Massenet: Thaïs Erin Wall, Joshua Hopkins, Andrew Staples, Toronto Symphony Orchestra & Sir Andrew Davis

• Jules Massenet (1842 - 1912): Thaïs, Act I Scene 1:
• 1 Thaïs, Act I Scene 1: Prélude 02:15
• 2 Thaïs, Act I Scene 1: Voici le pain 03:41
• 3 Thaïs, Act I Scene 1: Non. Mon cœur est plein d'amertume 01:02
• 4 Thaïs, Act I Scene 1: Hélas! Enfant encore 02:05
• 5 Thaïs, Act I Scene 1: Ne nous mêlons jamais, mon fils 03:28
• 6 Thaïs, Act I Scene 1: Vision 02:43
• 7 Thaïs, Act I Scene 1: Toi qui mis la pitié dans nos âmes 03:51
• 8 Thaïs, Act I Scene 1: Esprit de lumière et de grâce 01:59
• Thaïs, Act I Scene 2:
• 9 Thaïs, Act I Scene 2: Prélude 01:38
• 10 Thaïs, Act I Scene 2: Va, mendiant, chercher ailleurs ta vie! 01:00
• 11 Thaïs, Act I Scene 2: Voilà donc la terrible cité! 03:25
• 12 Thaïs, Act I Scene 2: Athanaël! C'est toi! Mon condisciple 03:57
• 13 Thaïs, Act I Scene 2: Ah! Je vais donc te revoir brillant comme autrefois! 05:03
• 14 Thaïs, Act I Scene 2: Thaïs! Sœur des Karites! 01:34
• 15 Thaïs, Act I Scene 2: C'est Thaïs, l'idole fragile 04:45
• 16 Thaïs, Act I Scene 2: Qui te fait si sévère 04:32
• Thaïs, Act II Scene 1:
• 17 Thaïs, Act II Scene 1: Ah! Je suis seule, seule, enfin! 02:05
• 18 Thaïs, Act II Scene 1: Ô mon miroir fidèle, rassure-moi? 05:06
• 19 Thaïs, Act II Scene 1: Étranger, te voilà, comme tu l'avais dit! 03:58
• 20 Thaïs, Act II Scene 1: Qui m'inspirera des discours embrasés 01:49
• 21 Thaïs, Act II Scene 1: Vénus invisible et présente! 00:59
• 22 Thaïs, Act II Scene 1: Je suis Athanaël, moine d'Antinoé! 00:33
• 23 Thaïs, Act II Scene 1: Pitié! Ne me fais pas de mal! 01:55
• 24 Thaïs, Act II Scene 1: Thaïs, idole fragile 03:27
• 25 Thaïs, Act II Scene 1: Méditation 05:36
• Thaïs, Act II Scene 2:
• 26 Thaïs, Act II Scene 2: Prélude 01:10
• 27 Thaïs, Act II Scene 2: Père, Dieu m'a parlé par ta voix! 00:56
• 28 Thaïs, Act II Scene 2: Non loin d'ici, vers l'occident 03:10
• 29 Thaïs, Act II Scene 2: L'amour est une vertu rare 03:35
• 30 Thaïs, Act II Scene 2: Suivez-moi tous, amis! 01:20
• 31 Thaïs, Act II Scene 2: Celle qui vient est plus belle 03:44
• 32 Thaïs, Act II Scene 2: Ah! C'est lui! Athanaël! 01:06
• 33 Thaïs, Act II Scene 2: Jamais! Non! 02:36
• Thaïs, Act III Scene 1:
• 34 Thaïs, Act III Scene 1: Prélude 02:40
• 35 Thaïs, Act III Scene 1: L'ardent soleil m'écrase 01:20
• 36 Thaïs, Act III Scene 1: Seul, le repentir nous épure 03:34
• 37 Thaïs, Act III Scene 1: Ô messager de Dieu 02:38
• 38 Thaïs, Act III Scene 1: Baigne d'eau mes mains et mes lèvres 02:34
• 39 Thaïs, Act III Scene 1: Pater noster, qui es in coelis 00:59
• 40 Thaïs, Act III Scene 1: La paix du Seigneur soit avec toi 03:05
• Thaïs, Act III Scene 2:
• 41 Thaïs, Act III Scene 2: Elle va lentement parmi les fille blanches 02:00
• 42 Thaïs, Act III Scene 2: Que le ciel est pesant! 03:06
• 43 Thaïs, Act III Scene 2: Tu sais, ô Palémon, que j'ai reconquis l'âme 01:37
• 44 Thaïs, Act III Scene 2: Ne t'avais-je pas dit 01:58
• 45 Thaïs, Act III Scene 2: Qui te fait si sévère 01:39
• 46 Thaïs, Act III Scene 2: Vision 00:41
• 47 Thaïs, Act III Scene 2: Thaïs va mourir! 00:58
• 48 Thaïs, Act III Scene 2: La course de la nuit 03:59
• Thaïs, Act III Scene 3:
• 49 Thaïs, Act III Scene 3: Seigneur, ayez pitié de moi selon votre mansuétude! 02:09
• 50 Thaïs, Act III Scene 3: Sois le bienvenu dans nos tabernacles 01:56
• 51 Thaïs, Act III Scene 3: Te souvient-il du lumineux voyage 04:46
• Total Runtime 02:11:42

