Berlioz: Les Troyens

Programme
Berlioz: Les Troyens

In the summer of 2023 the Monteverdi Choir, Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique and outstanding soloists, conducted by Dinis Sousa, performed Berlioz’s Les Troyens at five of Europe’s most prestigious festivals.

Berlioz’s idea for an opera about the Trojan War and its aftermath has its roots in his childhood. The composer’s father used to read Virgil’s Aeneid to him, urging him to learn a few verses by heart every day; Berlioz was even given the name of the Trojan hero, Hector.

‘I have spent my life in the company of these demi-gods; I know them so well that I imagine they know me’, Berlioz wrote to his friend Princess Sayn-Wittgenstein, who encouraged him to take on the monumental task of composing the opera. Les Troyens is Berlioz’s most ambitious work, the summation of his entire artistic career. It begins with the capture of Troy by the Greeks, as foretold by Cassandre, and ends with the death of Dido, the queen of Carthage, after her unhappy love affair with the Trojan, Aeneas.

The Monteverdi Choir and the Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique previously performed Berlioz’s Les Troyens in 2003, on Berlioz’s bicentenary, at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris – the first time the opera had been performed in Paris in its entirety. Twenty years later they were joined by an exciting international cast for performances at some of the greatest festivals and venues in Europe.

Photo: Berlioz Festival/Bruno Moussier

Tour dates:

Tuesday 22 August, 9pm (Part 1)
Festival Berlioz, La Côte Saint André, Cour du Château Louis XI

Wednesday 23 August, 9pm (Part 2)
Festival Berlioz, La Côte Saint André, Cour du Château Louis XI

Saturday 26 August 2023, 5pm
Salzburger Festspiele, Grosses Festspielhaus

Tuesday 29 August 2023, 6pm
Opéra Royal, Château de Versailles

Friday 1 September 2023, 5pm
Berliner Festspiele, Philharmonie Berlin, Großer Saal

Sunday 3 September 2023, 4pm
BBC Proms, Royal Albert Hall, London

Reviews:

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Financial Times - “Five stars for a white-hot Les Troyens at the BBC Proms”

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Daily Telegraph - “The Proms are conquered by mighty Trojans …it was sublime”

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ The Times - “Magisterial Berlioz at the Proms”

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐The Observer – “A spellbinding, well-paced performance”

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Evening Standard - “The glorious grand opera sounded gorgeous”

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐The Arts Desk - “Ravishing interpretation of Berlioz’s masterpiece”

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Bachtrack - “There were heroes at every turn, none more than Dinis Sousa”