For a number of years now, it has been the tradition of the Gstaad Menuhin Festival to present a concert arrangement of an opera. Emblematic of the Italian bel canto tradition, Bellini's I Puritani  is sure to be a highlight of the 2021 edition. Conducted by Domingo Hindoyan, the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande is joined by a first-rate cast, placing the music at the centre of the production; an opportunity to go delve deeper into the work beyond the great arias made famous by Maria Callas and Joan Sutherland.

I Puritani was premiered in Paris at the start of 1835, just a few months after Bellini's 33rd birthday. The opera pays great attention to the details of the orchestration - much more so than its predecessors - and requires literally "supersonic" soloists, such as Elvira, "the prototype of the romantic heroine struck by madness following an emotional shock" (Alain Perroux) and whose melodies were so apt to guide Frédéric Chopin in his quest for a piano that "sings"...