Edito 2021

On the programme for this 39th edition : 7 operas and oratorios, 4 recitals

> 2 Mozart operas on period instruments: to open, Lucio Silla, one of his very first operas composed, around the age of 17, for the Teatro Ducale in Milan. Lucio Silla has long been a little-known work in Mozart’s production. It is, however, a masterpiece of opera seria: da capo virtuosos which are a real challenge for singers, expressing the passions and torment of the human soul with depth and intensity, agility and lightness and infinite grace. A revelation to see and hear, conducted by Laurence Equilbey in an original staging by Rita Cosentino. The Magic Flute, composed at the age of 36, in the last months of his life, is certainly the Mozart opera which, at every moment, fascinates us, moves us, amazes us and transports us. We asked Jérémie Rhorer, the iconic Mozart conductor who caused a sensation when he debuted in Beaune with Idomeneo, then in the trilogy, to conduct this Flute that we have been waiting for over the last few years. A new event in perspective!

> 3 operas by Handel, importantmilestones in his career including an early works com-posed during his trip to Italy and 2 mature compositions : Il Trionfo del Tempo e del Disinganno conducted by Ottavio Dantone, Haendel’s first oratorio composed at the age of 22 in Rome during his trip to Italy, and which already bears witness to the extraordinary stylistic mastery of a musician freshly imported from multiple virtuosities. L’Allegro, il Penseroso ed il Moderato, conducted by William Christie which gives us to hear a score, both a pastoral and lyrical symphony, comparable to Haydn’s Seasons. And in contrast Semele, a dramatic opera in which Handel paid particular attention to the continuity of the recitative with the arias, anticipating by twenty years Gluck’s reform in his opera Orfeo ed Euridice. Indeed, these arias are fascinatingly diverse and take on a musical stylisation that sets them apart with their modernity and constant metamorphosis.

>  With Il Ritorno d’Ulisse in patria, we open a new trilogy of Monteverdi operas led by a new guest conductor, Stéphane Fuget, one of his most enthralling performers, at the head of his admirable new orchestra, Les Epopées. Monteverdi, at the height of his art, composed two of the most grandiose scenes of dramatic literature for this Ulysses: in act 1, the lament of Penelope where she deplores the interminable wait for Odysseus’ return (“Torna, torna, deh torna, deh torna Ulisse”) and the famous monologue by Ulysses stranded on the shores of Ithaca (“Mi lasciate in questa riva aperta … misero abbandonato”).

> The Magnificat one of Bach’s most famous sacred music and Vivaldi’s Gloria another very popular piece are conducted by Jean-Christophe Spinosi for the 30th anniversary of the creation of his Ensemble Matheus.

>  4 recitals: two dedicated to great voices and two to young talents: Mari Eriksmoen, a wonderful Norwegian soprano, who sings on the greatest stages in the world, interprets arias from famous operas by Handel and Mozart (who we will find in the role of Pamina from Mozart’s Magic Flute), while Andreas Scholl, much-loved countertenor who has remained loyal to the festival since 1994, offers us a tremendous programme centred on cantatas and Neapolitan arias from the 17th and 18th centuries, in particular from the young Handel in Naples. Chiara Skerath, an admirable young soprano, acclaimed by critics for “her brilliant technique”, “velvety tone” and “her engagement”, in great arias from operas by Mozart and Gluck (whom we will also find in the role of Cinna in Mozart’s opera Lucio Silla) and Paul-Antoine Bénos, a young, talented French countertenor who will make his festival debut with arias by Monteverdi, Vivaldi and Handel.

 

Anne Blanchard
Artistic Director