Massenet / Toronto Mendelssohn Choir / Davis Thais Super-Audio CD

Following acclaimed performances at the Edinburgh Festival and then in Melbourne, Sir Andrew Davis's recording of Massenet's opera Tha?s features an outstanding cast, and exceptional performances from his Toronto forces. Written shortly after the premiere of his masterpiece Werther, Tha?s was composed for the Californian soprano Sybil Sanderson who gave the premiere at the Paris Op?ra in 1894. Sanderson's performance was a triumph, but the opera itself had a mixed reception. After Massenet revised it in 1898 it went on to worldwide success in the years leading up to World War I and has enjoyed continuous and growing success in our own time. The role of Tha?s has drawn many great artists, including Mary Garden, Geraldine Farrar, Maria Jeritza, Leontyne Price, Beverley Sills, and Ren?e Fleming. According to the Financial Times, 'Erin Wall is the Tha?s of one's dreams, wielding a soprano of radiance, pristine beauty and tingling top notes", and she is joined on the recording by Joshua Hopkins in the role of Athana?l, while Nicias is sung by Andrew Staples.

1. Tha?s 2. 1.áááAct I Scene 1: Prelude 3. 2.áááAct I Scene 1: Voici le pain à (A Cenobite, Another, Pal?mon, The Cenobites, Several Cenobites, Others, Athana?l) 4. 3.áááAct I Scene 1: Non à Mon coeur est plein d'amertume (Athana?l, The Cenobites) 5. 4.áááAct I Scene 1: H?las! enfant encore (Athana?l) 6. 5.áááAct I Scene 1: Ne nous m?lons jamais, mon fils (Pal?mon, Cenobites, Athana?l) 7. 6.áááAct I Scene 1: Vision - Honte! Horreur! T?n?bres ?ternelles! (Athana?l) 8. 7.áááAct I Scene 1: Toi qui mis la piti? dans nos mes (Athana?l, Pal?mon) 9. 8.áááAct I Scene 1: Esprit de lumi?re et de grce (The Voice of Athana?l, Cenobites) 10. 9.áááAct I Scene 2: Prelude 11. 10.áááAct I Scene 2: Va, mendiant, chercher ailleurs ta vie! (Servant, Athana?l) 12. 11.áááAct I Scene 2: Voil? donc la terrible cit?! (Athana?l, Crobyle, Myrtale) 13. 12.áááAct I Scene 2: Athana?l! C'est toi! mon condisciple (Nicias, Athana?l) 14. 13.áááAct I Scene 2: Ah! Ah! Ah! à Je vais donc te revoir (Crobyle, Myrtale, Nicias, Athana?l) 15. 14.áááAct I Scene 2: Tha?s! S£ur des Karites! (Actresses, Actors, Philosophers, Nicias) 16. 15.áááAct I Scene 2: C'est Tha?s, l'idole fragile (Tha?s, Nicias, Athana?l) 17. 16.áááAct I Scene 2: Qui te fait si s?v?re (Tha?s, Actresses, Actors, Philosophers, Athana?l, Nicias) 18. 17.áááAct II Scene 1: Ah! me voil? seule, seule, enfin! (Tha?s) 19. 18.áááAct II Scene 1: ? mon miroir fid?le, rassure-moi? (Tha?s) 20. 19.áááAct II Scene 1: ?tranger, te voil?, comme tu l'avais dit! (Tha?s, Athana?l) 21. 20.áááAct II Scene 1: Qui m'inspirera des discours embras?s (Athana?l, Tha?s) 22. 21.áááAct II Scene 1: V?nus invisible et pr?sente! (Tha?s, Athana?l) 23. 22.áááAct II Scene 1: Je suis Athana?l, Moine d'Antino?! (Athana?l, Tha?s) 24. 23.áááAct II Scene 1: Piti?! Ne me fais pas de mal! (Tha?s, Athana?l, Nicias) 25. 24.áááAct II Scene 1: Tha?s, idole fragile (Nicias, Tha?s, Athana?l) 26. 25.áááAct II Scene 2: Meditation 27. 1.áááAct II Scene 2: Prelude 28. 2.áááAct II Scene 2: P?re, Dieu m'a parl? par ta voix! (Tha?s, Athana?l) 29. 3.áááAct II Scene 2: Non loin d'ici, vers l'occident (Athana?l, Tha?s) 30. 4.áááAct II Scene 2: L'amour est une vertu rare (Tha?s, Athana?l) 31. 5.áááAct II Scene 2: Suivez-moi tous, amis! (Nicias, Crobyle, Myrtale, Friends of Nicias) 32. 6.áááAct II Scene 2: Celle qui vient est plus belle (Crobyle, Myrtale, La Charmeuse) 33. 7.áááAct II Scene 2: Eh! C'est lui! Athana?l! (Nicias, Crobyle, Myrtale, Friends of Nicias, Athana?l) 34. 8.áááAct II Scene 2: Jamais! Non! (Nicias, Tha?s, Athana?l, Chorus) 35. 9.áááAct III Scene 1: Prelude 36. 10.áááAct III Scene 1: L'ardent soleil m'?crase (Tha?s, Athana?l) 37. 11.áááAct III Scene 1: Seul, le repentir nous ?pure (Athana?l, Tha?s) 38. 12.áááAct III Scene 1: ? messager de Dieu, si bon dans ta rudesse (Tha?s) 39. 13.áááAct III Scene 1: Baigne d'eau tes mains et tes l?vres (Tha?s, Athana?l) 40. 14.áááAct III Scene 1: Pater noster, qui es in coelis (Voices, Tha?s, Athana?l) 41. 15.áááAct III Scene 1: La paix du Seigneur soit avec toi (Athana?l, Albine, Tha?s, White Ladies) 42. 16.áááAct III Scene 1: Elle va lentement parmi les fille blanches (Athana?l) 43. 17.áááAct III Scene 2: Que le ciel est pesant! (Cenobites, Pal?mon, A Cenobite, Chorus, Athana?l) 44. 18.áááAct III Scene 2: Tu sais, ? Pal?mon, que j'ai reconquis l'me (Athana?l) 45. 19.áááAct III Scene 2: Ne t'avais-je pas dit (Pal?mon) 46. 20.áááAct III Scene 2: Qui te fait si s?v?re (Tha?s, Athana?l) 47. 21.áááAct III Scene 2: Vision - Ah! à Une Sainte est pr?s de quitter la terre (Athana?l, Voices) 48. 22.áááAct III Scene 2: Tha?s va mourir! (Athana?l) 49. 23.áááAct III Scene 2: Symphonie: La Course de la nuit 50. 24.áááAct III Scene 3: Seigneur, ayez piti? de moi selon votre mansu?tude! (White Ladies, Albine) 51. 25.áááAct III Scene 3: Sois le bienvenu dans nos tabernacles (Albine, Athana?l, White Ladies, Tha?s) 52. 26.áááAct III Scene 3: Te souvient-il du lumineux voyage (Tha?s, Athana?l)