Mozart Symphony No. 35 concert. Here's the program:
Mozart concert arias sung by soprano Christine Schäfer:
Misera, dove son? - Ahi! non son io che parlo, K. 369
Ah, lo previdi! - Ah, t'invola, K. 272
Vorrei spiegarvi, oh Dio! K. 418 (Lucas Macias Navarro, oboe)
Mozart Symphony No. 35 ("Haffner")
Beethoven Egmont Incidental Music with soprano Juliane Banse and narrator Bruno Ganz
Claudio Abbado conducts the Lucerne Festival Orchestra in 2011 and 2012 at the Lucerne Summer Festival (KKL Concert Hall). Directed by Michael Beyer; produced by Paul Smaczny. Released 2015, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: B- blended grade for 3 segments.
Read MoreStrauss Vier Letzte Lieder and Eine Alpensinfonie concert. Recorded 2014 at the Dresden Semperoper. Christian Thielemann conducts the Staatskapelle Dresden. Features soprano Anja Harteros. The following three works are presented on this Blu-ray:
Wolfgang Rihm Ernster Gesang (Serious Song)
Strauss Vier Letzte Lieder (Four Last Songs), with an inserted fifth song “Malven” (in a version orchestrated by Wolfgang Rihm in 2013). The combined presentation of five songs is therefore titled Letzte Lieder (Last Songs). Because the title Vier Letzte Lieder is so famous, we call it that way in the Alphalist. Here are the songs, all sung by soprano Anja Harteros:
I. “Fruhling” ("Spring")
II. “Malven” ("Mallows" or Malva . . . the plant genus)
III. “September”
IV. “Beim Schlafengehen” ("When Falling Asleep")
V. “Im Abendrot” ("At Sunset")
Strauss Eine Alpensinfonie
Directed for TV by Michael Beyer. Released 2015, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: C+
Read MoreRRichard Strauss: Renée Fleming In Concert. Christian Thielemann conducts the the Vienna Philharmonic in an all-Strauss program of 5 songs and a tone poem. Recorded 2011 at the Großes Festspielhaus as part of the Salzburg Festival. Here are the works performed:
"Befreit" ("Released") Renée Fleming, soprano
"Winterliebe" ("Winter Love") Fleming
"Traum durch die Dämmerung" ("Dream at Dusk") Fleming
"Gesang der Apollopriesterin" ("Song of the Priestess of Apollo") Fleming
"Mein Elemer!" ("My Elmer" from the opera Arabella) Fleming
Eine Alpensinfonie
Directed for TV by Michael Beyer; produced by James Whitbourn. Released 2012, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: D+ blended overall grade.
Read MoreBritten The Rape of Lucretia opera to libretto by the Ronald Duncan. Directed 2015 by Fiona Shaw at Glyndebourne. Stars Christine Rice (Lucretia), Allan Clayton (Male Chorus), Kate Royal (Female Chorus), Duncan Rock (Tarquinius), Matthew Rose (Collatinus), Michael Sumuel (Junius), Catherine Wyn-Rogers (Bianca), and Louise Alder (Lucia). Leo Hussain conducts the London Philharmonic Orchestra (Leader Pieter Schoeman). Set design by Michael Levine; costume design by Nicky Gillibrand; lighting design by Paul Anderson; film direction by François Roussillon; produced by George Bruell. Released 2016, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
Read MoreShakespeare Othello play. Directed 2015 by Iqbal Khan at Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon. Stars Hugh Quarshie (Othello), Lucian Msamati (Iago), Joanna Vanderham (Desdemona), Jacob Fortune-Lloyd (Cassio), David Ajao (Montano), Nadia Albina (Duke of Venice), Scarlett Brookes (Bianca), James Corrigan (Roderigo), Ayesha Dharker (Emilia) Eva Feiler (Citizen of Venie), Owen Findlay (Gentlemaand n of Cyprus), Guy Hughes (Soldier), Gwilym Lloyd (Gratiano), Rina Mahoney (Citizen of Venice/Messenger), Ken Nwosu (Gentleman of Cyprus), Brian Protheroe (Brabantio), Jay Saighal (Gentleman of Cyprus/Herald), and Tim Samuels (Lodovico). Set and lighting design by Ciaran Bagnall; costume design by Fotini Dimou; music by Akintayo Akinbode; sound by Andrew Franks; movement by Diane Alison-Mitchell; fights by Kevin McCurdy; screen direction by Robin Lough; produced by John Wyver. Released 2016, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio. Grade: NA
Read MoreShakespeare Henry V play. Directed 2015 by Gregory Doran at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon. Stars for the English: Oliver Ford Davies (Chorus), Alex Hassell (King Henry V), Dale Mathurin (Bedford/Bates), Daniel Abbott (Gloucester/Monsieur le Fer), Jim Hooper (Canterbury/Erpingham), Nicholas Gerard-Martin (Bishop of Ely/Orléans), Sean Chapman (Exeter), Andrew Westfield (Westmorland/MacMorris/Court), Christopher Middleton (Warwick/Nym), Keith Osborn (Scroop), Simon Yadoo (Cambridge/Jamy/Michael Williams), Obioma Ugoala (Grey/Gower), Joshua Richards (Bardolph/Fluellen), Anthony Byrne (Pistol), Sarah Parks (Mistress Quickly), and Martin Bassindale (Boy). Stars for the French: Simon Thorp (King of France), Jane Lapotaire (Queen Isobel), Robert Gilbert (Dauphin), Jennifer Kirby (Katherine), Leigh Quinn (Alice), Keith Osborn (Montjoy), Sam Marks (Constable of France), Christopher Middleton (Governer of Harfleur), and Evelyn Miller (Rambures/Lady-in-Waiting). Features the musicians Helena Raeburn (soprano), Max Gittings (woodwind), Samantha Norman (violin), Nick Lee (guitar), Andre Stone-Fewings (trumpet), Chris Sedden (trumpet), Ian Foster (tuba), James Jones (percussion), and Bruce O'Neil (keyboard). Designed by Stephen Brimson Lewis; lighting by Tim Mitchell; music by Paul Englishby, sound by Martin Slavin; movement by Michael Ashcroft; fights by Terry King; screen direction by Robin Lough; produced for screen by John Wyver. Package includes a Director's Commentary and other valuable extra features. Released 2015, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio. Grade: A+
