Puccini Tosca opera to libretto by Giuseppe Giacosa and Luigi Illica. Directed 2017 by Philipp Himmelmann (apparently replacing director Bartlett Sher on short notice) at the Easter Festival in Baden-Baden. Stars Kristine Opolais (Tosca), Marcelo Álvarez (Mario Cavaradossi), Marco Vratogna (Baron Scarpia), Alexander Tsymbalyuk (Cesare Angelotti), Peter Rose (Il Sagrestano), Peter Tantsits (Spoletta), Douglas Williams (Sciarrone), Philippe Tsouli (a Boy), and Walter Fink (the Jailer). Sir Simon Rattle conducts the Berliner Philharmoniker, the Philharmonia Chor Wien (Chorus Masters Walter Zeh), and Cantus Juvenum Karlsruhe (Chorus Master Anette Schneider). Set design by Raimund Bauer; costume design by Kathi Maurer; lighting by Reinhard Traub; video designs by Martin Eidenberger. Executive Producer was Alexander Pereira. Directed for TV by Andres Morell. Sung in Italian. Released 2017, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: F+
Read MoreMahler Symphony No. 2 "Resurrection". Alan Gilbert conducts the New York Philharmonic at Avery Fisher Hall on 9/10/2011 commemorating the attack on the World Trade Center buildings ten years earlier on 9/11/2001. Singers are Dorothea Röschmann (soprano), Michelle DeYoung (mezzo-soprano), and the New York Choral Artists (directed by Joseph Flummerfelt). Directed by Michael Beyer; produced by Paul Smaczny. This performance is also known as A Concert for New York: In Rembembrance and Renewal. Released 2011, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio Sound. Grade: C+
Read MoreMahler Symphony No. 2 "Resurrection".In 2016 Daniele Gatti conducts the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra & Netherlands Radio Choir at the Concertgebouw Amsterdam (Chorus Master Klaas Stok). Singers are Anette Dasch (soprano) and Karen Cargill (mezzo-soprano). Video direction by Dick Kuijs. Released 2017, the music reviewed here was recorded with 96kHz/48-bit sound sampling and played with a 5.0 dts-HD Master Audio file. The disc also has a stereo sound file recorded at 192/24 and a 9.0 Auro-3D file (a first for us). Grade: B+
Read MoreJohn Adams Doctor Atomic opera to libretto of historically accurate statements and a clutch of poems assembled by Peter Sellars. Directed 2007 by Peter Sellars at De Nederlandse Opera. Stars Gerald Finley (J. Robert Oppenheimer), Jessica Rivera (Kitty Oppenheimer), Eric Owens (General Leslie Groves), Richard Paul Fink (Edward Teller), James Maddalena (Jack Hubbard), Thomas Glenn (Robert Wilson), Jay Hunter Morris (Captain James Nolan), Ellen Rabiner (Pasqualita), and Ruud van Jijk (Lieutenant Bush). Lawrence Renes conducts the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra and the Chorus of De Nederlandse Opera (Chorus Director Martin Wright). Sets by Adrianne Lobel; costumes by Dunya Ramicova; lighting by James F. Ingalls; choreography by Lucinda Childs; sound effects by Mark Grey. Directed for TV by Peter Sellars. Sung in English. Released 2009, disc has Dolby 5.1 TrueHD sound. Grade: B
If you're new to a work, I usually suggest that you watch it cold. But Doctor Atomic is a profound opera, and it likely will seem difficult on first encounter. So watch the extras first. Start with the 27 minute interview with Peter Sellars. You probably already know that Doctor Atomic depicts the personalities and events surrounding the first atomic bomb explosion achieved by the Manhattan Project under Dr. Robert Oppenheimer on July 16, 1945. Sellars in his interview gives you backstory and discusses the moral issues that arose in 1945 and which still haunt us today.
