Darius Milhaud
Christophe Colomb
(Christopher Columbus) is an opera in two parts by the French composer Darius Milhaud. The poet Paul Claudel wrote the libretto based on his own play about the life of Christopher Columbus, Le Livre
Synopsis#
The opera tells the life of Christopher Columbus in a series of episodes which avoid chronological order and are sometimes allegorical.
Recording#
Janine Micheau (Reine Isabelle), Claudine Collart (Duchesse Medina Sidonia), Robert Massard (Christophe Colomb), Xavier Depraz (Christophe Colomb II, Messenger, etc.), Jean Giraudeau (Majordome, Cuisinier, Valet, Sultan), Lucien Lovano (Roi d’Espagne, Commandant, Aubergiste etc.), Orchestre Radio Lyrique, Chœurs de la RTF, conducted by Manuel Rosenthal. Disques Montaigne CE 8750 (from the INA), released 1987; recorded at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées on 31 May 1956. (A 1954 recording “conducted by Pierre Boulez” is of the Claudel play, with different incidental music by Milhaud, and a cast including Jean-Pierre Granval, Jean Desailly, Jean-Louis Barrault, Pierre Bertin, and Madeleine Renaud).
Further reading#
- The Viking Opera Guide ed. Amanda Holden (Viking, 1993)
- Del Teatro (in Italian)
- Composer
- Darius Milhaud