Composer: Benjamin Britten
Performer: Bergen Philharmonic Choir, Edvard Grieg Kor, Royal Northern College of Music Chorus, Choir of Collegium Musicum
Orchestra: Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra
Conductor: Edward Gardner
Number of Discs: 2
Format: FLAC (tracks)
Label: Chandos
Release: 2020
Size: 2.17 GB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes
Peter Grimes, a fisherman – Stuart Skelton tenor
Boy (John), his apprentice – Samuel Winter
Ellen Orford, a widow, schoolmistress of the Borough – Erin Wall soprano
Captain Balstrode, retired merchant skipper – Roderick Williams baritone
Auntie, landlady of ‘The Boar’ – Susan Bickley mezzo-soprano
Niece 1 – Hanna Husáhr soprano
Niece 2 – Vibeke Kristensen soprano
Bob Boles, fisherman and Methodist – Robert Murray tenor
Swallow, a lawyer – Neal Davies bass-baritone
Mrs (Nabob) Sedley, a rentier widow of an East India Company’s factor – Catherine Wyn-Rogers mezzo-soprano
Reverend Horace Adams, the Rector – James Gilchrist tenor
Ned Keene, apothecary and quack – Marcus Farnsworth baritone
Hobson, carrier – Barnaby Rea bass
Dr Crabbe – Silent role
First Fisherman – Francis Brett bass
Second Fisherman – David Hansford bass
A Lawyer – Vernon Kirk tenor
A Fisherwoman – Catherine Backhouse mezzo-soprano
First Burgess – James Berry bass
Second Burgess – Peter Brooks baritone
Third Burgess – Andrew Masterson tenor
Fourth Burgess – George Butler bass
Fifth Burgess – Samuel Knock tenor
Sixth Burgess – James Holt baritone
Choral Soprano – Catrin Woodruff-Abel soprano
Peter Grimes
Prologue:
01. Peter Grimes! Peter Grimes!
02. The Truth, the Pity, and the Truth
03. Interlude I
Act I:
04. Scene 1: Oh Hang at Open Doors the Net, the Cork
05. Scene 1: Hi! Give Us a Hand!
06. Scene 1: I Have to Go from Pub to Pub
07. Scene 1: Look! The Storm Cone!
08. Scene 1: And Do You Prefer the Storm
09. Scene 1: Interlude II
10. Scene 2: Past Time to Close!
11. Scene 2: Pub Conversation Should Depend
12. Scene 2: Now the Great Bear and Pleiades
13. Scene 2: He’s Mad or Drunk
14. Scene 2: The Bridge Is Down, We Half Swam Over
15. Scene 2: The Bridge Is Down, We Half Swam Over
Act II:
16. Interlude III
17. Scene 1: Glitter of Waves
18. Scene 1: Wherefore I Pray and Beseech You
19. Scene 1: O All Ye Works of the Lord, Bless Ye the Lord
20. Scene 1: Fool! To Let It Come to This!
21. Scene 1: People, No! I Will Speak!
22. Scene 1: We Planned That Their Lives Should Have a New Start
23. Scene 1: Swallow, Shall We Go and See Grimes in His Hut?
24. Scene 1: From the Gutter
25. Scene 1: Interlude IV
26. Scene 2: Go There! Go There!
27. Scene 2: In Dreams I’ve Built Myself Some Kindlier Home
28. Scene 2: Sometimes I See That Boy Here in This Hut
29. Scene 2: Peter Grimes! Peter Grimes! Nobody Here?
Act III:
30. Interlude V
31. Scene 1: Assign Your Prettiness to Me
32. Scene 1: Mister Keene! Mister Keene! Can You Spare a Moment?
33. Scene 1: Come Along, Doctor!
34. Scene 1: Is the Boat In?
35. Scene 1: Embroidery in Childhood
36. Scene 1: We’ll Find Him, Maybe Give Him a Hand
37. Scene 1: Mister Swallow! Mister Swallow!
38. Scene 1: Interlude VI
39. Scene 2: Grimes! Grimes!
40. Scene 2: Peter, We’ve Come to Take You Home
41. Scene 2: To Those Who Pass, the Borough Sounds Betray
‘The burly Aussie tenor is now even more identified with this ill-fated protagonist than Peter Pears, the first Grimes. And everywhere Skelton has sung the part, whether at English National Opera, the Proms, the Edinburgh festival or now on this international tour of a concert staging mounted by the Bergen Philharmonic, the conductor has been Edward Gardner. Theirs is one of the great musical partnerships, and they continue to find compelling new depths in this tragic masterpiece.’ – Richard Morrison – The Times. This studio recording was made following the acclaimed production at Grieghallen, in Bergen, in 2019 (repeated in Oslo and London and reviewed above). Luxuriant playing from the Bergen Philharmonic and a stellar cast under the assured direction of Edward Gardner make this a recording to treasure. Recorded in surround sound and available on hybrid SACD.