Dive into the world of John Gay's timeless masterpiece, "The Beggar's Opera," reimagined by Benjamin Britten in this captivating 1993 release. This operatic gem, spanning a concise yet engaging 91 minutes, is a satirical journey through 18th-century London's underbelly, where love, crime, and society's hypocrisies collide. The album, a product of Decca Music Group Ltd., is a testament to Britten's genius in adapting Gay's original ballad opera, blending wit, humor, and poignant social commentary.
The Beggar's Opera follows the roguish highwayman Macheath and his entanglements with the fair sex, the law, and the city's corrupt elite. With its memorable characters and catchy tunes, the opera is a precursor to the modern musical, offering a critique of society that remains relevant even today. The album's tracklist is a journey through the opera's three acts, each song a vignette that propels the story forward.
From the opening prologue to the final, dramatic denouement, the opera is a whirlwind of emotions and intrigue. Highlights include the hauntingly beautiful "Were I Laid On Greenland's Coast," the lively "Fill Ev'ry Glass," and the poignant "O Macheath! I Will Stay With Thee Till Death." The album is a feast for the ears, with Britten's masterful orchestration and Gay's sharp, witty lyrics coming together to create a truly unforgettable listening experience.
This album is not just a piece of musical history; it's an exploration of the human condition, a critique of society, and a celebration of the power of music. Whether you're a seasoned opera enthusiast or a newcomer to the genre, "The Beggar's Opera" is an album that will captivate, entertain, and enlighten. So, turn up the volume and let the enchanting world of John Gay and Benjamin Britten sweep you off your feet.
Tracks
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Prologue: "If Poverty Be a Title To Poetry"John Gay, Declan Mulholland, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Prologue: OvertureJohn Gay, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 1: "Through All the Employments Of Life"John Gay, Christopher Gillet, Robert Lloyd, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 1: "'Tis Woman That Seduces All Mankind"John Gay, Anne Collins, Christopher Gillet, Robert Lloyd, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 1: "Women Are Bitter Bad Judges In These Cases...If Any Wench Venus' Girdle Wear"John Gay, Anne Collins, Robert Lloyd, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 1: "If Love the Virgin's Heart Invade"John Gay, Anne Collins, Robert Lloyd, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 1: "A Maid Is Like The Golden Ore"John Gay, Anne Collins, Christopher Gillet, Robert Lloyd, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 1: "I Know As Well As Any Of the Fine Ladies...Virgins Are Like the Fair Flower In Its Lustre"John Gay, Ann Murray, Robert Lloyd, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 1: "Our Polly Is a Sad Slut"John Gay, Anne Collins, Ann Murray, Robert Lloyd, Aldeburgh Festival Choir, Steuart Bedford, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 1: "Can Love Be Controll'd By Advice"John Gay, Ann Murray, Anne Collins, Robert Lloyd, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 1: "The Girl Shows Such a Readiness...O Polly, You Might Have Toyed and Kissed"John Gay, Anne Collins, Ann Murray, Robert Lloyd, Aldeburgh Festival Choir, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 1: "I, Like a Ship In Storms, Was Tossed"John Gay, Ann Murray, Anne Collins, Robert Lloyd, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 1: "A Fox May Steal Your Hens, Sir"John Gay, Ann Murray, Anne Collins, Robert Lloyd, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 1: "O Ponder Well, Be Not Severe...The Turtle Thus With Plaintive Crying"John Gay, Ann Murray, Anne Collins, Robert Lloyd, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 1: "Now I Am a Wretch Indeed...Pretty Polly Say"John Gay, Ann Murray, Philip Langridge, Aldeburgh Festival Choir, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 1: "My Heart Was So Free"John Gay, Philip Langridge, Ann Murray, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 1: "Were I Laid On Greenland's Coast"John Gay, Philip Langridge, Ann Murray, Aldeburgh Festival Choir, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 1: "O! What Pain It Is To Part!"John Gay, Ann Murray, Philip Langridge, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 1: "The Miser Thus a Shilling Sees"John Gay, Ann Murray, Philip Langridge, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 1: "And Now Our Scene Changes...Fill