Info for Massenet: Thaïs

Following acclaimed performances at the Edinburgh Festival and then in Melbourne, Sir Andrew Davis’s recording of Massenet’s opera Thaïs features an outstanding cast, and exceptional performances from his Toronto forces. Written shortly after the premiere of his masterpiece Werther, Thaïs was composed for the Californian soprano Sybil Sanderson who gave the premiere at the Paris Opéra In 1894. Sanderson's performance was a triumph, but the opera itself had a mixed reception. After Massenet revised it in 1898 it went on to worldwide success in the years leading up to World War I and has enjoyed continuous and growing success in our own time. The role of Thaïs has drawn many great artists, including Mary Garden, Geraldine Farrar, Maria Jeritza, Leontyne Price, Beverley Sills, and Renée Fleming. According to the Financial Times, ‘Erin Wall is the Thaïs of one’s dreams, wielding a soprano of radiance, pristine beauty and tingling top notes”, and she is joined on the recording by Joshua Hopkins in the role of Athanaël, while Nicias is sung by Andrew Staples.

Erin Wall, soprano (Thaïs)
Liv Redpath, soprano (Crobyle)
Andrea Ludwig, mezzo-soprano (Myrtale)
Joshua Hopkins, baritone (Athanaël)
Andrew Staples, tenor (Nicias)
Nathan Berg, bass-baritone (Palémon)
Neil Aronoff, baritone (Un serviteur)
Toronto Mendelssohn Choir
Toronto Symphony Orchestra
Sir Andrew Davis, conductor

Erin Wall
Acclaimed for her musicality and versatility, Erin Wall sings an extensive opera and concert repertoire spanning three centuries, from Mozart and Beethoven to Britten and Strauss. She has sung leading roles in many of the world’s great opera houses, including the Metropolitan Opera, La Scala, the Vienna Staatsoper, Opéra National de Paris, and Lyric Opera of Chicago, and appears in concert with leading maestri and symphony orchestras worldwide.

Erin Wall’s current season includes two exciting role debuts: Elettra in Idomeneo for her return to the Lyric Opera of Chicago and later Chrysothemis in Elektra at the Canadian Opera Company. She will also sing Marguerite in Faust with the Washington National Opera and the Countess in Le Nozze di Figaro in concert with the National Arts Centre. Notable concert appearances will include the Four Last Songs with the Chicago Symphony and Edward Gardner, Mahler’s Symphony No. 8 with the Wiener Philharmoniker and Franz Welser-Möst, Britten’s War Requiem with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra and Peter Oundjian at the BBC Proms and a European tour with the National Arts Centre Orchestra in which Ms. Wall will be featured in Claude Vivier’s Lonely Child and Zosha di Castri’s Dear Life. Erin Wall will also perform Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with the Vancouver Symphony and with the World Orchestra for Peace in Künzelsau. In recital, Erin Wall will partner with Carolyn Maule for an appearance at the Prince Edward County Chamber Music Festival.

Future seasons include returns to the Metropolitan Opera, the Edinburgh Festival, the Toronto Symphony, the Bergen Philharmonic and a debut with the Liceu.

