蜜芽传媒

Andrew McGregor presents a new production of Cherubini's M茅d茅e from Berlin Staatsoper, conducted by Daniel Barenboim, recorded earlier this week.

Born in Florence and a contemporary of Mozart and Beethoven, Cherubini settled early on in Paris and created numerous operas for French audiences - including in the style of 'op茅ra comique', with significant spoken sections in place of Italian recitatives..

The story is a re-telling of Euripides tragedy of the revenge of the enchantress Medea - truly a woman scorned - She is mother to two of Jason and the Argonauts sons, and years before helped Jason recover the golden fleece from Chalcis at the cost of rejection by her own family. Years later, as Jason is about to be married, but not to Medea, and she suddenly appears none too pleased, bent on revenge

Cherubini's focus is the psychological and emotional state of Medea, and this lifts the work out of its own time of post revolutionary Paris, into our own. In this new critical edition, sung in French, much of the editorial work has gone into the spoken sections to make the most of the dramatic situation and the emotional state of Medea.

Andrew McGregor is joined by Professor Sarah Hibberd to put into context M茅d茅e against the legacy of French Opera and assess Cherubini's contribution.

M茅d茅e....Sonya Yoncheva (Soprano)
Jason.....Charles Castronovo (Tenor)
King Cr茅on .....Iain Paterson (Bass)
Dirc茅, Cr茅on's daughter .....Elsa Drelslg (Soprano)
N茅ris, M茅d茅e's slave .....Marina Prudenskaya (Soprano)
Berlin State Opera Chorus
Berlin State Orchestra
Daniel Barenboim (Conductor)

SYNOPSIS
PRIOR STORY
Jason set off with the Argonauts to purloin the Golden Fleece in Colchis on the Black Sea. Once in Colchis, Jason and the king鈥檚 daughter M茅d茅e fell in love with one another. With M茅d茅e鈥檚 help, Jason was able to pilfer the fleece from her father鈥檚 possessions. Once back in Greece, Jason learned that Pelias has driven his father to his death. To punish Pelias, M茅d茅e then tricked his daughter into killing and boiling him, claiming that it would rejuvenate him. Pursued by Acastus, the son of Pelias, the homeless couple fled across Greece, now with two children in tow. During their flight, the parents were separated: Jason reached Corinth with his two sons, where he was offered the possibility of marrying into the royal house.

ACT I
Dirc茅, the daughter of the King of Corinth, fears that Jason might leave her one day, just as he abandoned his first wife M茅d茅e. Jason has his Argonauts march and presents the bridal gift to Cr茅on: the Golden Fleece. A stranger appears: it is M茅d茅e. Calmly and decisively, she declares that she will prevent Jason鈥檚 adulterous marriage. She pleads with him not to reject 鈥渢he mother of his sons,鈥� but to no avail. When he refuses all responsibility for her and her deeds, she calls on him to choose between her love or her animosity. The argument escalates: both threaten to kill one another.

ACT II
M茅d茅e is furious: she has been forbidden all contact with her sons. Cr茅on appears with his soldiers: in response to Jason鈥檚 request, he offers her the chance to flee unharmed and promises to protect her children. M茅d茅e humbly begs to be tolerated in Corinth, and allays Cr茅on鈥檚 mistrust by insisting on her utter helplessness. She now comes up with the plan that horrifies even her: to take revenge Jason鈥檚 betrayal not only by killing his wife, but his sons as well. M茅d茅e declares that her resistance is now broken. Jason rejects her request that the children accompany her into exile because of his great love of both. Jason responds to M茅d茅e鈥檚 lament by allowing her to have contact with her children once more before her departure. M茅d茅e commands N茅ris to accompany her two sons to Dirc茅. They are to offer M茅d茅e鈥檚 former bridal dress and her bridal crown as gifts, poisoned gifts that are to kill the new bride.

ACT III
N茅ris has set off with the children and the deadly gifts. A storm erupts. M茅d茅e has armed herself with a dagger and admonishes herself to be relentless. But when her children return, she is unable to carry out her intended murder. The dagger falls from her hands. Her rage against Jason and the love of her children are tearing her apart. She orders N茅ris to bring her children to safety from her. But just as N茅ris departs with them, M茅d茅e regrets her failure to carry out this ultimate punishment of Jason. Then cries of horror and Jason鈥檚 mourning of the torturous death of Dirc茅, which has also killed Cr茅on as well, come to her ear. M茅d茅e picks up the dagger and follows N茅ris and her children. Jason and the people want to punish M茅d茅e. M茅d茅e tells Jason that her children have been murdered and, declaring that she will wait for him in hell, leaps into the flames now raging in Cr茅on鈥檚 palace.