lines that reach up into the treble register. This is easy enough on a harpsichord but for the gamba it is exceptionally challenging, since the instrument’s frets do not extend the length of the fingerboard and intonation becomes much trickier the higher one moves on a given string. But Lewis seemed unperturbed and remained in close tuning with the harpsichord as the continuo bass line reached up high.
The series of solo features began with two movements of the third of Jean Philippe Rameau’s Pièces de Clavecin en Concerts, called “La Timide” and “Tambourin.” These arrangements of solo harpsichord works featured Na’ama Lion on traverso. Yet, her part was not originally for flute but rather violin. While it is not uncommon or historically inaccurate to play such a part on the flute, it can be tricky given the differences in range of the instruments. In particular, the traverso struggles to project in its lower register and in many cases whole sections need to be taken up the octave. Yet, Lion executed beautifully in that low part of the traverso’s range. I never struggled to hear her, and her tone never became too breathy nor her tuning too sharp.
Next, Lepkoff offered us three movements of a Suite in F Major by François Dieupart (1676-1751), a French composer living in London who is mainly remembered for a collection of harpsichord suites that JS Bach copied, and which he may have taken as models for his English Suites. However, as Lepkoff explained, these suites were also published in arrangements for other instruments such as recorder and continuo. Unusually for the time, the composer specified which precise type of recorder should be used in which situations. Following these instructions, Lepkoff alternated between a soprano recorder in B flat (pitched slightly lower than a typical soprano recorder) and a tenor recorder. The contrast of timbres proved quite engaging.
The quartet returned in full for the Sonate en Quatuor in D Minor from Livre de Simphonie by Louis-Antoine Dornel (1680-1757). Dornel published four such books which contain six trios and one quartet each. In order to cover all four parts, Lewis switched from bass gamba to the smaller pardessus, the highest pitched of the viol family. Although approximately the same size as a modern violin (perhaps a bit smaller), the instrument is held between her knees and bowed from there. Combined with Lepkoff’s treble recorder and Lion’s traverso, the pardessus created a wonderfully fluid and luminous sound as the three treble instruments intertwined in Corellian polyphony above Minkin’s harpsichord continuo.
The solo features continued with a Prelude in D Minor and one that evoked the sound of bells called Cloches ou Carillon by Marin Marais (1656-1728). This selection featured Lewis’s bass gamba with continuo accompaniment from Minkin. The Prelude once again highlighted Lewis’s spot-on intonation in extremely high notes, while the bells of Cloches ou Carillon came through in tricky double stops and arpeggios that seemed to flow effortlessly from Lewis’s bow.
Minkin got a chance to demonstrate her skills in a harpsichord solo: La Marche des Scythes by Joseph-Nicolas-Pancrace Royer (1705-1755). Royer was a composer for Louis XV and primarily produced operas, but he often arranged favorite scenes of his operas for harpsichord. This example, drawing on a particularly striking scene of marching Scythians, is cast as a rondeau with a recurring theme and exceedingly virtuosic episodes. Minkin delighted us with a truly showstopping interpretation. My eyes were glued on her hands as they danced over the keyboard. Royer used many interesting effects on the harpsichord to evoke the opera scene including thundering bass lines, tricky hand crossings, and especially at the end, crunchy dissonance. Minkin achieved flawless articulations and ornamentations as she moved between sections of the piece with a clear sense of operatic drama. The attentive listeners gave the most excited applause for this demonstration of great skill and expression.
Our flutists then offered a duet without continuo by Jacques-Martin Hotteterre (1674-1763), author of a foundational flute treatise. Lion and Lepkoff brought out two traverso flutes tuned to 392, a half step lower than the other instruments we heard that evening at 415. The lower pitched instruments brought a lovely warm sound to the duet which was especially effective in one movement, “Les Tourterelles” (The Turtledoves).
Our evening at Versailles concluded as the entire quartet returned once more to finish the concert with a portion of François Couperin’s suite La Françoises from Les Nations. They excerpted the first large section of the suite which consists of eight small sections that flow immediately into the next, often referred to as the Sonade. Every observation I made of the preceding numbers came together in one final demonstration of Ad Libitum’s skill and expression. They approached each section of the Sonade with careful attention to details of ornamentation as well as contrasts in affect. Once again, Lewis’s exceptional skill made itself clear in the final section which features a quite difficult part for gamba in a solo function separate from the continuo bass. Lewis again showed skill in high notes, arpeggios and virtuosity in negotiating this difficult part.
Members of Ad Libitum exhibited exemplary musicianship and virtuosity in their solos while also evincing keen ears and sensitivity to each other in ensembles. They carried off these French pieces with the requisite flair and elaborate ornamentation yet also brought out the deeper expression that often hides beneath the surface of this neglected repertoire.
SoHIP’s 2025 series concludes next week with The Aulos and the Kithara in a program titled Reimaginings featuring recorders, gamba, and the rarely heard harp guitar.