Read MoreDes Königs Zauberflöteopera produced as a motion picture film of live theater performances. Based on Die Zauberflöte opera with music by Mozart and a libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder, with additional dialogue by Klaus Jörg Schönmetzler. Directed by Enoch zu Guttenberg at the Prinzregententheater München in 2013. Video made at the 2013 performances was made into the Des Königs Zauberflöte movie, which was shown in theaters in 2016; the Blu-ray was released in 2017. Grade: NA
Read MoreThe Nutcracker ballet. Music by Tchaikovsky. Choreographed by Peter Wright after Lev Ivanov. Directed 2016 by Peter Wright at the Royal Opera House.
Stars Gary Avis (Drosselmeyer); Francesca Hayward (Clara, Drosselmeyer's god-daughter); Alexander Campbell (Hans-Peter/The Nutcracker, Drosselmeyer's nephew), and:
Act 1. Luca Acri (Drosselmeyer's Assistant); Caroline Jennings and Susan Nye (Maiden Aunts); Barbara Rhodes (Housekeeper); Christopher Saunders (Dr. Stahlbaum, Clara's father); Elizabeth McGorian (Mrs. Stahlbaum); Caspar Lench (Fritz, Clara's brother); Benjamin Elia (Clara's Partner); Kristen McNally (Grandmother); Alastair Marriott (Grandfather); Christina Arestis (Dancing Mistress); Johannes Stepanek (Captain); Fernando Montaño (Harlequin); Leticia Stock (Columbine); Marcelino Sambé (Soldier); Mayara Magri (Vivandière); Lukas Bjørneboe Brændsrød (St. Nicholas); Nicol Edmonds (Mouse King)
Act 2. Lauren Cuthbertson (Sugar Plum Fairy); Federico Bonelli (The Prince); members of the London Oratory Junior Choir (Singers); Christina Arestis, Johannes Stepanek, Tara-Brigitte Bhavnani, Fernando Montaño, Tierney Heap and Eric Underwood (Spanish Dance); Itziar Mendizabal, Ryoichi Hirano, Reece Clarke, and Nicol Edmonds (Arabian Dance); Luca Acri, Marcelino Sambé (Chinese Dance); Kevin Emerton and Paul Kay (Russian Dance); Meaghan Grace Hinkis, Emma Maguire, Mayara Magri, and Leticia Stock (Dance of the Mirlitons); Yuhui Choe (Rose Fairy); Matthew Ball, James Hay, Tomas Mock, Valentino Zuccheti (Rose Fairy Escorts); Claire Calvert, Helen Crawford, Hikaru Kobayashi, and Beatriz Stix-Brunell (Leading Flowers).
In addition, artists of The Royal Ballet and students of the Royal Ballet School portray Snowflakes, Relatives, Friends of Stahlbaum family, Soldiers, Mice, Servants, Children and other roles.
