The Road to Bali

 

And Britten's introduction to Balinese Gamelan.

While the Gamelan bells and drums don't appear until an hour or so has passed, it is its distinct presence which sets this score apart.

Otherwise, I didn't find the music to The Prince of the Pagodas particularly Asian infused, other than perhaps some heterophony from the King of the East sequence.

The story is kind of trippy. Two princesses vie for rule as they are courted by Kings from the far reaches of the world, each representing a cardinal direction. That is the normal part.

Act II is taken up by the kind princess' flight, carried by flying frogs to the Land of the Pagodas. Whilst flying, the princess witnesses a dance among the clouds, stars, and moon, then among the waves, sea horses, and fish creatures, and then among male and female flames. Once she finally arrives at the Land of the Pagodas, she meets the titular Prince of the Pagodas in salamander form, one she saw in an earlier vision.

Upon returning to her own kingdom, her sister has caged her father, The Emperor, and through a series of events involving The Fool, A Dwarf, plus the Salamander Prince, saves the kingdom from her evil sister's schemes.

The music to this tale might be some of Benjamin Britten's most approachable, although its two-hour runtime is overlong. Each of the sequences in Act I & II are colorful, even aside from the Gamelan sequence. The four Kings each receive a characterful dance sequence, and the three scenes while the princess is flying with the frogs is beautifully and strikingly portrayed musically. The Emperor is represented by a saxophone, always an unusual choice from the composer, although Britten is strong at linking characters to his music for the listener.

It is only the Third Act while drags. Each of the characters receives a dance together, and then on their own, and then some characters reappear to do it all over again. This all done while the story has already wrapped up, so the music is solely in deference to the dancers, rather than plotting and scene setting.

There extant recording of The Prince of the Pagodas. Britten's own recording remains the strongest, even though it is shorn of 20 minutes of musical material. Because it is the composer at the helm, his recording is self recommending. Oliver Knussen, a remarkable conductor, leads the complete ballet with the London Sinfonietta on Virgin Classics from the late 80s.

That makes this performance with the Hallé Orchestra only the third recording across seventy years, although a few stage revivals have popped up. This was a debut recording of conductor Kahchun Wong after Sir Mark Elder's 24-year stint with Hallé. It is certainly a curious debut, but I admire the Singapore conductor's championing of rarely recorded literature.

Certainly, the Hallé play very well across the 2+ hours, captured remarkably clearly on their in-house label. I still think Britten, despite the cuts, needs to be heard, for like Bernstein, Britten handles his own music in a singular way. Yet, it is good for other to take up the cause, and certainly this ballet music should appeal to a wide audience.

 

 

 

Works
Prince of the Pagodas, op. 57

Performers
Hallé Orchestra
Kahchun Wong, conductor

Label: Hallé
Year: 2024
Total Timing: 2.09.03

 

 

 

 

 

The Prince of the Pagodas is a beautiful ballet score. It has its problems, but finds the soundworld of Britten in a rather unique position.

I can't say I have listened to the other available recordings of this ballet at any recent point, but this is as fine a place to hear the complete work as any.