
Prokofiev's 'Romeo and Juliet'
The ѿý Symphony Orchestra and Chorus conducted by Dima Slobodeniouk in Lili Boulanger's Psalm 130, James MacMillan's The Sacrifice, and Prokofiev's kaleidoscopic Romeo and Juliet.
The ѿý Symphony Orchestra and Chorus conducted by Dima Slobodeniouk in Lili Boulanger's Psalm 130, James MacMillan's The Sacrifice, and Prokofiev's kaleidoscopic Romeo and Juliet.
Recorded on the 16th May 2025 at the Barbican. Presented by Ian Skelly.
Lili Boulanger: Psalm 130 'Du fond de l'abîme'(24 mins)
Sir James MacMillan: Three Interludes from 'The Sacrifice'
Interval
Sergey Prokofiev: Excerpts from 'Romeo and Juliet'
Marta Fontanals-Simmons (mezzo-soprano)
ѿý Symphony Chorus
ѿý Symphony Orchestra
Dima Slobodeniouk (conductor)
“How silver-sweet sound lovers' tongues by night, Like softest music to attending ears!” Shakespeare’s tragic lovers have inspired composers for centuries, but there’s still no interpretation of their tale that quite surpasses Prokofiev’s great Soviet ballet-score: Romeo and Juliet retold in music that’s as sharp as a rapier and as tender as a kiss.
It’s perfect for Dima Slobodeniuk, an artist whose flair for drama is matched only by his deep personal affinity with Russian music. First, though, experience the epic passion and blazing grandeur of Lili Boulanger’s Psalm 130 – the single mightiest achievement by the composer whose untimely death in 1918 robbed the 20th century of one of its most brilliant musical minds. A gripping complement to Prokofiev’s star-crossed passion.
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