Henry Purcell

Suite from the "Fairy Queen"

The Fairy Queen, which premiered in London in 1692, is one of Purcell’s operatic masterpieces: a magnificent semi-opera based on Shakespeare’s "A Midsummer Night’s Dream", which combines theater, dance, and music in a wealth of creative ideas. This suite brings together five of its most distinctive pieces and offers a taste of the English composer’s refined, enchanting world. From the majestic Overture, with its dotted rhythms typical of the French Baroque style, the music leads to the dreamy tenderness of "Her Dream," then to the mysterious, dance-like atmosphere of "For the Followers of the Night." "Morning’s Prelude" then heralds the dawn with a radiant surge, before the famous concluding chaconne resounds, built upon a basso ostinato over which the voices intertwine in variations of supreme elegance. Blending majesty, poetry, and dance, this suite showcases Purcell’s melodic richness and harmonic nobility in a journey rich in contrasts that takes the listener from the most solemn ceremony to the most exuberant celebration.