Read MoreVerdi Messa da Requiem. Recorded 2013 at the Golden Hall of Vienna’s Musikverein. Mariss Jansons conducts the Bavarian Symphony Orchestra and the Bavarian Radio Chorus (Chorus Master Michael Gläzer). Soloists are Krassimira Stoyanova (soprano), Marina Prudenskaja (mezzo-soprano), Saimir Pirgu (tenor), and Orlin Anastassov (bass). Directed for TV by Michael Beyer. Sung in Latin. Subtitles in English, German, and French. Released 2014, the music was recorded with 48kHz/24-bit sound sampling; the disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: B
Read MoreKarajan, Maestro for the Screen documentary by Georg Wübbolt. This 52-minute film, produced by Bernhard Fleischer, explores Herbert von Karajan's long interest in making motion picture films of classical music performances to be shown in movie theaters and over TV. There is also a 32-minute bonus performance (directed by François Reichenbach and never released before) of Bach's Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 and Suite (Overture) No. 2 in B minor (BWV 1067) by the Berliner Philharmoniker conducted by Karajan. Original language German; subtitles in English, French, Spanish, Korean, and Japanese. Released 2015, disc has stereo sound (much of which started as mono). Grade: NA
Read MoreRodion Shchedrin The Left-Hander opera to libretto by the composer. Directed 2013 by Alexei Stepanyuk at the Mariinsky. Stars Andrei Popov (The Left-Hander), Edward Tsanga (Ataman Platov), Vladimir Moroz (Alexander I & Nicholas I), Kristina Alieva (The Flea), Maria Maksakova (Princess Charlotte), and Andrei Spekhov (English Under-Skipper). Valery Gergiev conducts the Mariinsky Orchestra & Chorus. Set design by Alexander Orlov; costume design by Irina Cherednikova; lighting design by Alexander Sivaev; video direction by Anna Matison. Released 2016, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
Read MoreHandel Hercules musical drama to libretto by Thomas Broughton. Directed 2004 by Luc Bondy. Stars William Shimell (Hercules), Joyce DiDonato (Dejanira), Toby Spence (Hyllus), Ingela Bohlin (Iole), Malena Ernman (Lichas), and Simon Kirkbride (Priest of Jupiter). William Christie conducts and chorus of Les Arts Florissants. Set design by Richard Peduzzi; costume design by Rudy Sabounghi; lighting design by Dominique Bruguière. Produced by François Duplat; directed for TV by Vincent Bataillon. Released 2016, disc has dts-HD Master Audion sonud. Grade: NA
Read MoreSir András Schiff in 2015 conducts the Orchestra Cappella Andrea Barca and plays piano solo during the Salzburg Mozart Week (Mozartwoche). The performances are Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 1 (Schiff playing piano and conducting); Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 22 (Schiff playing piano and conducting); and Schubert's Symphony No. 5 (Schiff conducting). Directed for video by Hella-Brit Giese. Music was recorded with 96kHz/24-bit sound sampling (per report from Wonk Bryan Balmer); released 2016, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound output. Grade: NA
Read MoreBruckner Symphony No. 8 concert (Edition: Robert Haas). This is part of the "Bruckner Mature Symphonies" series by Accentus. Daniel Barenboim conducts the Staatskapelle Berlin at the Philharmonie Berlin in 2010. Directed for TV by Andreas Morell; produced by Paul Smaczny. Released 2014, music was recorded at 48kHz/24-bit sound sampling, and disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: C-
Read MoreBeethoven Missa solemnis in D major, Op. 123. On April 19-25, 2012, Nikolaus Harnoncourt conducts the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra and Netherlands Radio Choir in the Concertgebouw, Amsterdam. Soloists are Marlis Petersen (soprano), Elisabeth Kulman (contralto), Werner Güra (tenor), and Gerald Finley (bass). TV direction by Joost Honselaar. Released in 2013, the audio was recorded with 48kHz/24-bit sound sampling. The Blu-ray disc has PCM stereo and 5.0 dts-HD Master Audio sound output. Grade: B
Read MoreBeethoven Missa solemnis concert. Christian Thielemann conducts the Staatskapelle Dresden and Sächsischer Staatsopernchor Dresden (chorus master Pablo Assante) in 2010. Stars soloists Krassimira Stoyanova (soprano), Elīna Garanča (mezzo), Michael Schade (tenor), and Franz-Josef Selig (bass). Violin solo by Matthias Wollong. TV direction by Michael Beyer. Released in 2011, music was recorded with 48kHz/24-bit sound sampling; the Blu-ray disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: C+
Read MoreHandel Admeto opera to libretto by Nicola Haym or Paolo Antonio Rolli. Directed 2009 by Doris Dörrie at the Deutsches Theatre, Göttingen, Germany as part of the Internationale Handel-Festspiele. This title (with C Major catalog number 750704) appears to be the exact same record as the Admeto published by C Major in 2010 (with C Major catalog number 702104). The only difference between the two versions we can see are the front art on the package. Just follow the link above for a review with screenshots of this title, which earned an especially bad grade from us. We have no idea why C Major continues to flog this broken horse.)
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