Berlioz: Roméo et Juliette

Sir Andrew Davis joins the BBC Symphony as Conductor Laureate for this new recording in his Berlioz series, which follows two volumes with other top orchestras. The cornerstone of this double SACD album is Romeo et Juliette. The work was Berlioz’s third symphony, and was inspired by his love for Shakespeare and his own passionate experiences. The two other pieces featured are excerpts from Berlioz’s largest work, the opera Les Troyens, which is based on Virgil. Berlioz’s orchestral wizardry is evident throughout all of the pieces, and he utilizes atypical instrumentation such as offstage brass and drums to communicate his programmatic writing. This recording follows a magnificent performance which took place at the Barbican in January. Bachtrack called it a “magical revelation… that wrought shivers.” The Sunday Times said “one could feel the instant rightness of the sonorous imagery Berlioz devises.” Both the concert and this release mark the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death.