ABSTRACT
Remarkably few of Marc-Antoine Charpentier’s works were published during his lifetime. During the eighteenth century, indeed, only one publication was devoted entirely to his music - a volume of 12 motets entitled Motets melez de symphonie composez par Monsieur Charpentier. Patricia Ranum suggests that the publication was funded with money borrowed from Etiennette Charpentier, who died the day before the royal privilege to publish the motets was granted to Jacques Edouard and Jacques-Francois Mathas. The chapter investigates aspects of the genesis, in particular the publication process. It explores clues in the composer’s manuscripts which show how the published versions of the motets were prepared, and which confirm that the engraver had direct access to the autograph scores rather than copies. Ranum suggests that Edouard himself had already had Charpentier’s cahiers bound. They were subsequently re-bound in their present form, ‘en carton vert’, by the royal binder Mercier in April 1752, the Melanges had been acquired by the Bibliotheque du roi.