Ev'ry Glass"John Gay, Philip Langridge, Declan Mulholland, Aldeburgh Festival Choir, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 2: "Success Attend You...Let Us Take the Road"John Gay, Philip Langridge, Aldeburgh Festival Choir, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 2: "If the Heart Of a Man Is Depressed With Cares"John Gay, Philip Langridge, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 2: "Dear Mrs Coaxer, You're Welcome...Youth's the Season Made For Joys"John Gay, Philip Langridge, Helen Templeton, Aldeburgh Festival Choir, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 2: "It Is Your Own Choice...Before the Barn Door Crowing"John Gay, Helen Templeton, Philip Langridge, Aldeburgh Festival Choir, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 2: "But To Be Sure...The Gamesters and Lawyers Are Jugglers Alike...At the Tree I Shall Suffer With Pleasure"John Gay, Helen Templeton, Debbie Miles-Johnson, Philip Langridge, Robert Lloyd, Aldeburgh Festival Choir, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 2: "Noble Captain, You Are Welcome Once More...Man May Escape From Rope and Gun"John Gay, Philip Langridge, John Rawnsley, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 2: "Thus When a Good Housewife Sees a Rat"John Gay, Yvonne Kenny, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 2: "It Is the Pleasure Of All You Fine Men...How Cruel Are the Traitors"John Gay, Yvonne Kenny, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 2: "The First Time At the Looking-Glass"John Gay, Philip Langridge, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 2: "Fortune Be With You, Lucy"John Gay, Declan Mulholland, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 2: "Such Language, Brother! ...When You Censure the Age"John Gay, John Rawnsley, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 2: "Is Then His Fate Decreed, Sir?"John Gay, Yvonne Kenny, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 2: "O Macheath! I Will Stay With Thee Till Death...Thus When the Swallow"John Gay, Ann Murray, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 2: "Shall I Not Claim My Own?...How Happy Could I Be With Either"John Gay, Ann Murray, Philip Langridge, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 2: "Really, Miss Peachum, You Expose Yourself!...Cease Your Funning"John Gay, Yvonne Kenny, Ann Murray, Aldeburgh Festival Choir, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 2: "Why How Now, Madam Flirt?"John Gay, Yvonne Kenny, Ann Murray, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 2: "No Pow'r On Earth Can E'er Divide"John Gay, Yvonne Kenny, Ann Murray, Philip Langridge, Robert Lloyd, John Rawnsley, Aldeburgh Festival Choir, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 3: "But All Scores Have a Reckoning"John Gay, Declan Mulholland, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 3: "Dear Sir, Mention Not My Education...When Young At the Bar"John Gay, Yvonne Kenny, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 3: "Ungrateful Macheath!"John Gay, Yvonne Kenny, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 3: "Thus Gamesters United In Friendship"John Gay, John Rawnsley, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 3: "And Macheath, At Liberty and At Large...The Modes Of the Court"John Gay, Philip Langridge, Declan Mulholland, Aldeburgh Festival Choir, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 3: "And Those Two Good Old Friends"John Gay, Declan Mulholland, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 3: "Bring Us Then More Liquor!...What Gudgeons Are We Men"John Gay, John Rawnsley, Robert Lloyd, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 3: "In the Days Of My Youth"John Gay, Nuala Willis, John Rawnsley, Robert Lloyd, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 3: "Jealousy, Rage, Love and Fear...I'm Like a Skiff On the Ocean Tossed"John Gay, Yvonne Kenny, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 3: "A Curse Attends a Woman's Love"John Gay, Yvonne Kenny, Ann Murray, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 3: "But Perhaps He Hath a Heart Not Capable Of It...Among the Men Coquets We Find"John Gay, Ann Murray, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 3: "Come, Sweet Lass, Let's Banish Sorrow"John Gay, Ann Murray, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
The Beggar's Opera - Realised Britten, Op. 43 / Act 3: "What Do I See! Oh! Macheath Again In Custody!...Hither, Dear Husband, Turn Your Eyes"John Gay, Ann Murray, The Aldeburgh Festival Orchestra, Steuart Bedford
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