Saint-Saëns’ setting of the biblical story of Samson, a hero equipped with superhuman powers, and his seduction by the Philistine Dalila is considered his magnum opus for the musical stage. It stands alongside Gounod’s “Faust” and Bizet’s “Carmen” among the most popular operas in the French repertoire.

Lust, hate, frailty and religious war are the ingredients of the plot. Among other things, the sensual music includes Dalila’s famous arias “Mon coeur s’ouvre à ta voix” and “Printemps qui commence”. The Bärenreiter vocal score, newly engraved with a clear presentation, contains Richard Pohl’s authentic singable translation of the libretto used at the Weimar premiere in 1877.