Reflections on Four Charpentier Chronologies
Thompson, Shirley
Journal of Seventeenth-Century Music, Vol. 7, No. 1 (2001)
Abstract
To date, four scholars have attempted to establish a chronology of Marc-Antoine Charpentier’s works. The present article reviews the methods used to draw up each of these chronologies and, for the first time, puts them side-by-side, allowing various observations to be made and conclusions drawn. Whereas three chronologies seek to establish dates of composition, the fourth establishes dates of copying. This crucial distinction helps explain apparent discrepancies between them, and shows that the former three are more relevant where Charpentier’s stylistic development is concerned, while the fourth is more trustworthy on matters of his evolving notational and performance practices.
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