Les boréades

"Recommended: The vocal numbers are all attractive, and the dances quite delightful. Despite being a tragédie lyrique, the work seems to me more of a divertissement, a piece of elegant and civilized entertainment which makes few demands on the listener. I liked the singing here, particularly Sabine Devieilhe as Alphise and Reinoud van Mechelen as Abaris. But I actually enjoyed the dance numbers even more than the vocal ones, and here the palm must go to conductor György Vashegyi ... and his Orfeo orchestra, which has a higher proportion of wind to strings than you might expect. With excellent recording and an informative booklet containing the complete libretto in French and English, I find it hard to think it could be better done".

Læs anmeldelse

"Musikalsk er forestillingen i sikre hænder, men Christie er hørt mere inspireret ... Det svage punkt er Edouard Locks koreografi for balletgruppen La La La Human Steps, og da halvdelen af operaen er dansemusik, vejer den tungt ... Det centrale par er vidunderligt besat. Bonney har en stærk og nuanceret præsens ... Agnew gør en enklere, uskyldigt rørende antihelt af operaens største parti".

Læs anmeldelse

"Editor's choice: Valuable aspects of historical performance practice are applied fastidiously by Orfeo Orchestra ... Reinoud Van Mechelen and Sabine Devieilhe deliver ample sophistication and dynamism in key moments ... The Purcell Choir contribute polished textural precision and lucid expression of words to several crowd scenes ... In all respects, Vashegyi's marvellous take on Les Boréades confirms how far Rameau's art and ideas developed across his 30-year operatic career".

"Editor's choice: This is a first-rate performance, on a par with Gardiner's terrific recording on Erato. That set doesn't include a libretto (there's a trenchant explanation of the omission in the booklet). This one does, with a good translation by Christopher Bayton; he must have buried his head in his hands when he received the printed version, with its typos and general muddle".

"The music is top-drawer Rameau ... William Christie conducts with all his customary dedication. The sheer exhilaration of the chorus in Act 3 has to be seen to be believed ... This is a serious attempt at interpreting Rameau in modern terms; unreconstructed traditionalists will be happier with the John Eliot Gardiner CD recording on Erato".