Ms. Wall’s 2017-2018 season included performances in the title role of Arabella with the Canadian Opera Company and Ellen Orford in Peter Grimes with the Vancouver Symphony. In concert she sang Brahms’s A German Requiem with the Toronto Symphony, Zosha di Castri’s Dear Life with the National Arts Centre on tour in Calgary and Vancouver, Afghanistan: Requiem for a Generation and Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 2 with the Calgary Philharmonic, Verdi’s Requiem with the Atlanta Symphony, Mahler’s Symphony No. 8 with the Rotterdam Philharmonic, Strauss’s Four Last Songs with the Liceu Orchestra on tour in Geneva, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, and Montréal Symphony, and Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 with the Vancouver Symphony.

Operatic highlights from Ms. Wall’s 2016-2017 season include performances of Donna Anna in Don Giovanni for her company debut with San Francisco Opera, Anna Sørensen in Silent Night with Michigan Opera Theatre and her role debut as Desdemona in Otello with Vancouver Opera. On the concert stage, Ms. Wall was heard in Mahler’s Symphony No. 8 with the NHK Symphony Orchestra (P. Järvi), the title role in Vanessa with the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin (Zinman), Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 with the Royal Flemish Philharmonic (de Waart), Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with the San Diego Symphony (de Waart) and Colorado Symphony (D. Wolfe), Strauss’s Four Last Songs with the BBC Scottish Symphony (T. Dausgaard), at the Edinburgh International Festival in two leading roles, and in the title role in Thaïs with the Melbourne Symphony (Davis).

Ms. Wall’s 2015-2016 season began with the world premiere of Zosha di Castri’s Dear Life along with a performance of Mahler’s Symphony No. 4 at the National Arts Centre (with music director Alexander Shelley) in Ottawa, Canada. Later in the season she sang Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 with the NHK Symphony Orchestra (P. Järvi) and Symphony No. 8 with the Philadelphia Orchestra (Nézet-Séguin). Other concert appearances included Vaughan Williams’s A Sea Symphony (Oundjian) and Handel’s Messiah with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra (Davis), Strauss’s Four Last Songs with the Niagara Symphony Orchestra (Thachuk) and the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra (Stare), Carmina Burana with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (Dutoit), and Bruckner’s Te Deum with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (Muti). Ms. Wall’s operatic appearances included performances of the Countess in Le Nozze di Figaro with the Canadian Opera Company and the title role in Barber’s Vanessa at the Santa Fe Opera. She also appeared in recital with the George London Foundation at New York City’s Morgan Library.

Ms. Wall’s 2014-2015 season included several performances of her signature role, Donna Anna in Don Giovanni, which she reprised at the Bayerische Staatsoper (Carydis) and debuted at Seattle Opera (Wedow). She also made her Lyric Opera Kansas City debut as Anna Sørensen in Kevin Puts’ Pulitzer-winning opera Silent Night. She sang Clémence in Kaija Saariaho’s L’Amour de Loin in concert performances in Trondheim, Norway, and in a new Robert LePage production with L’Opéra de Québec. She debuted with the Tonhalle Zurich (Dutoit), the Bayerische Rundfunk (Jansons), Royal Liverpool Philharmonic (Davis), Singapore Symphony (Shui) and the Tokyo Symphony (Nott). Her extensive concert schedule saw her return to the London Symphony (Haitink), Tanglewood/BSO (Nelsons), Philadelphia (Halls) Melbourne Symphony (Davis), Calgary Philharmonic (Minczuk), Toronto Symphony (Oundjian), Royal Scottish National Orchestra (Davis), Nashville Symphony (Guerrero), and the Grant Park Music Festival (Kalmar).