Boris Gruzin conducts the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House (Concert Master Peter Manning) and the London Oratory Junior Choir (Choir Director Charles Cole). Designs by Julia Trevelyan Oman; lighting by Mark Henderson; production consultant was Rolan John Wiley; staging by Christopher Carr; ballet mistress was Samantha Raine; ballet master was Jonathan Howells; assistant ballet mistress was Sian Murphy; principal coaching by Christopher Carr, Jonahtan Cope, Viviana Durante, and Jonathan Howells; Benesh notators were Mayumi Hotta and Lorraine Gregory. Directed for screen by Ross McGibbon. Released 2017, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound output. Grade: B
Read MoreTchaikovsky Pique Dame opera (The Queen of Spades) to a libretto by Modest Tchaikovsky. Directed 2016 by Stefan Herheim at the Dutch National Opera. Stars Misha Didyk (Herman), Alexey Markov (Count Tomsky/Plutus), Vladimir Stoyanov (Prince Yeletsky), Andrei Popov (Chekalinsky), Andrii Goniukov (Surin), Mikhail Makarov (Chaplitsky), Anatoli Sivko (Narumov), Larissa Diadkova (The Countess), Svetlana Aksenova (Liza), and Anna Goryachova (Polina/Daphnis). Mariss Jansons conducts the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, the Chrous of the Dutch National Opera (Chorus Master Ching-Lien Wu), and the Nieuw Amsterdams Kinderkoor (Chorus Master Caro Kindt). Decor and costumes by Philipp Fürhoffer; lighting by Bernd Purkrabek; video direction by Misjel Vermeiren. Released 2017, disc has 5.0 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
Read MoreMozart Le nozze di Figaro opera to libretto by Lorenza da Ponte. Directed 2004 by Jean-Louis Martinoty at the Théâtre des Champs Elysées. Stars Pietro Spagnoli (Il Conte d'Almaviva), Annette Dasch (La Contessa d'Almaviva), Rosemay Joshua (Susanna), Luca Pisaroni (Figaro), Angelika Kirchshlager (Cherubino), Sophie Pondjiclis (Marcellina), Alessandro Svab (Antonio), Antonio Abete (Bartolo), Enrico Facini (Don Basilio), Pauline Courtin (Barbarina), and Serge Goubioud (Don Curzio). René Jacobs conducts the Concerto Köln and the Chœur du Théâtre des Champs Elysées. Set design by Hans Schavernoch; costume design by Sylvie de Segonzac; lighting design by Jean Kalman; choreography by Cookie Chiapalone. Produced by François Duplat; directed for video by Pierre Barré. Released 2017, has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
Read MoreRenée Fleming In Concert two disc "box" set, released 2017. Christian Thielemann conducts both concerts. Below are the discs. Both have already been reported on this website, and you can get more details by using the links provided:
- Richard Strauss: Renée Fleming In Concert. Vienna Philharmonic. 2011. (Grade: D+)
- Bruckner Symphony No. 7 & Wolf Lieder. Dresden Staatskapelle. 2012. (Grade: NA)
Read MorePas de Deux ballet compilation with performances by many of the famous Royal Ballet stars from recent years. Released 2017, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
Read MoreRichard Lea plays selections on the grand organ of the Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral. Priory specializes in church and organ music. The package has a Blu-ray, a DVD, and a CD! Per the publisher, this is the first organ recital to be released in Blu-ray. Recorded and produced by Paul Crichton; filmed and edited by Richard Knight; Associate Producer was Callum Ross; Executive Producer was Neil Collier. Released 2013, disc has 5.1 Dolby Digital surround sound. Grade: A
Read MoreAnastasia ballet. Music by Tchaikovsky and Bohuslav Martinů. Choreography by Kenneth MacMillan as realized by Deborah MacMillan. Staged 2016 at the Royal Ballet. Stars Christopher Saunders (Tsar Nicholas II); Christina Arestis (Tsarina Alexandra Feodorovna); Rory Toms (Tsarevitch Alexey); Olivia Cowley (Grand Duchess Olga); Beatriz Stix-Brunell (Grand Duchess Tatiana); Yasmine Naghdi (Grand Dutchess Marie); Natalia Osipova (Grand Duchess Anastasia); Thiago Soares (Rasputin); Kristen McNally (Anna Vyrubova/Matron/Peasant woman); Alastair Marriott (Tsar's Aide-de-Camp); Ryoichi Hirano, Valeri Hristov, Alexander Campbell, and Edward Watson (Four Officers). Also features:
Act 1. Luca Acri, Tristan Dyer, and and Marcelino Sambé (Three Officers); Mica Bradbury (Maid).
Act 2. Marianela Nuñez (Mathilde Kschessinska); Federico Bonelli (Kschessinska’s Partner); Vincenzo Di Primo (Revolutionary).
Act 3. Natalia Osipova (Anna Anderson); Edward Watson (Anna Anderson's husband); Tristan Dyer (Anna Anderson's Brother-in-Law).
Artists of the Royal Ballet as Officers, Guests, Soldiers, