Dido and Æneas - Henry Purcell (Dido's Lament) + Fr lyrics

Dido and Æneas - Henry Purcell 1689
Dido : Malena Ernman (sublime performance)
Acte III
Movt. 37. Aria, "Thy hand Belinda, darkness shades me"
Movt. 38. Ground, Aria and Ritornello, "When I am laid in earth"
Movt. 39. Chorus, "With drooping wings"
Movt. 40. Epilogue, strings "All that we know the angels do above" ## Unfortunately no epilogue ##

[AndromedaCripps]

Still coming back to this recording and still crying every time. It’s not just the stellar acting, the incredibly evocative musical choices which portray a story beyond the manuscript without sacrificing the music, it’s also the staging.

I’ve always appreciated the carefully selected and beautiful portrait-like poses the three characters take on the stage, but it wasn’t until this, my 30th or so viewing, that I realized at that thought that even the lighting plays an integral role in this performance. The actors ARE a portrait- in their dramatic pose, they are brightly lit but juxtaposed by an all-encompassing black background. This is one of the most prevalent styles of Baroque painting, a technique called tenebrism, in which dramatically lit characters in the foreground pop in front of a dark black background.

The music, dresses, and yes, even the AESTHETIC of the STAGING ITSELF are ALL **historically informed**. This blew my mind when I realized. I am utterly stunned again and again, at the complexity of passionate dedication put into this piece of art.

It’s a little crazy to think that Purcell wrote this opera to be simple enough for a young girls school to perform, when I see a mature and emotionally deep performance such as this, that still feels miraculously as though it would not be the slightest out of place in front of Purcell and his contemporaneous audience. I really can’t express how good this is. I think this is one of those performances that you spend the rest of your life wishing you could have been there to see. Damn.

[Ahsoka_Hyrule]

I just want to take a moment and applaud the two actresses playing Dido's handmaidens, they're fantastic at what they do and their performance adds so much to the scene.

[BangkokVoiceCoach]

A moment of directorial genius that Dido is instantly struck blind by the poison. It makes so much sense of the opening lines of the recit, “thy hand Belinda, darkness shades me.”

[johannesrotter]

A vivid Caravaggio Painting. Outstanding Performance. OMG. No more words.

[MushishiLivi]

Purcell is underrated. The raw emotion in this is so strong. It takes a lot to bring me to tears, but this piece has no trouble doing so. You can feel absolutely everything the singers feel and it's powerful.

[mundih]

I attended an "opera pub" event last weekend, and after a few beers I had mustered up the courage to request this aria. The artists were kind enough to perform it for me, and I was crying like a baby the whole time.

[Ranggalih]

Perhaps the best rendition of the opera I've ever seen. This scene in particular is beauty at its peak. Malena Ernman's technique is very appropriate, her mordents, her dynamics, ... and I would like to point out a moment specifically during the second climax of "remember me, but ah! forget my fate..."; which in the first climax was executed with strength, but as Dido weakens - the second one sounded more softer, delicate, yet 'tearing' in which it perfectly reflects Dido's lamentation. And could we have a moment to applaud on how well the production team was? Each frame of this particular scene resembles a painting in which its quality is equivalent to those hanged in the Louvre... Truly, a beautiful masterpiece by Purcell executed well in this particular production....

[jasonkim]

This is PERFECTION. Dido has been consistently well sung by countless sopranos and mezzos, but it has never been THIS PERFECTLY SUNG AND PERFECTLY ACTED. A true lyric wonder we are witnessing here.

[leporello]

I am stunned. This is not only the most credible death scene I witnessed in four decades, but overwhelmingly plausibly bound to the music and words. Could opera get any more meaningful? A giant "thank you" to Malena Ernman and the director! If I shall ever need to show someone what opera is all about and what it can achieve in its best moments, I will show them this eternally beautiful snippet.

[vazioli]

The settings, figures, shapes, colors, shadows and light remind of Rembrandt's paintings! Beautiful!

[gabrielesaudelli]

A vision like Caravaggio. Colors, lights... And the music of the stars.

[londonlass]

My cousin had this sung at his funeral it was heart rending. Such a sad song and he died too young. This is beautifully sung.

[destroybot]

3 things. This is undoubtedly one of the greatest vocal performances I've ever seen. This is also one of the greatest stage acting performances I've ever seen. Also, I didn't know that I could shoot tears for distance, but apparently I can.

[kpvdnber]

Wow. Just wow. The poison makes it so much more intimate and compelling, in many ways better than the original. And this must be the greatest piece of acting I've ever seen in opera. Beautiful.

[cmelodynick]

Remember Purcell. A life sadly cut short. What could he have written if he had lived longer. Remember Henry Purcell.

[emilegrou]

One of the saddest, if not the saddest, song in the classical repertoire in my opinion!

[dmitryk]

Recitative
Thy hand, Belinda, darkness shades me,
On thy bosom let me rest,
More I would, but Death invades me;
Death is now a welcome guest.

Aria
When I am laid, am laid in earth, May my wrongs create
No trouble, no trouble in thy breast;
Remember me, but ah! forget my fate,
Remember me, remember me, but ah! forget my fate.

[stairfall]

This is one of the only versions I can find where the singer doesn’t overuse vibrato during the final phrase. The ‘slipping away’ deaths are always more convincing than dramatic deaths for me...

[AndromedaCripps]

This is absolutely the best version of this aria you can find on YouTube. Emotionally, musically, and authentically, this performance is spot on and beyond exemplary. It's simply phenomenal and I get chills every time I watch it. Thanks so much for sharing this amazing music with us all.

[musicabilbao]

This is ART. Amazing music and performances by the artists. Malena gives such a moving performance (and impecable singing) perfectly accompanied by her maids. OMG it is like she is really dying! I can't stop crying every time! This version by William Christie with Les Arts Florissants is simply astonishing. The orchestra, choir, singers, but also the light, the scenography, the wardrobe... it is all fantastic. The music by Purcell is simply sublime.