Applause to conductor Jose Serebrier for this glorious two-disc set - the first recording of all ballet music from Verdi's operas. It provides listeners with two hours of little known but attractive music.
Overtures are abundant, but not these other wonderful examples of Verdi's relatively small body of concert music. The music is firmly rooted in drama that surrounds it, but no temperamental divas!In 1989, the late conductor Antonio de Almeida conducted Verdi's ballet music on two CDs for the Philips label; it was nearly complete, but lacked three dances from Aida. Only some of this music is today included in performances of the operas; Verdi included ballets in only seven of his 28 operas.
He wrote the ballets to meet demand from Paris theatre audiences but later insisted they were integral to his operas.
However, he did ask for ballet sequences to be excluded from published operas because they disrupt the continuity of the action.
The ballets from Aida and Macbeth (a fun witches' waltz at the end) are often included in modern performances but Verdi fans will also love the sparkling Otello one (chosen to open the set) and Don Carlo. "The Four Seasons" ballet from I vespri siciliani is Verdi's largest (30 minutes.)
Also likely to be new to ears are an extensive ballet from Jerusalem (later version of I lombardi), and the 20-minute dances from Il trovatore where "gypsy" tunes from the opera's first act, and the "Anvil Chorus", are quoted. Richly textured and exuberant performances from the excellent orchestra are vividly recorded. Serebrier himself provides interesting notes in the booklet.
Highlight: Discovering neglected Verdi masterpieces
