In the beginning it was plainchant with its different forms, many of which were replaced by the Gregorian chant where the Gallican and Roman traditions merged. It is to all this variety of dialects of the Christian liturgical chant - from Ambrosian to Mozarabic - that Marcel Pérès has dedicated his life as a singer and researcher. With his Ensemble Organum, created in 1982, Pérès has explored the nuances and accents of traditions handed down through the first forms of musical notation but also partly alive in oral transmission, especially in monastic practice.It is to the forms of singing of the oral tradition of the Mediterranean world that the musician, born in Oran (Algeria), turned to seek inspiration for the intonation of the divine word of the different liturgical families of Christianity, interpreting in a personal way the sources of primordial neumatic notations and infuse them with the vital breath of the voice that arises not only from the body movement but also from the movement of the soul.In his vision, the term neuma, the sign of musical writing, is indissoluble from the breath, pneuma, which adorns plainchant, one of the main roots of the history of music in the West and also part of the music of the Near East.

About Marcel Pérès

After studying organ and composition at the Nice Conservatory, Marcel Pérès continued his training in Great Britain and Canada. Returning to Europe in 1979, he specialized in medieval music. In 1982 he founded the Ensemble Organum, and undertook with them a methodical exploration of medieval liturgical repertoires, which resulted in international acclaim. He recorded about fifty discs - most of which have received the highest awards: the Diapason d'or, Classical Awards, Choc de l'année du Monde de la Musique, and the New York Times’ Essential Records of the 20th Century. 
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Discography of the episode

Ensemble Organum: Kyrie
from: Machaut Messe de Notre Dame, Harmonia Mundi (1996)

Francesco Cera: Messa Della Madonna – Christe
from: Girolamo Frescobaldi Toccate – Capricci – Fiori Musicali, Arcana (2019)

Ensemble Organum: Office des lectures - III. Gloria in excelsis Deo
from: Chant Mozarabe, Harmonia Mundi (1995)

Francesco Cera: Messa Della Domenica - Canzon Dopo l'Epistola
from: Girolamo Frescobaldi Toccate – Capricci – Fiori Musicali, Arcana (2019)

Ensemble Organum: Sanctus
from: École Notre-Dame Messe Du Jour De Noël, Harmonia Mundi (1985)

Ensemble Organum: Kyrie
from: Chant Corse Manuscrits Franciscains (XVIIe-XVIIIe Siècles), Harmonia Mundi (1994)

Corsican Singers, Mamma risponde nun posso
Marcel Pérès live recording

Spanish Singers, Sanctus
Marcel Pérès live recording

Disclaimer
Mediterranean Intangible Heritage Soundscape is a podcast by Paolo Scarnecchia, produced by UNIMED, Mediterranean Universities Union. Musical works included in the Podcast are used for purpose of illustration for teaching, and not for commercial purposes.