Instigated over twenty years ago, the Diapason d’or of the year, one of France’s most prestigious music accolades, is awarded each year to the best classical music CDs and DVDs. Laureates are chosen by a jury of critics from Diapason magazine who team up with producers from the French public radio station France Musique. Founded in 1952, Diapason magazine is an internationally-distributed monthly publication and a worldwide reference on recording information and reviews.
Recorded at the Maison symphonique de Montréal and pressed onto disc in its historic premiere in March, 2015, L’Aiglon also signaled the renewal of the OSM’s partnership with the prestigious Decca label. Numbering eleven principal cast members, the album notably features the Belgian soprano Anne-Catherine Gillet in the role of L’Aiglon/The Duke of Reichstadt, Quebec baritone Étienne Dupuis as Metternich, and French baritone Marc Barrard as the Duke’s devoted valet, Séraphin Flambeau. Other cast members include Philippe Sly, Pascal Charbonneau, Isaiah Bell, Tyler Duncan, Jean-Michel Richer, Hélène Guilmette, Marie-Nicole Lemieux, Julie Bouliane, and Kimy McLaren.
