Berlioz / Schumann - Nuits d'Eté

Between inner night and rediscovered light, Insula orchestra explores the contrasts of Robert Schumann's world. The overture to Manfred, inspired by Byron's poem, opens the evening on the torments of a solitary hero struggling with himself.

Berlioz's Les Nuits d'été then create a more secret interlude: set to poems by Théophile Gautier, the voice of Marianne Crebassa – a mezzo-soprano among the most admired of her generation – unfolds within a delicate orchestration, magnified by period instruments.

Love, absence, memory: each melody sketches an inner landscape. After these nocturnal wanderings, the Symphony No. 3 'Rhenish' widens the horizon like a luminous dawn – carried by the inspiration of the Rhine and the collective momentum of the orchestra.

Conducting Insula orchestra, Laurence Equilbey brings to this programme her intimate knowledge of the Romantic repertoire on period instruments – an ensemble she founded and has led for more than ten years with a recognised rigour and passion across the European stage.

Duration: 1h50 with interval PROGRAMME. SCHUMANN Manfred, Overture Symphony No. 3 'Rhenish' BERLIOZ Les Nuits d'été