FALLA: El Amor Brujo; El Sombrero del Tres Picos, Danza Espagnole - Ansermet, L'Orchestre de la Suisse Romande

To the delightfully muddled ‘Marriage of Figaro’-like plot of  ‘El amor brujo’, Ansermet brings an earthy sensuality and piquant wit. Ansermet recorded ‘El sombrero del tres picos’ twice and while the later recording with Teresa Berganza has rarely been out of the catalogue, this earlier mono, 1952 recording with Suzanne Danco is rare and much sought-after, not only by Ansermet fans but by fans of this wonderful Swiss singer whose singing Ansermet once referred to as ‘Appolonian’. The disc is completed with the Danza Espanola No. 1 from ‘La vida breve’and Ansermet gives the dance its due colours while not neglecting its vague air of unease. The 1955 recording  made in both mono and stereo is extremely rare and the stereo version, previously unpublished, appears here for the first time on CD.

MANUEL DE FALLA
El amor brujo*
El sombrero del tres picos**
Danza Espanola No. 1

Marina de Gabarain, mezzo soprano*
Suzanne Danco, soprano**
L’Orchestre de la Suisse Romande
Ernest Ansermet