The sixteenth century was a century of song. People snag in the streets, courtyards, on bridges, in chapels and in the royal apartments. Guédron's music reflects the great art of the madrigal; its strong declamation and harmonic richness set him on a par with his Italian colleagues. It also shows his skill as an arranger of popular music, an art dating from the sixteenth century of which he was a brillian exponent—and its last.
The recording is beautifully packaged with a 42 page booklet with extensive notes and full libretto in French and English. This 2002 release is another in a series of triumphs for Le Poème Harmonique and its director, Vincent Dumestre.