Composer: Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky
Performer: James Ehnes, Robert deMaine
Orchestra: Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra
Conductor: Neeme Järvi
Number of Discs: 2
Format: FLAC (tracks)
Label: Chandos
Release: 2012
Size: 1.79 GB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes
CD 01
The Sleeping Beauty, Op. 66, TH 13
01. Introduction (Allegro vivo – Andantino)
The Sleeping Beauty, Op. 66, TH 13, Prologue
02. No. 1, March (Moderato)
03. No. 2, Scène dansante (Moderato con moto)
The Sleeping Beauty, Op. 66, TH 13, Prologue, No. 3, Pas de six
04. I. Intrada
05. II. Adagio
06. III. Var. 1, Candide (Allegro moderato)
07. IV. Var. 2, Coulante “Fleur de farine” (Allegro)
08. V. Var. 3, Fée aux miettes (Allegro moderato)
09. VI. Var. 4, Canari qui chante (Moderato)
10. VII. Var. 5, Violente (Allegro molto vivace)
11. VIII. Var. 6, La fée des lilas (Tempo di valse)
12. IX. Coda (Allegro giusto)
The Sleeping Beauty, Op. 66, TH 13, Prologue
13. No. 4, Finale
The Sleeping Beauty, Op. 66, TH 13, Act I
14. No. 5, Scène (Allegro vivo – Moderato)
15. No. 6, Valse (Allegro, tempo di valse)
16. No. 7, Scène (Andante)
The Sleeping Beauty, Op. 66, TH 13, Act I, No. 8, Pas d’action
17. I. Adagio
18. II. Danse de demoiselles d’honneur el des pages
19. III. Variation d’Aurore
20. IV. Coda (Allegro giusto)
The Sleeping Beauty, Op. 66, TH 13, Act I
21. No. 9, Finale
The Sleeping Beauty, Op. 66, TH 13, Act II
22. No. 10, Entr’acte et scène
23. No. 11, Colin-maillard
The Sleeping Beauty, Op. 66, TH 13, Act II, No. 12, Scène et danses
24. I. Scène
25. II. Danse des duchesses
26. III. Danse des baronnes
27. IV. Danse des comtesses
28. V. Danse des marquises
The Sleeping Beauty, Op. 66, TH 13, Act II, No. 13, Farandole
29. I. Scène
30. II. Danse
CD 02
The Sleeping Beauty, Op. 66, TH 13, Act II
01. No. 14, Scène
02. No. 15a, Pas d’action
03. No. 15b, Variation d’Aurore
04. No. 15c, Coda
05. No. 16, Scène
06. No. 17, Panorama
07. No. 18, Entr’acte
08. No. 19, Entr’acte symphonique et scène
09. No. 20, Finale
The Sleeping Beauty, Op. 66, TH 13, Act III
10. No. 21, Marche
11. No. 22, Polacca (Cortège des contes de fées)
The Sleeping Beauty, Op. 66, TH 13, Act III, No. 23, Pas de quatre
12. I. Allegro non tanto
13. II. Var. 1, La fée-or
14. III. Var. 2, La fée-argent
15. IV. Var. 3, La fée-saphire
16. V. Var. 4, La fée-diamant
17. VI. Coda (L’istesso tempo)
The Sleeping Beauty, Op. 66, TH 13, Act III
18. No. 24, Pas de caractère (Le Chat botté et la Chatte blanche)
The Sleeping Beauty, Op. 66, TH 13, Act III, No. 25, Pas de quatre
19. I. Adagio
20. II. Var. 1, Cendrillon et Prince Fortuné
21. III. Var. 2, L’oiseau bleu et la Princesse Florine
22. IV. Coda
The Sleeping Beauty, Op. 66, TH 13, Act III, No. 26, Pas de caractrère
23. I. Chaperon rouge et le loup
24. II. Cendrillon et le Prince Fortune
The Sleeping Beauty, Op. 66, TH 13, Act III, No. 27, Pas berrichon
25. I. Le Petit Poucet, ses frères et l’ogre
26. II. Coda
The Sleeping Beauty, Op. 66, TH 13, Act III, No. 28, Pas de deux (Aurore et Désiré)
27. I. Allegretto
28. II. Entrée [Allegro moderato]
29. III. Adagio [Andante non troppo]
30. IV. Var. 1, Désiré [Vivace – Prestissimo]
31. V. Var. 2, Aurora [Andantino]
32. VI. Coda [Allegro vivace]
The Sleeping Beauty, Op. 66, TH 13, Act III
33. No. 29, Sarabande
34. No. 30, Finale
35. No. 31, Apothéose
Recorded: 18-23 June 2012
Recording Venue: Grieghallen, Bergen, Norway
This two-disc set marks the beginning of a new project devoted to Tchaikovsky’s ballet scores. We start the survey with the complete score of The Sleeping Beauty, recorded on SACD. Swan Lake and The Nutcracker will follow in 2013 and 2014, respectively.
Tchaikovsky was approached by the Director of the Imperial Theatres in St Petersburg, Ivan Vsevolozhsky, in 1888 about a possible ballet adaptation of Charles Perrault’s La Belle au bois dormant (The Sleeping Beauty). The vision was to stage the production in the style of Louis XIV, allowing the musical fantasy to run high and melodies to be written in the spirit of Lully, Bach, and Rameau. This proposal for a fairy-tale ballet rooted firmly in both the rococo and baroque periods appealed to Tchaikovsky, and The Sleeping Beauty was premiered in 1890, with choreography by Petipa, the principal choreographer of his day.
Elaborately constructed, the ballet places its focus undeniably on the two main conflicting forces of good (the Lilac Fairy) and evil (Carabosse). Each has a representative leitmotif, which runs through the entire ballet, serving as an important thread to the underlying plot. Tchaikovsky’s use of what, at the time, were considered new and unorthodox instrumental combinations went on to inspire a new generation of composers, among them Stravinsky, who declared The Sleeping Beauty to be Tchaikovsky’s chef d’œuvre.
The Sleeping Beauty is here performed by the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra under Neeme Järvi, who is celebrating two major milestones this year: a thirty-year recording career with Chandos Records, and his own seventy-fifth birthday. Orchestra and conductor are joined by the pre-eminent violinist James Ehnes, one of the most dynamic and exciting performers in classical music today.