Bizet: Clovis et Clotilde & Te Deum

This fascinating disc presents the young Georges Bizet’s first composition after having won the prestigious Prix de Rome, the grandiose Te Deum, which remained unpublished until 1971. It is coupled with his Prix de Rome cantata Clovis et Clotilde, which recounts the tale of the Frankish King Clovis’s conversion to Christianity by his wife Clotilde. Both scores are abundantly theatrical, as one would expect from the future composer of Carmen (8660005-07), and are performed by three outstanding young singers and two internationally renowned French ensembles directed by the distinguished conductor Jean-Claude Casadesus.