Orfa was Adolphe Adam’s penultimate ballet, with an intriguing scenario based on Nordic mythology. It shares analogies with Hesiod’s Theogony and Wagner’s Ring cycle in depicting the struggle between the older gods (Loki) and younger gods (Odin). Full of archetypal Romantic elements, Orfa was mounted with the lavish stage spectacle for which the Paris Opéra was famous, and featured Fanny Cerrito in the title role. Adam’s writing shows increasingly vivid orchestral imagination, drama and tonal colour, with roles for several instrumental soloists. This world premiere recording uses a new edition copied from Adam’s original manuscript score held at the Bibliothèque nationale de France.
Adam, Adolphe
Orfa
1 Act I: Introduction, "Le rendez-vous" (The Gathering) 12:45
2 Act I: Pas de trois, "Les Scandinaves" (The Scandinavians) 07:19
3 Act I: Pas de deux, "Les fiancés" (The Betrothed) 09:46
4 Act I: Mazurka, "Les traîneaux" (The Sledges) 05:42
5 Act I: Après le divertissement (After the Entertainment) 10:44
6 Act II: Les séductions (The Seductions) 17:50
7 Act II: Part II 11:44
8 Act II: Pas de deux et Apothéose (Duet and Apotheosis) 13:07
