Tuesday, 14 February 2012

The Invisible City of Kitezh - full broadcast

Princess of Nature and the woods, Fevronia has come to Kitezh to marry Prince Yuri. But the Tatars are about to attack the city. So Fevronia uses her magical powers to disguise the city and make it invisible. Except on the shore of the lake, where it's reflected in a blaze of glory, its bells ringing elusively.

Rimsky-Korsakov's opera The Invisible City of Kitezh is lusciously gorgeous, divinely escapist. When Gergiev conducted it nearly 20 years ago, it was a sensation. Still only 3 versions currently available but HERE is a link to another, not on the comnmercial market. It's Evgeny Svetlanov. Enjoy! Please also read my other posts on Rimsky-Korsakov, like The Golden Cockerel and the Tsar's Bride (which I love - pity the ROH performance was boringly conducted, and the audience unprepared).
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2 comments:

  1. Vecchio John15 February 2012 at 10:09

    An utterly gorgeous piece which I saw live in a new production at Nederlands Oper last Saturday. Anything but escapist in Tcerniakov's production:- fractured Russian post- Communist society with only a dream like vision of possible communal harmony in the last act.

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  2. Doundou Tchil15 February 2012 at 11:14

    So true, John. If only we had something to keep the Tatars from our doors ! I think I'd much prefer Tcherniakov. The ROH Tsar's Bride worked well for me (despite the playing)

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