Lyon National Opera Orchestra

An inexhaustible fountain of sounds and concentrated energy, Prokofiev’s Suites from his ballet Romeo and Juliet magnify the orchestra as Shakespeare himself would have done! This grand musical event comes ahead of the 40^th anniversary of the Lyon National Opera Orchestra, here joined once again by its historic musical director, Kazushi Ōno.

Originally written for piano then orchestrated by Ravel himself, Le Tombeau de Couperin (1917) is a double homage to the French baroque master and to the comrades the composer saw die at the front in the First World War. Transparency, emotional modesty and distant melancholy characterise this piece, where 18^th century style is juxtaposed to the tart harmonies of Ravel. Rivalling this subtlety, Chausson’s Poeme (1896) was inspired by a novel by Turgenev. Its enchanting melodies and poignant lyricism alternate with vehement paroxysms, conferring to the violin a magnetic eloquence. How could one not become intoxicated by the Prokofian accents inspired by Shakespeare’s immortal drama? It is traditional for each conductor to compose his or her own bouquet for these Suites drawn from the ballet, and the choice is difficult: exotic dances, tireless toccatas, ecstatic chants of love, not to mention the "Dance of the knights" that remains one of the most gripping themes in the history of music.

Lyon National Opera Orchestra
Musical director Kazushi Ōno
Violin Kazimierz Olechowski

^{Photo © Miyoshi Eisuke, MX France}

Maurice Ravel
Le Tombeau de Couperin

Ernest Chausson
Poeme (Kazimierz Olechowski – violin solo)

Serge Prokofiev
Romeo and Juliet (Suite)
version by Kazushi Ōno