Ah! Que le sommeil est charmant (Henry Desmarest) Reinoud Van Mechelen

Ah! Que le sommeil est charmant from the opera Circé (1694) Acte III, scène 3
by Henry Desmarest (1661-1741)

A Nocte Temporis
Reinoud Van Mechelen, haute-contre & direction

From a recital disc devoted to the singer Louis Gaulard Dumesny (fl. 1677–1699), who began his career as a cook, but attracted attention for his extraordinary singing voice and was auditioned by Lully, who recruited him for his Parisian company. Dumesny sang at the Paris Opéra, then known as the Académie Royale de Musique, from 1675 to 1699 and premiered Lully’s last six operas. After Lully’s death, the singer remained very much in demand with the new generation of composers. In all, he sang more than thirty operas.

UN SONGE
Ah! Que le sommeil est charmant
Lorsqu’il est tranquille,
Mais il est difficile
De dormir tranquillement quand on est amant.


PHANTASE
Le sommeil avec tous ses charmes,
Ne peut calmer les secrètes alarmes
Que font naître les amours;
Dans le cœur d’un amant, l’Amour veille toujours,
Au milieu du repos,
On est agité quand on aime.

A DREAM
Ah! How charming is sleep
When it is tranquil;
But it is difficult
To sleep in tranquillity when one is a lover.


PHANTASUS
Sleep with all its charms,
Cannot calm the secret alarms
To which love gives birth.
In a lover’s heart, Love is always awake;
Even in the midst of repose,
One is troubled when one loves.


CD available from Alpha:
https://www.chandos.net/products/catalogue/AJ%200554


Art in the video:
[1:15] Diana and Endymion by Pierre Subleyras (1699–1749)
[2:05] Selene and Endymion by Ubaldo Gandolfi (1728–1781)
[3:06] Sleep by Jean Bernard Restout (1732-1797)
[3:37] Diana and Endymion by Jean-Honoré Fragonard (1732-1806)
[4:02] Diana and Endymion by Francesco Solimena (1657–1747)
[4:41] Sleeping Endymion by Nicolas-Guy Brenet (1728-1792)
[5:03] Diana and Endymion by Francesco Trevisani (1656–1746)

Видео Ah! Que le sommeil est charmant (Henry Desmarest) Reinoud Van Mechelen канала Jeffrey Stivers