Purcell: King Arthur

John Eliot Gardiner TITLE: Purcell: King Arthur (2CD) Label: PRX/Warner Classics/Parlophone - With it's lavish music and elaborate staging, the semi-opera King Arthur is one of the master-pieces in Purcell's works. On a text by the poet John Dryden very freely inspired from Arthurian legend and specifically devised for him, Purcell created a work of great expressive intensity which includes many of his most beautiful and well-known arias The importance of Monteverdi to John Eliot Gardiner is signalled by the fact that, when he founded a choir in 1964, it was for a performance of Monteverdi Vespers. The Monteverdi Choir went on to celebrate it's 50th anniversary in 2014 with a performance of the same work. Units Per Set: 2

CD 1:

1. Overture - 1:46

2. Air - 1:29

3. Overture - 1:16

First Act

4. "Woden, First To Thee" / "The White Horse Neigh'd Aloud" / "To Woden Thanks We Render" - 3:40

5. "The Lot Is Cast" - 0:33

6. "Brave Souls" - 2:20

7. "I Call You All To Woden's Hall" - 2:01

8. Symphony / "Come If You Dare" - 3:41

Second Act

9. "Hither, This Way" - 2:12

10. "Let Not A Moonborn Elf" / Ritornello - 1:15

11. "Hither, This Way" - 0:37

12. "Come, Follow Me" / Ritornello - 2:25

13. [Song Tune] "How Blest Are Shepherds" - 6:37

14. Symphony / "Shepherd, Leave Decoying" - 2:10

15. Hornpipe / "Come, Shepherds" - 1:37

16. Second Act Tune: Air - 0:55

Third Act

17. (The Frost Scene) Prelude / "What Ho! Thou Genius Of This Isle" - 1:20

18. Prelude While Cold Genius Rises / "What Power Art Thou" - 2:51

19. "Thou Doting Fool" - 1:03

20. "Great Love" - 0:54

21. "No Part Of My Dominion" - 0:55

22. Prelude / "See, See, We Assemble" / Dance - 3:26

23. "Tis I That Have Warm'd Ye" / Ritornello / "Tis Love That Has Warm'd Us" - 2:01

24. "Sound A Parley" / Ritornello - 3:44

25. Third Act Tune: Hornpipe - 0:38

CD 2:

Fourth Act

1. "Two Daughters Of This Aged Stream" - 2:39

2. Passacaglia / "How Happy The Lover" / Ritornello / "For Love Ev'ry Creature" - 6:09

3. Fourth Act Tune: Air - 0:51

Fifth Act

4. Trumpet Tune - 0:45

5. "Ye Blust'ring Brethren" - 2:43

6. Symphony - 1:39

7. Song Tune / "Round Thy Coast" - 3:17

8. "For Folded Flocks" 2:42

9. Ritornello / "Your Hay It Is Mow'd" / Ritornello - 2:59

10. "Fairest Isle" - 4:06

11. "You Say 'Tis Love" - 5:24

12. Trumpet Tune [Warlike Consort] - 0:35

13. "St George" / "Our Natives Not Alone Appear" - 1:59

14. Chaconne - 3:24