Details

Francesca da Rimini, based on part of Dante's Inferno, drew from Rachmaninov some of his most extraordinary music. The scene is Hell, where Virgil attempts to reassure a terrified Dante as he descends towards the Abyss. As he does so, the spirits of Francesca and Paolo pass and tell the tale of their doomed, illicit love. The music for the two central 'tableaux' that relate the loves story is Italianate in its excitement and passion. By contrast, the soundscape that Rachmaninov creates for Hell in the Prologue, with its swirling strings and unsettling, wordless chorus, is full of demonic power. Throughout, the sweep and originality of Rachmaninov's inspiration carries all before it.

Creatives/Company

Music: Rachmaninov