Louise Bertin: Fausto Les Talens Lyriques, Flemish Radio Choir & Christophe Rousset

• Louise Bertin (1805 - 1877): Fausto, Ouverture:
• 1 Bertin: Fausto, Ouverture 09:34
• Fausto, Act I:
• 2 Bertin: Fausto, Act I: Introduzione. Tutte volsi e rivolsi 02:07
• 3 Bertin: Fausto, Act I: Aria. Il vago sol del mondo 02:20
• 4 Bertin: Fausto, Act I: Scena con coro. Qual m’assorda rumor? 03:54
• 5 Bertin: Fausto, Act I: Recitativo. Chi fia quest’importuno? 00:50
• 6 Bertin: Fausto, Act I: Terzetto. Vezzosa giovinetta 07:16
• 7 Bertin: Fausto, Act I: Recitativo. Debbo venir anch’io? 01:56
• 8 Bertin: Fausto, Act I: Duetto. Sorgi al mio cenno, o Satana 08:30
• 9 Bertin: Fausto, Act I: Finale. Zitto, zitto, state attenti 03:28
• 10 Bertin: Fausto, Act I: Scena con coro. Dite, amici, ove n’andò la vecchia? 04:46
• 11 Bertin: Fausto, Act I: Scena della strega. Qual sovramana possa 05:08
• Fausto, Act II:
• 12 Bertin: Fausto, Act II: Canzonetta e Coro. Fuggite amor 04:15
• 13 Bertin: Fausto, Act II: Recitativo. Ecco, tornata è in casa 00:45
• 14 Bertin: Fausto, Act II: Duetto. Signora amabile 04:21
• 15 Bertin: Fausto, Act II: Scena. Chi sarà mai quel vago 02:05
• 16 Bertin: Fausto, Act II: Cavatina. Palpita nel seno gelido il cor 02:35
• 17 Bertin: Fausto, Act II: Recitativo. Quanto tempo, mia cara 00:31
• 18 Bertin: Fausto, Act II: Duetto. Vi saluto, madama 04:08
• 19 Bertin: Fausto, Act II: Recitativo. Chi avrebbe mai creduto 00:21
• 20 Bertin: Fausto, Act II: Finale. Fra quell’ombra 06:28
• Fausto, Act III:
• 21 Bertin: Fausto, Act III: Preghiera. Abbassa, ohimè, Madre beata e santa 04:09
• 22 Bertin: Fausto, Act III: Scena. Vergogna! 05:03
• 23 Bertin: Fausto, Act III: Aria. Ah, mi batte il cor nel petto 04:11
• 24 Bertin: Fausto, Act III: Recitativo. Ecco il german! Conviene 02:04
• 25 Bertin: Fausto, Act III: Finale. Che intesi! O cruda sorte! Il patrio tetto 04:41
• 26 Bertin: Fausto, Act III: Concertato. O trionfo! 02:28
• 27 Bertin: Fausto, Act III: Stretta. Che sussurro! Che spavento! 06:16
• Fausto, Act IV:
• 28 Bertin: Fausto, Act IV: Recitativo. Ebben, che c’è di nuovo? 01:32
• 29 Bertin: Fausto, Act IV: Aria. O fier tormento rio! 02:24
• 30 Bertin: Fausto, Act IV: Cantabile. Deh guarda, o ciel clemente 03:23
• 31 Bertin: Fausto, Act IV: Stretta. A morte vergognosa! 01:56
• 32 Bertin: Fausto, Act IV: Recitativo. Risolvete, dottor! 00:13
• 33 Bertin: Fausto, Act IV: Finale. Margarita! Margarita! 02:55
• 34 Bertin: Fausto, Act IV: Finale. A questi dolci accenti 02:27
• 35 Bertin: Fausto, Act IV: Cantabile. Meco è già la morte 02:29
• 36 Bertin: Fausto, Act IV: Stretta. Ah, qual voce d’ìntorno rimbomba? 04:09
• Total Runtime 02:05:38

