Who is Sylvia?

Sylvia:  nymph of the woods.  In Leo Delibes' ballet she is a huntress, having vowed her virginity to the service of Diana, the virgin goddess.  She mocks Eros, he zaps her with an arrow, she falls head over heels in love with the shepherd Aminta, and then she gets kidnapped by the dark hunter Orion.  And all that is just in Act I!

Well, of course it's a classical ballet so it all comes out right in the end.  The music is another story: overshadowed for years by the more popular and more often staged Coppelia by the same composer, a true masterpiece of comedy in music and dance.  It's often said that, by comparison, Sylvia is relatively weak and watered down.

But tell that to Tchaikovsky.  After seeing Sylvia performed in Vienna in 1872, the year after its world premiere in Paris, Tchaikovsky said that if he knew one could write ballet music like this, he never would have composed Swan Lake!  I agree with his assessment of Sylvia's quality (although not with the rocket he fired at his own work).

This is a true symphonic ballet, as effective musically as it is on stage.  The music includes wonderful writing for horns in a number of places, a delightful Dance of Ethiopians in Act II that follows the lead of Berlioz' Nubian Slave Dance in Les Troyens but does so with utter originality, and a very dramatic final scene and closing tableau at the end of Act III.  Every second of this score is worth hearing!

Sadly, it has not received many complete recordings.  In LP days, there was a beautiful version on Mercury records with (I believe) Anatole Fistoulari conducting.  Later on, Jean-Baptiste Mari led a really fine complete version with the Paris Opera Orchestra.  On CD, both of these were (I think) briefly reissued.  And the ever-reliable Naxos coupled their version with an even rarer bird, the Ballet Music from Henry VIII by Camille Saint-Saens.  Any of these recordings will give you the measure of this wonderful composition.

Even better, if you are a ballet fan, is the Opus Arte video of the 2005 Royal Ballet production from the Royal Opera House in London.  Starring the formidable team of Darcey Bussell and Roberto Bolle, this version features Sir Frederick Ashton's memorable choreography amid lush settings.  I defy you not to laugh at his version of the Pas des ethiopiens!  Almost as significant is the commentary before Act III which describes how the choreography (originally done in the 1950s) was lost for many years, and had to be painstakingly reconstructed from some notes and an old soundless black and white film.

All I can say is: thank goodness they put in the effort!  And for the performance, the marvellous camera and sound work, and the ineffable musical genius of Leo Delibes above all, "let the Lord be thankit."

PS  Check the time on the video and see just how long Martin Harvey as Eros can stand still!