H. Berlioz - Hector Berlioz: Symphonie Fantastique on CD

Description

Drawing on various themes dear to the early Romantic movement of the 1820s, the 'Symphonie Fantastique' turned the rules of a classical symphony on their head - to better serve Berlioz's intentions. This reading by the ensemble Les Siècles is based on a close study of the composer's autograph score and benefits from an intimate familiarity with period instruments, which here include the church bells of his hometown, La Côte-Saint-André. The 'Fantastique' includes passages from an early operatic effort he left unfinished: 'Les francs-juges' - a piece François-Xavier Roth deems worthy of being placed alongside Berlioz's more famous symphonic works we cherish today.