Delibes: Best Of French Ballet

Slov Rso

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Cat No: 8550080

Release Date: 12 January 2000

Label: Naxos - Nxc / Naxos Classics

Packaging Type: Jewel Case

No of Units: 1

Barcode: 4891030500808

Genres: Classical

Composer/Series: DELIBES

Description
The Best of French Ballet Leo Delibes (1836 - 1891) BalletSuite from Coppelia Ballet Suite from Sylvia Ballet Suite from La Source Le Roi s'amuse: Airs de danse dans lestyle ancien KassyaFrancehas a long tradition of ballet, whether as a separate entertainment or as anindispensable part of French Opera. An element of French dance became part ofthe late Baroque musical synthesis of Bach and Handel, and, in a latergeneration, provided the technical basis for the Russian ballet. The Paris Academieroyale de danse was established in 1661 and the associated school, which stillcontinues, in 1713. The art of ballet in France reached a new height in themiddle of the 19th century, coinciding with1he early career of Leo Delibes, whoentered the Conservatoire in 1848 and five years later took a position securedfor him by Adolphe Adam, composer of Giselle, as 8.ccompanist at the TheatreLyrique. Like many other composers he was employed also as an organist, from1862 until 1871 at Saint- Jean-Saint-Fran?ºois, but his primary interest lay inmusic for the Theatre. For the Theatre Lyrique he wrote comic Operas and forthe Folies Nouvelles and other companies operettas, while continuing to composemusic for the church.Appointmentas accompanist at the Opera in 1863 brought Delibes other opportunities. He wasallowed to associate with Minkus in the composition of the ballet La Sourcein 1866, a task in which he was so successful that a commission followed for adivertissement, Le pas des fleurs, to be added to Adolphe Adam's LeCorsaire. Delibes won his greatest popular success with the score for Coppelia,commissioned for 1870 and his first complete ballet score. This was followedsix years later by Sylvia and in 1883 by the important Opera Lakme.His last Opera was Kassya, orchestrated by Massenet and staged two yearsafter the composer's death in 1891.The ballet Coppelia was based ona story by the German romantic writer and composer E.T.A. Hoffmann, DerSandmann, a tale that also served Offenbach in the first act of Les Contes deHoffmann. In the original version Nathanael is subject to brooding melancholy,intensely aware of a sense of evil. As a child he had been terrified of theSandman, who brings sleep to children and whom he had identified with a late-nightvisitor to his father's house, the lawyer Coppelius. He finds out that hisfather and Coppelius conduct chemical experiments, in the course of one ofwhich his father is killed. In later life he is troubled by thebarometer-seller Coppola, whom he identifies with Coppelius. From him he buys atelescope and sees the daughter of Professor Spalanzini, the beautiful Olimpia,whom he later discovers to be a clockwork puppet. Nathanael has been in lovewith Clara, to whom he now returns, but in madness tries to kill her, while thevoice of Coppelius lures him to his own death.Theform of the story used by Charles Nuitter and Arthur Saint-Leon, the former thearchivist at the Opera and the latter a distinguished choreographer, with anin
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