Reviewed by Dave Massey

Honegger wrote the music for this musical play at short notice, but despite this the result is a powerful and evocative score that could have graced one of the big political film epics with it's sweeping eastern rhythms and bare chords painting a wonderful picture of David's Israel. The music is by turns lyrical and moving and raucous and disturbing - especially in the first part where Saul's creeping madness provides an excellent tension that is woven expertly into the har­monies. Most of the lyrics were taken by the Swiss playwright Rene Morax from the Psalms, interspersed by narration threading the story together into a coher­ent whole but too much intensity from Stephen Audel gives the whole thing a kind of 'ham' quality reducing the whole thing to the level of a soap ... perhaps Eldo­rado is not so appalling after all? (No, Eldorado is def­initely appalling. Ed.). I have no complaints about the excellent work from La Suisse Romande and their con­ductor Ernest Ansermet but soprano Suzanne Danco is a bit too plummy for my liking. Unlike a great many modern pieces though, Le Roi David is quite listenable to - it was, after all, written for Joe Public to be able to relate to and as such, no doubt, a great many musical snobs have pooh-poohed it over the years preferring to sit and listen to their cryptic musical crosswords. A great composer emerges from the woodwork here for a few moments of lucid and understandable music before returning once more into the unapproachable holy of holies. Worth getting, I'd say

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

Interested in reviewing music? Find out more here.