La Sylphide (Ballet)

'La Sylphide is one of the classic themes of romantic ballet, a story of a Scotsman enticed away from his wedding celebrations by a winged spirit (the Sylphide). It was originally danced at the Paris Opera by Marie Taglioni in 1832, and down one line it was a progenitor of the classic Giselle-not to mention the more recent Les Sylphides. Down another line it has survived as a classic in its own right, the latter being that of great choreographer Auguste Bournonville, who saw the work in Paris and then produced his own version in Copenhagen in 1836. This has remained in the repertory of the Royal Danish Ballet ever since, and I remember enjoying a televised showing of their production a few years back.
The original Parisian version had music by Schneitzhoeffer, which has been revived on occasions since. However, Bournonville commissioned a new score from Herman Severin Lovenskiold (1815-70), a young Norwegian of aristocratic background. It is only the enduring popularity of the Bournonville version that has served to keep Lovenskiold's name alive, for he produced nothing else of note and died virtually forgotten. His work uses the standard conventions of the time, but it is a score into which the composer put a lot of effort, incorporating a prominent solo violin part for the music of the Sylphide. If ultimately it makes no greater pretensions than most of its kind, it has some highly agreeable tunes, several of which are paraded in its jolly overture.

This is, I believe, the most extended recording of the score, involving the inclusion of an extra pas de deux as an appendix. Performance and recorded sound alike are excellent. The recording first appeared in conjunction with the ballet's 150th anniversary and its reissue at reduced price is to be warmly welcomed. The pity is that the sumptuously documented booklet that accompanied the original issue is missing this time; but no ballet-lover can complain about having such an important score available in such a fine version at such a reasonable price.'