Composer: John Eccles
Performer: Roderick Williams, Benjamin Hulett, Susan Bickley, Claire Booth, Lucy Crowe, Early Opera Company Chorus
Orchestra: Early Opera Company Orchestra
Conductor: Christian Curnyn
Format: FLAC (tracks)
Label: Chandos
Catalogue: CHAN0759
Release: 2009
Size: 303 MB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes
The Judgment of Paris
01. Symphony for Mercury:
02. Symphony for Mercury:
03. Symphony for Mercury: Slow
04. Symphony for Mercury: Brisk
05. From high Olympus, and the Realms above (Mercury, Paris)
06. O Ravishing Delight! (Paris)
07. Fear not, Mortal: none shall harm thee (Mercury)
08. Happy thou of Human Race (Mercury, Paris)
09. Symphony for Juno: Saturnia, Wife of Thundring Jove, am I (Juno)
10. Symphony for Pallas: This way, Mortal, bend thy Eyes (Pallas)
11. Symphony for Venus: Hither turn thee, garde Swain (Venus)
12. Hither turn thee, gentle Swain (Venus, Pallas, Juno)
13. Distracted I turn, but I cannot decide (Paris) – Apart let me view then each heav’nly Fair (Paris)
14. Symphony: Let Ambition fire thy Mind (Juno)
15. Awake, awake, thy Spirits raise (Pallas) – Symphony
16. Hark, hark! the glorious Voice of War (Pallas) – Symphony
17. Oh what Joys does Conquest yield! (Pallas)
18. O how glorious ’tis to see (Chorus)
19. Symphony
20. Stay, lovely Youth, delay thy Choice (Venus) – Far from thee be anxious Care (Venus, Chorus)
21. Nature fram’d thee sure for Loving (Venus) – Fairest she, all Nymphs transcending (Venus)
22. I yield, I yield, O take the Prize (Paris)
23. Hither all ye Graces, all ye Loves (Grand Chorus)
She Ventures, and He Wins
24. Restless in Thought disturb’d in Mind
The Way of the World
25. Love’s but the frailty of the Mind
The Comical History of Don Quixote
26. I Burn, I burn, my Brain consumes to Ashes
Christian Curnyn, whose reputation continues to grow in the world of Baroque opera, here conducts the world premiere recording of Judgment of Paris performed by the award-winning Early Opera Company, along with a stellar cast of soloists.
One of the earliest all-sung English operas, this one-act opera by John Eccles was composed in 1700 for a competition advertised in the London Gazette. Created by the ‘Persons of Quality’, a group of noblemen headed by Lord Halifax, the purpose of the competition was an ambitious and worthy one, namely the development of all-sung opera in English.
The text came from William Congreve, widely accepted as one of England’s leading playwrights. Four composers took up the challenge and to the surprise of many, Eccles, the pre-competition favourite did not win, being beaten by John Weldon. However, of all the settings, Eccles’s best captures the atmosphere of the London stage of the time and as a composer has since come to be recognised as one of Purcell’s most gifted London contemporaries.