French composer
Laurent Petitgirard made his name as a film composer and conductor, but he has devoted more and more of his attention to concert and theater music. His first opera, Joseph Merrick, dit Elephant Man, has had remarkable success for a new opera; it has received multiple international productions and several commercial recordings. Guru, his second, is based on a premise that recalls the Jonestown Massacre of 1978; a charismatic, delusional religious leader leads the members of his cult in a mass suicide. At the time of the 2010 recording, the opera (which was commissioned by the French Ministry of Culture and Communication) had not yet been staged.
Petitgirard is a musical eclectic and makes use of a variety of contemporary techniques, but 20th century French composers like
Poulenc and
Messiaen are among the most obvious influences, and his style is essentially lyrical. His versatility as a film composer serves him well in his depiction of dramatic situations.
Petitgirard is a master of orchestration and the score is full of magical, mysterious sonorities, like a hissing chorus that sounds like a stage full of lightly rolled cymbals. It's skillful, appealing, and often striking music, and should interest fans of new opera. The composer leads the Budapest Studio Choir, the
Honvéd Male Choir, and Hungarian Symphony Orchestra Budapest in a spirited, dramatic performance. Bass-baritone Hubert Claessens is impressively commanding in the title role. The part of his antagonist, Marie, a skeptical disciple who dares defy him, is a spoken role performed with ferocity by Sonia Petrovna, the composer's wife. Tenor Philippe Do and soprano Karen Wierzba are wonderfully effective in supporting roles. Naxos' sound is clean, detailed, and well-balanced.