entirely up to the standard of excellence that one has come to expect from the Chateau de Versailles series. The orchestra of the Poème Harmonique is powerful yet discrete when needed…the voices are all well matched, and the diction is clear and precise. For lovers of French Baroque opera, this is a must.

This performance is yet further testimony to the extremely high standards encountered today in French Baroque opera repertoire. The musicians of Dumestre’s Le Poème Harmonique are old hands at it: his handling of the score is well paced and thoroughly idiomatic, and he draws splendid singing and playing from both choir and orchestra.