Other recent season highlights include the title role in Arabella and Helena in A Midsummer Night's Dream, both at the Metropolitan Opera, and Elgar's oratorio The Kingdom at the BBC First Night of the Proms at Royal Albert Hall. Ms Wall's recording of Strauss' Vier Letzte Lieder with the Melbourne Symphony and Sir Andrew Davis was released in 2014 to tremendous acclaim, and was followed by tour performances with the MSO in the Concergebouw and at the Edinburgh Festival. She also performed Vier Letzte Lieder with the CBSO, conducted by Andris Nelsons. Other recent notable debuts included the Wiener Philharmoniker and Christian Thielemann, Clémence in L’amour de loin with the Canadian Opera Company and L'Opéra du Québec, the title role in Thaïs at the Edinburgh Festival, and the title role in Arabella at Santa Fe Opera. Ms. Wall sang her first Verdi Requiems (Robertson/Runnicles), Beethoven's Missa Solemnis and 9th Symphony with Haitink conducting, and toured Europe singing Britten's War Requiem with the City of Birmingham Symphony and Andris Nelsons conducting. In recent seasons, Ms. Wall has sung the 2nd, 4th, and 8th symphonies of Mahler on 5 continents in over 25 performances.

Mahler's 8th Symphony has figured prominently in Ms. Wall's concert career, and her discography includes the 2010 GRAMMY® award-winning recording of this work for Best Classical Album, released by the San Francisco Symphony in 2009 and conducted by Michael Tilson Thomas, and the Deutsche Grammophon recording released in 2007 conducted by Pierre Boulez. Other recordings include the San Francisco Symphony's recording of Beethoven's 9th Symphony with Michael Tilson Thomas; Virgin Classics DVD of Mozart's Così fan tutte recorded live at the Aix-en-Provence festival in 2005, directed by Patrice Chéreau and conducted by Daniel Harding; Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal with Kent Nagano conducting Beethoven's 9th Symphony for the grand opening of La Maison Symphonique at Place des Arts, available on Sony Classical/Analekta; and the recently released ArtHaus DVD of Britten’s War Requiem, filmed and recorded live at the 50th anniversary performance of the work’s premiere, with the City Of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra conducted by Andris Nelsons. Most recent releases include Handel's Messiah with the Sir Andrew Davis and the Toronto Symphony, and Dvorak's Stabat Mater with Mariss Jansons and the Bayerische Rundfunksorchester.

Ms. Wall began her professional career in 2001 as a member of the Ryan Opera Center at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, and has since appeared with Lyric Opera as Marguerite in Faust, Donna Anna in Don Giovanni, Pamina in Die Zauberflöte, Fiordiligi in Così fan tutte, Helena in A Midsummer Night's Dream, Konstanze in Die Entführung auf dem Serail and Antonia in Les Contes d'Hoffmann. In recent seasons, Ms. Wall has debuted in leading roles at the Metropolitan Opera, La Scala, the Vienna Staatsoper, L'opéra National de Paris, the Bayerische Staatsoper, Theâtre du Châtelet, Theater an der Wien, Den Norske Oper, the Aix-en-Provence Festival, Teatro Municipal in Santiago de Chile, Washington National Opera, Los Angeles Opera, Santa Fe Opera, Seattle Opera, Lyric Opera of Kansas City, Vancouver Opera, Calgary Opera, Pacific Opera Victoria, Minnesota Opera, Michigan Opera Theater, Arizona Opera, and Atlanta Opera.

Ms. Wall has appeared in concert with the Boston Symphony, Chicago Symphony, San Francisco Symphony (in San Francisco, Luxembourg, Lucerne, and at Carnegie Hall), Philadelphia Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony, Houston Symphony, Dallas Symphony, Nashville Symphony, Colorado Symphony, Florida Orchestra, and Oregon Symphony in the USA. In her native Canada she has sung with the National Arts Center Orchestra, Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, Orchestre Métropolitain, Toronto Symphony, Canadian Opera Company Orchestra, Vancouver Symphony, Calgary Philharmonic, and Edmonton Symphony. Overseas she has sung with the Staatskapelle Berlin, the London Symphony Orchestra, the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, l'Orchestre de Paris, Hessische Rundfunk, Tonhalle Orchestra, Trondheim Symphonie, the Residentie Orkest and Limburgs Symfonie Orkest (Netherlands); the NHK Philharmonic, Tokyo Symphony, and New Japan Philharmonic (Tokyo); the Sydney and Melbourne Symphonies in Australia; and the Orquestra Sinfonica Brasileira in Rio de Janeiro. In addition she appears regularly at summer music festivals including Ravinia (Chicago), Grant Park (Chicago), Tanglewood (Massachusetts), Lanaudière (Montréal), Mostly Mozart (New York City), and Campos do Jordao (Brazil).

