Henry Du Mont (1610-1684) was actually called Henry De Thier, but when he arrived in Paris in 1640, he changed his name. He changed the local dialect 'Thiers' ('hill') into the generally known French 'Mont' ('mountain'). The dialect in question was spoken in the principality of Liège, where Du Mont was born in 1610. He received his musical training in Maastricht, where he became a choirboy and
… organist at the OLV Church. He regularly traveled to Liège, where he not only encountered a richer musical life, but also got to know the current Italian and French style. Whether Du Mont also studied in Italy or France is unknown: in 1638 he left Liège, only to reappear in Paris in 1640. Du Mont quickly made a career in the French capital. From organist he became a harpsichordist at the Duke of Anjou, before becoming assistant master at the Chapelle Royale. Du Mont will undoubtedly have written several works for this ensemble, including 'grands motets'; cantatas with a choir shared in 'grand choeur' and 'petit choeur', accompanied by a fairly extensive orchestra. Du Mont has written about seventy such grand motets, less than half of which have survived. Unfortunately, the booklet does not clearly state the origin of the five copies included here. Instead, it is emphasized in a rather strange story that it is possible to perform this music with a fairly small ensemble. For the good listener it is of course clear that this choice was prompted by financial rather than artistic considerations: with few forces it is cheaper. The quality of the performance is not bad, but due to the lack of a somewhat richer line-up, the splendor of this proud court music does not come into its own. (JvG)more