Purcell – The Fairy Queen Suite | Marie Jacquot | WDR Symphony Orchestra

Purcell – The Fairy Queen Suite | Marie Jacquot | WDR Symphony Orchestra
珀塞爾－《仙后》組曲 | 瑪麗‧雅克 | 西德廣播交響樂

11,317 views Sep 19, 2026 #Purcell #classicalmusic
Henry Purcell’s ‘The Fairy Queen’ Suite, performed by the WDR Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Principal Conductor Marie Jacquot. Recorded live on 30 May 2026 at the Cologne Philharmonie.

Henry Purcell – Suite from the opera “The Fairy Queen” (arranged by Marie Jacquot)

00:00:01 First Music: Prelude
00:01:47 Hornpipe
00:02:58 Second Music: Air
00:04:31 Rondeau
00:05:22 Overture
00:06:50 First Act Tune – Jig
00:08:06 Dance for the Followers of Night
00:10:09 Second Act Tune
00:11:39 Third Act – Overture
00:13:51 Dance for the Fairies
00:14:44 Dance for the Green Men
00:16:32 Dance for the Haymakers
00:17:30 Third Act Tune – Hornpipe
00:18:23 Monkey’s Dance
00:19:21 Chorus: They shall be as happy

WDR Symphony Orchestra
Marie Jacquot, conductor

Introduction to the work
William Shakespeare’s comedy "A Midsummer Night’s Dream" has, in the four centuries since its creation, repeatedly inspired musical adaptations, including the incidental music by Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, the opera by Benjamin Britten and Heinz Rudolf Kunze’s successful rock musical. The earliest musical adaptation of the entire play is the semi-opera "The Fairy Queen" from 1692, for which Henry Purcell, the most famous British composer of his era, wrote the music. The term ‘semi-opera’ refers to the specifically English form of Baroque musical theatre, in which spoken drama is combined with singing, dance interludes and instrumental music. As Shakespeare’s play, which was about a hundred years old at the time of Purcell, was considered antiquated, an adapter – now unknown – transformed the comedy into a stage show full of mechanical wonders and choreographed tableaux, which supplant large parts of the drama. Only a few of these so-called ‘masques’ relate directly to the plot; mostly, dancers and singers unfold a fantasy world of their own, featuring shepherdesses, drunken poets or a ‘Chinese couple’. The premiere in 1692 at London’s Drury Lane Theatre was a lavish Baroque spectacle that cost 3,000 pounds – a sum that nearly ruined the theatre impresario. It is only recently that "The Fairy Queen" has made a comeback on modern stages and concert platforms, albeit rarely with Shakespeare’s comic plot and often reduced to a series of instrumental movements: some two hours of music by ‘Orpheus Britannicus’ Henry Purcell, in all the facets of Baroque festivity and various national styles, provide a rich source for the compilation of varied orchestral suites.
Text: Christian Lehmann

Film Provided by ARD Klassik