Ms. Wall is very grateful to have received awards and scholarship assistance from the Richard Tucker Foundation, the George London Foundation, the Marilyn Horne Foundation, the Florida Opera and Dallas Opera, and the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions. She studied at Western Washington University, Rice University, Aspen Music Festival, and Music Academy of the West.

Toronto Symphony Orchestra (TSO)
One of Canada’s most respected arts organizations, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra (TSO) plays a vital role in the city’s dynamic cultural life. Committed to serving local and national communities through vibrant performances and expansive educational activities, the TSO offers a wide range of programming that resonates with people of all ages and backgrounds. With a notable recording and broadcast history complementing international touring engagements, the TSO is a unique musical ambassador for Canada around the world.

The TSO continues its long-established history of connecting younger generations with orchestral music. Two core programs include School Concerts, performed for over 40,000 students annually, and the Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra (TSYO), which, in a tuition-free model, offers high-level orchestral training for talented young musicians aged 22 and under. Additionally, the TSO supports the development of next-generation artists through its annual open call for Canadian orchestral scores, and its essential Resident Conductor and Affiliate Composer positions.

Sir Andrew Davis serves as TSO Interim Artistic Director for the 2019/20 season, prior to the arrival of incoming Music Director Gustavo Gimeno in 2020/21. Sir Andrew Davis is well known to Toronto audiences, having a 44-year relationship with the TSO and returning to the TSO stage regularly.

The TSO was founded in 1922 by a group of Toronto musicians and gave its first performance at the historic Massey Hall. Since 1982, Toronto’s iconic Roy Thomson Hall has been the TSO’s home, drawing patrons from around the world. Soon to celebrate its centenary, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra’s name remains synonymous with musical versatility and growth, and artistic distinction.

Sir Andrew Davis
has served as music director and principal conductor of the Lyric Opera of Chicago since 2000. He began his tenure as chief conductor of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra in January 2013. Through his prolific recordings, many international tours, and relationships with the world’s finest orchestras and opera companies, Sir Andrew is one of today’s most recognized and acclaimed conductors.

In the 2019/20 season, Maestro Davis conducts three full cycles of Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen at the Lyric Opera, in a new production by David Pountney. Also at the Lyric Opera, he conducts Rossini’s Il barbiere di Siviglia and Tchaikovsky’s Pique dame. In addition to his regular performances with the Melbourne and Toronto Symphony Orchestras, the BBC Symphony, and the BBC Philharmonic, this season Maestro Davis also conducts the National Symphony Orchestra in his own arrangement of Handel’s Messiah, and conducts the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and Chicago Symphony Orchestra.

Maestro Davis’s career spans over 40 years, in which he has been the artistic leader at several of the world’s most distinguished operatic and symphonic institutions, including the BBC Symphony Orchestra (conductor laureate and chief conductor from 1991–2004), Glyndebourne Festival Opera (music director 1988–2000), and the Toronto Symphony Orchestra (Conductor Laureate and Principal Conductor from 1975–1988), where he is also serving as Interim Artistic Director for two seasons from 2018–2020. He also holds the honorary title of conductor emeritus from the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. Sir Andrew has led performances at many of the world’s leading opera houses, including the Metropolitan Opera, Teatro alla Scala, Royal Opera House at Covent Garden, Bayreuth Festival, and the major companies of Munich, Paris, San Francisco, and Santa Fe. In addition, he has appeared with virtually every internationally prominent orchestra, including the Berlin Philharmonic, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Rotterdam Philharmonic, and all the major British orchestras.

A vast and award-winning discography documents Sir Andrew’s artistry, with recent CDs including the works of Berlioz, Elgar, Grainger, Delius, Ives, Holst, Handel (nominated for a GRAMMY® in 2018 for Best Choral Performance), and York Bowen (nominated for a GRAMMY® in 2012 for Best Orchestral Performance). He has been an exclusive artist of Chandos Records since 2009.

In 1992, Maestro Davis was created a Commander of the British Empire, and in 1999 he was designated a Knight Bachelor in the New Year Honours List. In 2012, he was awarded an honorary doctorate by Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois.

Booklet for Massenet: Thaïs