Description
Ivan IV, a grand opera in five acts, is Bizet’s longest work. Composed in 1864-65, immediately after Les Pêcheurs des perles, it was not performed in Bizet’s lifetime, not even until 1951. When it was rejected by Paris’s opera houses, he became discouraged and moved on to compose La Jolie Fille de Perth (Volume 3 of the series of Bizet’s Other Operas).
Bizet’s manuscript shows that he composed the voice parts through to the end of the opera, but left the orchestration of the last two scenes blank. A new completion by the editor Hugh Macdonald in the style of previous scenes allows the opera to be performed complete, without the cuts and insertions that disfigured the 1951 performances and the only scores published before now. The new edition is based solely on the two original sources, Bizet’s autograph manucript and a contemporary manuscript libretto marked by the composer.
The orchestral score is edited by Hugh Macdonald with full critical apparatus. It is printed on high-quality paper, 22.5 x 31.5 cm, in a stiff paper binding, 718 pages. ISMN 9790900245489
The vocal score, which includes a new piano reduction by Hugh Macdonald, is printed on high-quality paper, A4 size, 297 pages. £30.00 plus shipping. ISMN 9790900245496
Performance material is available on hire.
