Orchestre de Paris, conducted by Klaus Mäkelä - Music Box, April 8th, 2024

An album released by Decca on March 8th, featuring recordings by the Orchestre de Paris, conducted by Klaus Mäkelä, with works by Claude Debussy and Igor Stravinsky. This is the second album in the Russian Ballets series, a collection launched by the Parisian orchestra in March 2023.

I invite you to first listen to an iconic piece - Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune by Claude Debussy, a work that marks the beginning of modernism in music history, particularly Impressionism, which premiered in 1894, but became a choreographic work in 1912, with the dancer Vaslav Nijinsky in the leading role.

On March 24th, 2023, Decca released the first disc in the Russian Ballets series, featuring the Orchestre de Paris and Klaus Mäkelä, with the music from Stravinsky's ballets The Rite of Spring and The Firebird. It was a huge success: over 16 million listeners on streaming platforms, as well as critical acclaim.

Now, the same musicians return with a repertoire that is clearly close to their hearts, tackling another major ballet by Igor Stravinsky - Petrushka. The orchestral version created by Stravinsky in 1947 is chosen here, which, compared to the original 1911 version, uses fewer instruments, offering a sound closer to a chamber version, where the piano and percussion lines are more distinct.

Klaus Mäkelä and the Orchestre de Paris present a highly colorful, almost cinematic version of the Petrushka ballet music - the same observation I made last year while listening to The Rite of Spring and The Firebird. A highly adaptable orchestra and a conductor who is inventive, intelligent, and musical - I am confident that this second album in the Russian Ballets series will enjoy great success both with the public and critics.

The 28-year-old Finnish conductor Klaus Mäkelä is a true phenomenon, whom we were also able to admire in Bucharest during the 2023 Enescu Festival. Together with his partner, pianist Yuja Wang, and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam, he performed two unforgettable concerts. Klaus Mäkelä has been the artistic director of the Orchestre de Paris since 2021, and the chief conductor of the Oslo Philharmonic since 2020. Since 2022, he has also held the position of artistic partner of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, and from 2027, he will take over the leadership of this famous orchestra with an initial 5-year contract. Additionally, starting in 2027, Klaus Mäkelä will become the music director of the renowned Chicago Symphony Orchestra - an announcement made in late March 2024.

Here is a great talent who proves that talent knows no age. We will conclude the listening of today's proposed album with the choreographic poem Jeux by Claude Debussy - a true sonic canvas painted with delicacy and imagination by the Orchestre de Paris, conducted by Klaus Mäkelä.