”What makes Hector Berlioz such a great composer?”, asks conductor John Nelson. “In one word, originality ... He broke all existing traditions of orchestration, structure, harmonic language and storytelling. Even today, his music is fresh, surprising us at every turn with inexpressible beauty.” Nelson now adds two more astonishingly original works by Berlioz – the ‘dramatic symphony’ Roméo et Juliette and the ‘lyric scene’ La Mort de Cléopâtre to his Erato discography. He continues the fruitful relationship with the Orchestre philharmonique de Strasbourg, his choice for the recordings of Les Troyens, La Damnation de Faust, Harold en Italie and Nuits d’été. Joyce DiDonato, his unforgettable Didon and Marguerite, returns as the suicidal Cléopâtre and she is joined in Roméo et Juliette by tenor Cyrille Dubois (who was Iopas in Les Troyens), baritone Christopher Maltman, and the choruses of the Lisbon-based Gulbenkian Foundation and Strasbourg’s Opéra du Rhin.

Artists:

Joyce DiDonato, mezzo-soprano – CD1 tracks 2, 3; CD2 tracks 18, 19, 20, 21, 22

Cyrille Dubois, tenor - CD1 tracks 2, 3, 4, 5, 8

Christopher Maltman, baryton - Frère Laurent – CD2 tracks 15, 16, 17

Coro Gulbenkian – chorus master: Jorge Matta - CD1 tracks 2, 4, 5, 8, 11; CD2 tracks 14, 15, 16, 17

Chœur de l’OnR - chorus master: Alessandro Zuppardo - CD1 tracks 2, 4, 5, 8, 11; CD2 tracks 14, 15, 16, 17

Orchestre philharmonique de Strasbourg

John Nelson, conductor