The Rape of Lucretia

Album by Benjamin Britten & Angelika Kirchschlager & Ian Bostridge & Susan Gritton & Christopher Purves & Benjamin Russell & Peter Coleman-Wright & Hilary Summers & Claire Booth & Aldeburgh Festival Ensemble & Oliver Knussen

The Rape of Lucretia is a chamber opera by English composer Benjamin Britten, first performed in 1946. Scored for a small chamber ensemble and solo voices, the work combines modal and tonal harmonic language with speech-like recitative, choruses and instrumental colour to create an intimate, psychologically focused drama, and it occupies a key place in Britten's post-war output as an experiment in reduced forces and theatrical intensity.

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Disc 1

  1. 1.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act I, Scene I. "Rome is now ruled by the Etruscan upstart" (Male Chorus)
    2:29
  2. 2.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act I, Scene I. "It is an axiom among kings" (Female Chorus, Male Chorus)
    2:28
  3. 3.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act I, Scene I. "Here the thirsty ev'ning has drunk the wine of light" (Male Chorus)
    2:33
  4. 4.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act I, Scene I. "Who reaches heaven first is the best philosopher" (Collatinus, Male Chorus, Junius, Tarquinius)
    2:23
  5. 5.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act I, Scene I. "Maria was unmasked at a masked ball" (Junius, Tarquinius, Collatinus, Male Chorus)
    4:23
  6. 6.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act I, Scene I. "Collatinus is politically astute" (Male Chorus, Junius, Collatinus, Tarquinius)
    4:14
  7. 7.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act I, Scene I. "Goodnight!....There goes a happy man!" (Collatinus, Tarquinius, Junius)
    3:59
  8. 8.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act I, Scene I. "Tarquinius does not dare" (Male Chorus)
    2:14
  9. 9.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act I, Scene I. "My horse! My horse!" (Tarquinius, Male Chorus)
    2:58
  10. 10.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act I, Scene II. "Their spinning wheel unwinds" (Female Chorus, Lucretia, Bianca, Lucia)
    5:21
  11. 11.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act I, Scene II. "Listen! I heard a knock" (Lucretia, Bianca, Lucia)
    2:46
  12. 12.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act I, Scene II. "Time treads upon the hands of women" (Lucia, Bianca, Female Chorus, Lucretia)
    3:26
  13. 13.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act I, Scene II. "The oatmeal slippers of sleep" (Female Chorus, Male Chorus)
    1:50
  14. 14.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act I, Scene II. "Lucia runs to the door" (Female Chorus, Tarquinius, Male Chorus, Bianca, Lucia, Lucretia)
    5:23

Disc 2

  1. 2.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act II, Scene I. "The prosperity of the Etruscans" (Female Chorus, Male Chorus, Collatinus, Lucia, Junius, Bianca)
    7:29
  2. 3.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act II, Scene I. "She sleeps as a rose" (Female Chorus)
    2:59
  3. 4.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act II, Scene I. "When Tarquinius desires" (Male Chorus)
    2:11
  4. 5.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act II, Scene I. "Within this frail crucible of light" (Tarquinius, Female Chorus)
    4:01
  5. 6.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act II, Scene I. "Lucretia!...What do you want?" (Tarquinius, Lucretia, Male Chorus, Female Chorus)
    5:47
  6. 7.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act II, Scene I. "Interlude: Here in this scene you see virtue" (Female Chorus, Male Chorus)
    3:51
  7. 8.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act II, Scene II. "Oh! What a lovely day!" (Lucia, Bianca)
    5:55
  8. 9.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act II, Scene II. "Good morning my Lady" (Bianca, Lucia, Lucretia)
    3:27
  9. 10.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act II, Scene II. "Flowers bring to every year" (Lucretia, Bianca)
    3:18
  10. 11.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act II, Scene II. "You were right. Tarquinius took one of the horses" (Lucia, Bianca, Collatinus, Junius)
    2:39
  11. 12.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act II, Scene II. "Never again must we two dare to part" (Collatinus, Lucretia)
    4:50
  12. 13.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act II, Scene II. "Last night Tarquinius ravished me" (Lucretia, Collatinus)
    3:28
  13. 14.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act II, Scene II. "This dead hand lets fall" (Collatinus, Junius, Bianca, Lucia, Female Chorus, Male Chorus)
    3:57
  14. 15.
    The Rape of Lucretia, op. 37: Act II, Scene II. "Epilogue: Is it all?" (Female Chorus, Male Chorus)
    5:13

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