Saturday concert: Debussy/Ravel/Korngold at Den Norske Opera & Ballett

Debussy’s opera Pelléas and Mélisande will soon premiere in the Main House, and in connection with this musicians of the Norwegian National Opera Orchestra will perform a selection of splendid French music in the Second House.

Ravel’s Introduction and Allegro for harp, flute, clarinet, and string quartet is a sonorous masterpiece. Here, the composer uses the contrasts between the woodwinds, harp and strings in order to emphasise and make the most of each instrument’s unique qualities, creating lively music that shines and glows.

Debussy composed Danse sacrée et danse profane just a few years after the opera Pelléas and Mélisande. With its resonant transparency, harmonies and clear echoes of antiquity, the work is often regarded as the legacy of Debussy’s opera.

Korngold’s String Sextet in D major is often regarded as his most beautiful chamber piece. The work offers warm melodies and an abundance of imaginative resonances and structures, while Korngold’s personal style still clearly shines through.

Maurice Ravel Introduction and Allegro for harp, flute, clarinet, and string quartet Claude Debussy Danse sacréée et danse profane Erich Wolfgang Korngold String Sextet in D major, op. 10