Dornröschen-Ballett

Released by Decca in the late 1950s as a high-fidelity showcase, this recording of Tchaikovsky’s Sleeping Beauty ballet represents a significant collaboration between the Swiss conductor Ernest Ansermet and his hand-picked ensemble, L'Orchestre de la Suisse Romande. Ansermet was celebrated for his analytical precision and his refusal to over-sentimentalize the Romantic repertoire, an approach that earned him a reputation for producing recordings with exceptional clarity and structural balance during the early stereophonic era.

The production utilized Decca’s renowned 'Full Frequency Stereophonic Sound' (FFSS) techniques, which were designed to capture the acoustic depth of a symphony orchestra with unprecedented spatial realism. The engineering team, often working in Victoria Hall in Geneva, sought to maintain the transparency of the inner instrumental voices against the lush, sweeping melodic lines of Tchaikovsky's score. Upon release, the set was praised by contemporary critics for its technical brilliance and the conductor's ability to maintain rhythmic vitality through the demanding narrative arcs of the ballet.