Acis et Galatée was Lully's last completed opera, and one of his greatest. A pastoral héroïque performed in 1686 to entertain the Dauphin during a hunting party at the Duc de Vendôme's château, it employs many features of his tragédies enmusique – vocal ensembles, instrumental movements and an enhanced use of the orchestra in general; and each act contains a divertissement with choruses and dances. One of the glories of the score is the concluding passacaille, which with instrumental sections builds up from single voices to chorus. There's also a small but affecting chaconne for Galatea in Act 2; but another glorious moment is the lengthy scene in which she discovers the body of her lover and calls on her father, Neptune, who guarantees Acis immortality by transforming him into a river.
Marc Minkowski brings out all the drama of the work by thoughtful treatment of the verbal text, intelligent pacing and varied instrumental articulation and weight: especially striking are the rough sonorities of the march in which Polyphemus first appears, and the intensity of the lovers' angry confrontation in Act 2. Jean- Paul Fouchécourt projecting the image of an ardent youthful lover, and Véronique Gens that of a passionate goddess, are both excellently cast, but Laurent Naouri almost steals the scene from them with his fearsomely powerful Polyphemus: Howard Crook contributes valuably in various roles, though he's ill at ease in the very highest register. There's considerable finesse in the chorus singing, and the theorbo continuo is admirable. An altogether splendid performance of a masterpiece.