Berlioz (1803-1869) - Harold en Italie, Les Nuits d'ete : Timothy Ridout(Va)Michael Spyres(T)John Nelson / Strasbourg Philharmonic - Import CD

Credits:

Les Argonautes

Description:

Conducted by John Nelson, an authority on Berlioz performance, this new interpretation of two masterpieces, "Summer Nights" is based on six poems from "The Comedy of Death," a collection of poems by Berlioz's friend, the Romantic poet Théophile Gautier. Berlioz composed this work with the intention that each piece should ideally be sung by a singer with a different vocal range, and today it is often sung by a mezzo-soprano or contralto, but here Michael Spires, whose range extends from tenor to baritone, has been chosen to sing the work. Not only is he brilliant in his high notes, but at the same time his robust lower range allows him to try many new renditions of this work with fantastic, beautiful, dreamlike singing. As for "Harold in Italia," there is an anecdote that Paganini commissioned the work and gave up when he found it unsatisfactory, and that it was completed as a symphony with a solo viola, far from Paganini's intention, but inspired by a scene from George Gordon Byron's long poem "Childe Harold's Pilgrimage," in which he describes the hero. The music is inspired by scenes from George Gordon Byron's long poem "Childe Harold's Pilgrimage," and uses the same fixed ideas as in the Symphonie fantastique to describe the main character. The viola soloist is Timothy Ridout, born in 1995. He has been performing in Europe and other parts of the world.The tone, with its powerful right arm and rich vibrato, is warm and pleasant, always with a sense of song as well". John Nelson, an authority on Berlioz performance, has recorded such major works as "The Trojans," "The Eternal Punishment of Faust," "Benvenuto Cellini," "Requiem," and "Te Deum" for Erato, all of which are among the best Berlioz recordings. In this performance, the soloist and the Strasbourg Philharmonic not only bring back the colors as Berlioz intended, but also give a 21st century interpretation that finds another side of Berlioz that has never existed before, with the best dynamics and agility, paying attention to various parts. The Japanese-language commentary, with Japanese lyrics translation and Japanese obi, includes a newly written commentary by Hiroyuki Yagi, and is available only for imports handled by Warner Music Japan. Warner Music Japan

Berlioz Collection List