Les Nuits d'été, song cycle for voice & piano (or orchestra), H. 81 (Op. 7)
Herminie, cantata ("scène lyrique") for soprano & orchestra, H. 29
On this CD of music for voice and orchestra by Berlioz, Swiss mezzo-soprano Brigitte Balleys delivers a somewhat diffident and underpowered performance of the great song cycle Les Nuits d'été. She has a lovely, light tone and exemplary technical control, but she fails to convey either the languid sensuality or fiery passion that the songs require, and thereby misses the emotional and musical variety of the piece. Her performance of Villanelle, which should be an effusion of pleasure at the warmth of the new season, has only ...
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On this CD of music for voice and orchestra by Berlioz, Swiss mezzo-soprano Brigitte Balleys delivers a somewhat diffident and underpowered performance of the great song cycle Les Nuits d'été. She has a lovely, light tone and exemplary technical control, but she fails to convey either the languid sensuality or fiery passion that the songs require, and thereby misses the emotional and musical variety of the piece. Her performance of Villanelle, which should be an effusion of pleasure at the warmth of the new season, has only a little more energy than the more reflective movements. Part of the fault lies with the elegant but reserved accompaniment of Philippe Herreweghe, leading Orchestre des Champs-Elysées. It is tricky to maintain an appropriately limpid tone while at the same time providing a sense of purposeful momentum, and Herreweghe doesn't quite bring it off. Herminie, the cantata for which Berlioz was finally awarded the Prix de Rome in 1830, is a more conventional work, and it has been recorded...
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