Dornröschen

Dornröschen, or Sleeping Beauty, is a romantic opera composed by Carl Reinecke in 1876. While Reinecke is best known for his piano works and his long tenure as the director of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, his operatic output remains a fascinating, lesser-known segment of his oeuvre. This 2013 recording by the label cpo seeks to revitalize interest in the work, presenting the fairy tale through the lens of late-Romantic musical sensibilities that favor lyrical intimacy over the grand spectacle of the era’s dominant operatic figures.

The production features a dedicated ensemble including soprano Catalina Bertucci and mezzo-soprano Gerhild Romberger, aiming to restore the nuanced vocal lines and folk-inflected harmonies central to Reinecke’s vision. The recording was released as part of cpo's ongoing commitment to documenting neglected German Romantic repertoire. Critics have generally received the release as an essential reference for listeners interested in the aesthetic transition between Schumann and the late-Romantic period, praising the clarity of the recording and the earnestness of the performances.