Britten: Les Illuminations/Serenade/Nocturne - Benjamin Britten [CD]

In these three song cycles, Britten draws his inspiration from the peaks of European poetry (Shakespeare, Blake, Shelley, Keats, but also Rimbaud), the better to push back the boundaries of the genre. He multiplies the relationship between voices and instruments, moving from strings alone (Les Illuminations) to a string ensemble featuring obbligato wind instruments, harp and timpani (Nocturne), not forgetting the fascinating dialogue with the horn in the Serenade. A unique sound world is revealed here by artists at the top of their form.

Disc 1
1. Fanfare (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
2. Villes (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
3. Phrase (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
4. Antique (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
5. Royaut‚ (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
6. Marine (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
7. Interlude (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
8. Being Beauteous (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
9. Parade (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
10. D‚part (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
11. Prologue (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
12. Pastoral (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
13. Nocturne (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
14. Elegy (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
15. Dirge (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
16. Hymn (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
17. Sonnet (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
18. Epilogue (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
19. On a Poet's Lips I Slept (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
20. Below the Thunders of the Upper Deep (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
21. Encinctured With a Twine of Leaves (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
22. Midnight's Bell Goes Ting, Ting, Ting (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
23. But That Night When On My Bed I Lay (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
24. She Sleeps On Soft, Last Breaths (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
25. What Is More Gentle Than a Wind in Summer? (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
26. When Most I Wink, Then Do Mine Eyes Best See (Benjamin Britten) - Andrew Staples/Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra