Dominique Vellard's compositions are rooted in his regular practice of sacred repertoire and the pieces he has chosen to set to music are, as for his first CD, 'Vox nostra resonet', released on Glossa in 2007, essential works of the liturgical repertoire.
It is, of course, the voice that is of prime importance in these compositions: men's voices take the role of traditional chantres, or cantors; women's voices having a more peaceful role or, joining with the five men's voices and thereby expanding the sound palette, colouring it with rich harmonics.
Dominique Vellard's writing, aside from the solo monodic parts, is always contrapuntal, this style of composition being entrenched in him owing to his familiarity with great Mediaeval and Renaissance repertoire. Furthermore, his concern for clarity of the discourse incites him to use a natural, clear prosody. To this liturgical material he has added two suites of short motets for solo voice and viols on the text of The Song of Songs, as well as the magnificent text of the 'Beatitudes' for two women's voices.
In concert, these pieces are meant to create a dialogue with early repertoire, leading the listener to perceive the newness and originality of this writing at the same time as its belonging to a long musical tradition. Since 1979 Dominique Vellard has been the inspirational driving force behind the Ensemble Gilles Binchois – nearly three decades of research and performance that have led to the creation of some of the essential recordings in the catalogue, especially of music from the Medieval and early Renaissance periods.
