Portrait Georges Bizet
To mark the 150th anniversary of Carmen’s creation and the passing of its composer, The Palazzetto Bru Zane presents nearly five hours of unknown or rarely performed music by Bizet, spanning his entire career.
He showed an early mastery of orchestration and was soon able to give free rein to his taste for orientalism and folklore.
All the genres he explored are represented: opera, cantata, choral music, mélodies, symphonic and piano music. This portrait offers a chance to discover works that were never performed during his lifetime, indeed some which had to wait until 2024 for their premiere.
Of particular note is the ‘ode-symphony’ Vasco de Gama, which illustrates the Romantic taste for vast historical epics, and Le Retour de Virginie, a cantata for the Prix de Rome presented by the composer to his teacher in 1855.
Piano music and mélodies remind us that Bizet was also a sought-after salon composer, whose talent posterity has consecrated in songs like La Coccinelle and Adieux de l’hôtesse arabe.
The opera Djamileh will be broadcast on Sunday, April 6, at 9 p.m. on Bru Zane Classical Radio.
