French Music for the Stage (2021)

Well into his eighties when these recordings were made in 2018 and 2019, Neeme Järvi has been recording exactly what he wants to, and hearers are the richer for it. They can hardly go wrong with any of his recordings of 19th century French music, a repertory he may know better than anyone else alive. Consider the theater music -- overtures, incidental music, and operatic interludes -- on the present collection, released in 2021; few of them have been heard anywhere for decades, and the music sparkles from beginning to end. ... Read More

Well into his eighties when these recordings were made in 2018 and 2019, Neeme Järvi has been recording exactly what he wants to, and hearers are the richer for it. They can hardly go wrong with any of his recordings of 19th century French music, a repertory he may know better than anyone else alive. Consider the theater music -- overtures, incidental music, and operatic interludes -- on the present collection, released in 2021; few of them have been heard anywhere for decades, and the music sparkles from beginning to end. Try the overture to Boieldieu's Le calife de Bagdad (1800), with its "Eastern" percussion and melodies that amply justify the composer's "French Mozart" nickname. The highlight may be the tremendously elegant dances from Léo Delibes' Le roi s'amuse, neoclassic pieces before there was such a thing. The program is rounded out by instrumental pieces from Massenet's 1908 ballet Espada, which has a Spanish setting complete with a Boléro and a Toreadors' March. Here, one might wish for a... Read Less