FREDERICO DE FREITAS (1902-1980): Medieval Suite, The Silly Girl's Dance, The Wall of Love, Ribatejo.

Description: Collectors who own the rather elderly Portugalsom disc of part of this colorful and folk-inspired music played by an obscure Romanian orchestra, will rejoice in this new, first-rate replacement for the suite and the Silly Girl's Dance. The latter is a 1941 ballet of 22 minutes composed in nationalistic style while the six-movement, 25-minute 1958 suite, inspired by medieval Portuguese poetry uses pre-Classical, almost modal harmonies to help convey the impression of antiquity. A shorter ballet, The Wall of Love (13 min.) comes from 1940 while the eight-minute symphonic poem Ribatejo (featuring rhythms and dances from that geographical region northeast of Lisbon), like the Medieval Suite have also been choreographed although not originally intended for the dance stage. Royal Scottish National Orchestra; Álvaro Cassuto.