Description:

Based on "Christmas Eve," one of the stories from "The Tales of Dikanika: A Night in the Countryside" published by Nikolai Gogol in 1832, Rimsky=Korsakov composed this piece using an original orchestration based on his own original harmonic method. This disc is a rare video recording of this work, which was highly acclaimed at the time of its premiere, but was rarely performed due to the difficulty of the stage direction. The singing lineup includes Georgi Vasiliev, a tenor with a beautiful voice, as Vakula, Julia Musichenko as Oksana, Enkeleida Shkoza as Sorokha, and Andrei Popov as the Devil. The chorus and orchestra of the Frankfurt Opera led by Sebastian Weigle will perform Rimsky=Korsakov's lush music in a brilliant performance. The stage by the genius Christoph Loy features anthropomorphic nature (the winter solstice and spring), expressed in a dance performed by ballet dancers. The work's mystical atmosphere is beautifully conveyed by the fantastic scenes of the main character, Vakula, demons and witches flying in midair against the starry sky at night. (C)RS