Janet Baker: The complete "La mort de Cléopâtre H. 36" (Berlioz)

La mort de Cléopâtre (H. 36): I. C'en est donc fait! 00:00 II. Ah! qu'ils sont loin ces jours 03:07 III. Grands Pharaons, nobles Lagides 10:11 IV. Non!... non, de vos demeures funèbres 15:00 V. Dieux du Nil 17:40 Berlioz, Hector (1803-69) -composer Janet Baker -mezzosoprano Sir Colin Davis -conductor London Symphony Orchestra Score: http://conquest.imslp.info/files/imgl... Playlist "The art of cantata and motet: From Baroque to 20th century":    • The art of cantata and motet: From Baroque...   La Mort de Cléopâtre (The Death of Cleopatra) was Berlioz's third attempt to win the Prix de Rome from the Academie des Beaux-Arts. His first attempt in 1827 was La Mort d'Orphée, which failed to place. His second attempt in 1828 was Herminie, which took second place. Berlioz called La Mort de Cléopâtre "a lyric scene" for soprano and orchestra, setting a text by P.A. Vieillard. The vocal writing is extremely dramatic, but it ignores distinctions between recitative and aria, which infuriated the jury. The orchestral writing is lush and full, with extraordinary harmonies that likewise alienated the jury. La Mort de Cléopâtre was judged such a failure in the eyes of the Academie that it gave no first place prize that year. The following year, Berlioz won the Prix de Rome with his conservative La Mort de Sardanapale, but, having already composed his wildly experimental and incredibly wild Symphonie fantastique, he found that he no longer cared all that much about the Academie. Source: http://www.allmusic.com/composition/l... Buy the CD here: http://www.amazon.com/Dame-Janet-Bake...