Composer: Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov
Performer: Simone Menezes, Golshifteh Farahani, Kristin Winters, Ensemble K
Format: FLAC (tracks)
Label: Alpha
Catalogue: ALPHA1081
Release: 2024
Size: 837 MB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes
Scheherazade, Op. 35 (Original Dialogue and Reorchestration Under the Auspices of Simone Menezes by Simone Menezes)
01. I. The Sea and Sinbad’s Ship. Largo e maestoso
02. II. The Kalendar Prince. Lento
03. III. The Young Prince and The Young Princess. Andantino quasi allegretto
04. IV. Festival at Baghdad. Allegro molto
This album offers a new approach to the character of Scheherazade, with Rimsky-Korsakov’s musical masterpiece transcribed for the forces of Ensemble K and a previously unpublished text, freely adapted from the Thousand and One Nights and ancient love poems, which tells the story of Scheherazade. The Franco-Iranian actress Golshifteh Farahani plays Scheherazade, while Kristin Winters is her sister, Dinarzad: ‘For me, this story is a literary and historical treasure of humanity. But our collective imagination has seen Scheherazade as either a seductress or a submissive woman who told stories to survive. The greatness of this character goes far beyond that, and in fact represents the ancient figure of the “hero”, or rather the heroine!’, says Simone Menezes, who is artistic director of this project. For this second collaboration with Alpha Classics (after Amazonia, ALPHA990), she presents two versions of the programme, one with music and texts, the other with Rimsky-Korsakov’s music alone.