Ouvre Ton Coeur (A Minor; original key): High Voice, Orchestra Accompaniment, CS

Ouvre ton cœur (Open your heart) dates from 1859, as George Bizet (1838-1875) was still attending the Paris Conservatory. Its Spanish flair anticipates the musical style he would later put to use in the opera Carmen. A bolero rhythm drives the passionate energy of the poem by Louis Delâtre, in which the singer implores their beloved to return their love "as a flower turns to the sun". The song demonstrates Bizet's early mastery of the harmonic color, delicate phrasing, and melodic invention for which he is so greatly admired today. Versions in the original key of A minor, and also transposed to G minor and B minor are also available from the publisher. Instrumentation: 2.2.2.2: 4.2.3.0: Perc(1): Str (9-8-7-6-5 in Set): Solo Soprano. Piano-conductor/condensed score.