Henry de Thier , known as Henry Of the Mount (° 1610 with Looz, Borgloon, close to Hasselt - † the May 8th 1684 with Paris), was a Compositeur of Baroque music in the Walloon beginnings by his/her father, and Flemish by his mother.

Biography

Henry de Thier studies the music with Maastricht and becomes Organiste of the Notre-Dame basilica at the 19 years age. He improved near Léonard de Hodémont (1575 - 1639) in the Principauté of Liege. He settles with Paris in 1638 and becomes the organist of the Saint-Paul church. He then takes the name of Henry Of the Mount (French translation of its name Wallon) and enters in 1652 to the court as harpsichordist of the Duke of Anjou, brother of the king. The same year it publishes its collection of motets entitled " Cantica crowned " , major collection in the history of the French music. It enters in 1660 to the service of the queen. It is named in 1663 main of the Royal Chapelle and obtains the load of under-Master of the music of Roy in company of Pierre Robert. It cumulates then the titles at the court: type-setter of the music of the vault in 1672, Master of the music of the Queen in 1673. It yields these functions in 1681 and 1682 to the 72 years age. Mount had married in 1653 the girl of the burgomaster of Maestricht, Mechthilde Loyens. Become widowed, one granted to him the important benefit of the abbey of Silly, in Normandy. It is in 1683 qu ' it took its retirement by dislocating its functions with the royal Vault (Pierre Robert made in the same way). He benefitted from it only little from time; he died out in Paris on May 8th, 1684. He was very appreciated by Louis XIV and Lully which was inspired much of its large style to compose its motets.

Work

It is primarily nun. It comprises nearly one hundred small Motet S to two and four in five collections which remain the prototype of the French motet whose famous continuators are François Couperin and Jean-Baptiste Lully. It would be one of the first to use the Basse continues in France and to write it in a separate way.

Apart from some songs and instrumental parts contained in a volume of Meslanges to II, III, IV and V left, with the low one continues (1657), the work of Mount is primarily crowned. It published successively:

• Cantica crowned (1652)
• Airs with 4 parts with the low one continues… on the paraphrase of the psalms (1663)
• Motets with two votes with the low one continues (1668)
• Five Masses in musical plainsong (1660)
• Motets to two III and IV parts, for voice and instruments, with the low one continues (1681).

After its death, in 1686, Ballard published, in parts separated, most important from all the collections of the type-setter, thus entitled: Motets for the Vault of Roy, put in music by Mr Dumont Abbot of Silly, and Maistre of the Music of the aforesaid the Vault… Print by express command of Its Majesty . Moreover, the National library, at Paris, preserves some handwritten works among which one will distinguish the " particularly; Dialogus of animated " for five votes, one of its religious and only true masterpieces oratorio of the Master.

Contributions

Its collection of motets " Cantica crowned " published in 1652 includes/understands motets for 1,2,3 or 4 soloists with instruments and low continuous. This type of sacred music is an innovation in France. What is new is not so much the use of low continuous (process already exploited before), but the use of voice soloists with instruments concerting in the sacred music, in particular small the motet with 1 or 2 votes. It introduces many innovations and its large motets announces those of Versailles. Italian effects are introduced like the singing exercises and the echoes. The kind Oratorio is also outlined with motets in dialog. Récitatif style too. As for the use of low continues, if he is not the initiator in France, it is the first to publish a basic part separate continues in motets, which will contribute to spread the use of it.

Its large motets for the Royal Vault (published in 1686) joins together all the forms tested in its motets preceding. One can note that the motets of Mount are regularly sung in France in the parishes until in the years 1730, that is to say 60 years after his death.

Its five masses, known as Royal Masses , survived until the medium of the XX° century (before the Vatican II), but let little see the genius developed by Mount in its motets. Nevertheless, in certain catholic places of worship, one can always hear one of the royal masses of Mount (example church St Eugene in Paris) during great religious holidays. Some motets are also sung there.

Large Motets

Large the motets of Mount was conceived for the Royal Vault and is the first of the kind. It are not structured in a succession of definite movements exploiting each one a set of themes and a tonality (one will see later that with Lully, then Rameau). The verses do not end in a double bar of end (no matter what say some the modern editors) but Mount made follow one another of the groups of measurements in clean matter which follow one another and are connected with a permanent preoccupation with a contrast. That also feels in the fitting of manpower: soloists, groups of soloists, small chorus, great chorus, orchestrates, are assembled, shifted, dispersed, meet. The voices soloists join the chorus as of the end of their intervention. Manpower with five votes is typical large French motet and will remain it until the XVIII° century. Mount used two parts of violins and two violas in its large motets, which is to be noted, because it is about a practice of Northern Europe, whereas Lully used part of violin and three of viola.

• Note on the agreement: it is the mesotonic which prevails in France until the end of the XVIII° century especially in the music of organ, therefore religious. Mount being organist and his sacred music.

• Note on the instrumentation: One found in the orchestra of large the motets, théorbe and harpsichord (and large organ…), violins and viols.

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