鈥淥h! How can I find her 鈥� the Ophelia, the Juliet for whom my heart cries! To intoxicate myself with the anguish and joy that is true love!鈥� L茅lio is a lover, a dreamer - and a composer. And if you think his name sounds a bit like Berlioz: well, we don鈥檛 want to give too much away about 'L茅lio or The Return to Life' 鈥� the extraordinary autobiographical musical drama that Berlioz composed in 1831 at the height of an unrequited love affair. But it鈥檚 utterly unique: a delirious odyssey through the Romantic imagination, told in some of Berlioz鈥檚 most flamboyantly original music. Conductor Pascal Roph茅 brings all his sense of theatre to this rare full performance which also features actor Samuel West. 鈥楲elio鈥� is proceeded by the composer鈥檚 Walter Scott-inspired 'Waverley' overture, and Karen Cargill in the sensuous and dramatic solo cantata, 'The Death of Cleopatra'.

This concert is part of 鈥楤erlioz - The Ultimate Romantic鈥�, a celebratory weekend of live and specially recorded concerts showcasing the 大象传媒 Orchestras and Choirs, as well as the Ulster Orchestra, marking the anniversary of the remarkable composer, writer, and master-orchestrator Hector Berlioz, who died on 8 March 1869.