Rossini, Respighi: La boutique fantasque

Diaghilev met Ottorino Respighi while touring in Rome with his Ballets russes, and both agreed to set up a ballet that would become La boutique fantasque (The Magic Toyshop). The music is mostly made of arrangements of Rossini’s witty Péchés de vieillesse, and the charming libretto by André Derain relates a love story between automated dolls. This lovely ballet was premiered by the Ballets russes in 1919, and the performance we release this week was conducted by Sir Eugene Goossens.