Hector Berlioz: Benvenuto Cellini – Sir Colin Davis (3-CD Philips Classics Set)

UPC: 028941695529 

MPN: 416 955-2 PH3 

Brand Name: Philips Classics / PolyGram 

Label: Philips Classics Productions 

Recording Type: ADD (Analog-Digital-Digital Remaster)

Overview

This 3-CD Philips Classics edition presents Hector Berlioz’s operatic masterpiece Benvenuto Cellini, conducted by Sir Colin Davis, one of the foremost Berlioz interpreters of the 20th century. Recorded in London in July 1972, this landmark production features the Chorus of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, and the BBC Symphony Orchestra, capturing the brilliance, wit, and drama of Berlioz’s rarely performed opéra-comique.

The stellar cast, led by Nicolai Gedda as the impetuous Cellini and Christiane Eda-Pierre as Teresa, is supported by Jules Bastin, Jane Berbié, Robert Massard, and Roger Soyer. Together, under Davis’s visionary direction, they bring Berlioz’s bold orchestral imagination and theatrical genius to vivid life.

Part of the celebrated “Colin Davis Berlioz Cycle” from Philips, this recording remains a benchmark for its vitality, clarity, and emotional authenticity—hailed by critics and collectors alike as the definitive Benvenuto Cellini.

Product Features

• Format: 3 Compact Discs (Digital Stereo)
• Composer: Hector Berlioz (1803–1869)
• Work: Benvenuto Cellini, Opéra-comique in two acts and four tableaux
• Language: French (libretto by Léon de Wailly & Auguste Barbier)
• Recording Location: London, July 1972
• Total Duration: 2 hrs 40 mins 33 secs
• Genre: Opera / Romantic
• Series: Colin Davis Berlioz Cycle
• Recording Type: ADD (Analog Recording, Digital Mastering)
• Country of Manufacture: West Germany

Principal Artists

• Benvenuto Cellini: Nicolai Gedda
• Teresa: Christiane Eda-Pierre
• Balducci: Jules Bastin
• Ascanio: Jane Berbié
• Fieramosca: Robert Massard
• Pope Clement VII: Roger Soyer
• Pompeo: Derek Blackwell
• Francesco: Robert Lloyd
• Bernardino: Hugues Cuénod
• Additional Cast: Raimund Herincx, Janine Reiss

Chorus: Chorus of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden (Douglas Robinson, Chorus Master) Orchestra: BBC Symphony Orchestra (Leader: Béla Dekaney) Conductor: Sir Colin Davis Assistant Conductor: David Shaw

Interesting Facts

• Historic Collaboration: This 1972 London recording marked the first complete, uncut studio version of Benvenuto Cellini, revitalizing Berlioz’s reputation as a visionary dramatist.
• The Davis–Berlioz Legacy: Sir Colin Davis dedicated decades to championing Berlioz’s music, and his Philips Berlioz cycle—including Les Troyens and La Damnation de Faust—set a new interpretive standard.
• Philips Production Quality: The recording, engineered with exceptional analog warmth and dynamic range, exemplifies Philips Classics’ 1970s golden era of sound production.
• Cultural Iconography: The cover art features Cellini’s own “Perseus with the Head of Medusa”, photographed at the Museo Nazionale, Florence, symbolizing artistic triumph—mirroring the opera’s theme of creative genius.

Publishers

© 1972, 1997 Philips Classics Productions A division of the Philips Music Group / PolyGram Company Printed in West Germany / Imprimé en Allemagne Cover Illustration: Benvenuto Cellini’s Perseus with the Head of Medusa (Photo © Scala, Florence)

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