Info for Louise Bertin: Fausto

Fausto, a semi-seria opera in four acts, first staged at the Théâtre-Italien (Salle Favart) in Paris on 7 March 1831, marks the convergence of two extremely rare situations in operas of the Romantic period: it is the work of a woman and (although Italian in language, style and genre) it was composed by a French woman. Two years after the publication of Berlioz’s Huit Scènes de Faust, Louise Bertin in turn drew inspiration from Goethe’s play and demonstrated the modernity of her aesthetic ambitions. Although it received only three performances, today her Fausto deserves a second hearing. Although it was first performed with a tenor (Domenico Donzelli) in the title role, the Palazzetto Bru Zane has chosen to première the original version of this opera, the manuscript of which reveals that the role of Faust was intended to be sung by a woman: a première commensurate with the talent of Karine Deshayes!

"Despite my misgivings about a couple of the singers, the recording itself is a masterpiece, lively, visceral, and as engaging as if it had been a live performance. Orchestra, chorus and soloists are all miked perfectly, which increases the music’s impact. You really do need to hear this work for yourself. It’s well worth the investment." (Lynn René Bayley, artmusiclounge)

Karine Deshayes, soprano (Fausto)
Karina Gauvin, soprano (Margarita)
Ante Jerkunica, bass (Mefistofele)
Nico Darmanin, tenor (Valentino)
Marie Gautrot, mezzosoprano (Catarina)
Marta Diana Axentii, mezzosoprano (Una strega)
Thibault de Damas, bass baritone (Wagner / Un banditore)
Flemish Radio Choir
Les Talens Lyriques
Christophe Rousset, conductor

Christophe Rousset
During his youth in Aix-en-Provence, Christophe Rousset developed a passion for the Baroque aesthetic. At the age of thirteen he decided not to study archaeology but to satisfy his keen interest in the discovery of the past through music instead, by taking up the harpsichord. That took him to the Schola Cantorum in Paris, where he studied with Huguette Dreyfus, then to the Royal Conservatory in The Hague, to work with Bob van Asperen. At twenty-two he won the prestigious First Prize, as well as the Public Prize, in the Seventh Bruges Harpsichord Competition (1983).

At Aix he also developed his love for opera and the stage by attending rehearsals at the Festival d’Art Lyrique. It was there that opera gave him his first strong emotions, which still guide him in his work today.

Christophe Rousset’s performances as a harpsichordist soon attracted the attention of the international press as well as record companies. He became a member of Les Arts Florissants, then Il Seminario Musicale, before embarking on a career as a music director, which led him to form his own ensemble, Les Talens Lyriques, in 1991. Firing the ensemble with his enthusiasm as a conductor and researcher, he was soon among the front runners of Baroque, acclaimed in France and internationally.

Engagements at the world’s Baroque festivals, numerous recordings (Harmonia Mundi, L’Oiseau-Lyre, Fnac Music, Emi-Virgin, Decca, Naïve and Ambroisie), film soundtracks (Farinelli)… within a few seasons Christophe Rousset had established his reputation as a talented, industrious and conscientious young director with a passion for the voice and for opera, an indefatigable discoverer of original scores (Antigona by Traetta, La Capricciosa Corretta by Martin y Soler, Armida Abbandonata by Jommelli, La Grotta di Trofonio by Salieri, Temistocle, by Jean-Chrétien Bach …), a soloist and chamber musician always at his peak, and a patient and untiring teacher.

His various projects lead him to explore European music of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries (opera, cantata, oratorio, sonata, symphony, concerto, suite…), constantly shedding light on all the forms that played a part in the history of music before Rossini, and ‘serving’ music in a very personal way.

His many recordings include the complete harpsichord works of François Couperin, Jean-Philippe Rameau, d’Anglebert and Forqueray, and his interpretations of works by J. S. Bach (Partitas, Goldberg Variations, Harpsichord Concertos, English Suites, French Suites, Klavierbüchlein für Wilhelm Friedemann ) are regarded as references. With his ensemble Les Talens Lyriques, his great successes on disc include Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater, Mozart’s Mitridate, Overtures by Rameau, and Persée and Roland by Lully.

Christophe Rousset is an Officier des Arts et Lettres, and “Chevalier dans l’Ordre National du Mérite”.

Booklet for Louise Bertin: Fausto