Milhaud, Le Boeuf sur le toit, Op. 58



"Le boeuf sur le toit" by French composer Darius Milhaud (1892-1974)
combines various melodies from Brazil: tangos, maxixes, sambas and the
Portuguese fado. These had haunted Milhaud ever since his stay in Brazil.
Subtitled "Cinéma-Fantaisie" and dedicated to Charlie Chaplin, the work
was premiered in Paris in 1919 with a pantomime libretto by Jean Cocteau.
In 1976, Leonard Bernstein included this work on his two programs of
predominantly French music with the Orchestre National de France - a
stimulating blend of celebrated repertoire works as well as lesser known
masterpieces from the 19th and early 20th centuries. Reviewing one of the
concerts, David Stevens, the critic of the International Herald Tribune,
wrote on 4 November 1976: "There are precious few conductors who can so
completely identify themselves with the works of certain composers and at
the same time occupy themselves with extracting total cooperation from
such willful bodies of humanity as, say, a French orchestra. The miracle
duly took place¿"





Composer: Darius Milhaud
Title: Milhaud, Le Boeuf sur le toit, Op. 58
Conductor: Leonard Bernstein
Orchestra: Orchestre National de France
Video Director: Humphrey Burton
Genre: Concert
Length: 20 minutes
Cat.No.: A05501079
Gallery         DVD         





This production is also released by EuroArts on the DVD "Leonard Bernstein - Reflections" which is available in selected stores worldwide and through Amazon or JPC.