This is the last of the operas of Lully not to have been staged since the revival of interest in Baroque music. Audiences who were not fortunate enough to attend the concert series given by Christophe Rousset and his Talens Lyriques will at last be able to discover the work thanks to the present recording. The work is not lacking in charm, and audiences will be seduced by Thomas Corneille’s beautiful libretto, which recounts the revenge of Queen Sténobée, outraged by the indifference of Bellérophon, who is in love with the daughter of the King of Lycia, Philonoé. Sténobée asks the magician Amisodar, infatuated with his queen’s charms, to give life to a monstrous creature destined to destroy Bellerophon. But the latter, riding on Pegasus, makes short work of the fearsome Chimera, and in the end marries the one he loves.

The second collaboration between Thomas Corneille and Jean-Baptiste Lully, due to the temporary disgrace of Philippe Quinault, the work, premiered in 1679, marks an important evolution in the creation of opera in France; the tragédie lyrique finds a new balance between action, text, music, dance and all the other ingredients of opera.

At the helm of his Talens Lyriques, Christophe Rousset is at his best in a repertoire he defends with conviction.

Numbered limited edition.
Public recording made at the Cité de la musique in December 2010.