Albéniz: Merlin

Completed in 1902, premiered in Barcelona in 1950 and in its original English version in a concert performance in 1998, Merlin finally received its full, world premiere recording in this impressively cast 2003 production from Madrid's Teatro Real. Although better known today for his piano works, Isaac Albéniz also composed numerous dramatic works, including this Wagnerian opera to an English libretto by his wealthy aristocratic benefactor Francis Money-Coutts. Having reconstructed the score himself from manuscript sources and publishers' proofs, José de Eusebio conducts a cast led by Carol Vaness, Eva Marton and a young Stuart Skelton. John Dew directs a production that conjures the enchantment of this Arthurian tale.