despite pleadings from the high priest. Suddenly Judith is heard outside the gates, and she shows them the head of Holofernes. The sounds of the fleeing Assyrian troops are confirmed by Ozias' report. All sing praise to God for answering their prayers. Principal arias and numbers Introduction (or Overture) Judith's Monologue (Act II) Holofernes' March (Entr'acte before Act III) Dances (Act III) Bacchic Dance of the Odalisques and Dance of the Two Almahs (Act IV) Indian Song (Act IV) Influences Despite completely lacking in "Russian" subject matter as well as being not the first opera based on the story of Judith, Serov's setting has great significance for the history of Russian music. Besides its success with the public (enhanced by Fyodor Chaliapin's portrayal of Holofernes beginning in 1898), Serov's Judith influenced later Russian composers, including: Tchaikovsky – The Maid of Orleans Mussorgsky – the unfinished Salammbô Borodin – Prince Igor Rubinstein – his biblical operas The Eastern element in Judith is most obvious in Acts III and IV; its influence (presaged by Glinka in Ruslan and Lyudmila) can be detected by comparing the Indian Song from Act IV with the "Song of the Indian Guest" from Rimsky-Korsakov's Sadko. Recordings 1991, Andrey Chistyakov (conductor), Bolshoy Theatre Orchestra, Russian Academic Choir of the USSR, Irina Udalova (Judith), Yelena Zaremba (Avra),Mikhail Krutikov (aka Svetlov) (Holofernes), Nikolay Vasilyev (Bagoas), Anatoly Babïkhin (Ozias), Vladimir Kudryachov (Achior), Stanislav Suleimanov (Asfaneses), Pyotr Gluboky (Eliachim), Maksim Mikhaylov (Charmis), Irina Zhurina and Marina Shutova (odalisques), Lev Kuznetsov (Hindu Song). Reissued Brilliant Classics 2011. See also Rogneda (1865) The Power of the Fiend (1871) References Bernandt, G.B. Словарь опер впервые поставленных или изданных в дореволюционной России и в СССР, 1736–1959 [Dictionary of Operas First Performed or Published in Pre-Revolutionary Russia and in the USSR, 1836–1959] (Москва: Советский композитор, 1962), p. 357. Kandinsky, Alexey. [CD notes for recording of Judith, on the label Chant du monde, LDC 288 035/036] Serov, Alexander. Юдифь: опера в пяти действиях. Арранжированная для пения с фортепианом А. Евгениевым и Г. Дютшем. [Judith: opera in five acts. Arranged for voice and piano by A. Yevgeniev and G. Diutsh.] Москва: А. Гутхеиль, 1885. Taruskin, Richard. Opera and Drama in Russia As Preached and Practiced in the 1860s. New ed. Rochester: University of Rochester Press, 1993. ___. "Serov, Alexander Nikolayevich," Grove Music Online (Accessed 10 January 2006), <http://www.grovemusic.com> ___. "Yudif’," Grove Music Online (Accessed 10 January 2006), <http://www.grovemusic.com> External