When Dame Felicity Lott performed Poulenc's little monodrama with the RSNO back in 1996, it was preceded by Mozart. Here the first half of the evening consisted of two works by French masters showing a certain influence of the sea - Ravel's Une barque sur l'océan being followed by Debussy's La mer. The latter, in perticular, with its stormy climax, may have seemed oddly placed before interval - it is nearly always programmed to end a concert - but the experiment was worth a try.
Stéphane Denève was always at his impressive best in French repertoire, while Poulenc and Flott were always a dream combination. La voix humaine seems to have held a particular attraction for sopranos nearing the end of their long and dazzling career.
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