ANDRÉ CAPLET (1878-1925): Le Miroir de Jésus for Soprano, Girls' Choir, Harp, String Quartet and Double Bass.

Description: Probably Caplet's greatest work, this oratorio (1923) and sets 15 short poems on the mysteries of Christ's life, death and resurrection. Using only strings and a harp, Caplet manages an astounding variety of expressiveness through a variety of means including harmonics, pizzicati, unusual harp techniques, singing, chanting, rhythmic declamation and sprechgesang for the soprano. Divided into three sections (Joy, Suffering and Glory), Caplet infuses the music with his fervent religious belief and produces a work with a rich variety of color and expressiveness. NOTE: This version, unlike previous ones, uses the performance forces which Caplet used at its premiere - string quartet and double bass rather than orchestra. French-German texts. Esther Choi (mezzo), Teresa Zimmermann (harp), Mädchenchor Hannover, "il gioco col suono"; Gudrun Schröfel.