09.07.2024

SABINE DEVIEILHE sings Mélisande at the Bavarian State Opera in Munich

It is a classic love triangle that unfolds between the mysterious Mélisande and the half-brothers (and rivals) Golaud and Pelléas and ends tragically. The actual plot remains vague, but Claude Debussy's only opera Pelléas et Mélisande is much more about psychological states, ciphers and symbols. The music remains restrained and repeatedly approaches silence. The composition shimmers in the most diverse colours, subtly illuminating the figures.

Sabine Devieilhe sings the role of Mélisande in the top-class new production of Pelléas et Mélisande at the Bavarian State Opera. She has already proven that this rich impressionistic tonal colour palette suits her particularly well in the congenial recording of the scene Mes longs cheveux descendent tout le long de la tour. The French soprano is a perfect fit for Debussy's music and the mysterious character of Mélisande, as she is able to draw on a wide palette of colours and emotions with perfect diction, so that every word, every nuance of this incredibly beautiful and symbolic text by Maeterlink is understood.

Claude Debussy: Pelléas et Mélisande

Franz-Josef Selig, Arkel
Sophie Koch, Geneviève
Ben Bliss, Pelléas
Christian Gerhaher, Golaud
Sabine Devieilhe, Mélisande
Soloist(s) of the Tölzer Knabenchor, Yniold
Martin Snell, A doctor
Paweł Horodyski, A Shepherd

Hannu Lintu, musical direction
Jetske Mijnssen, staging
Ben Baur, stage and costumes
Bernd Purkrabek, lighting
Dustin Klein, choreography
Ariane Bliss, dramaturgy

Bavarian State Orchestra
Bavarian State Opera Chorus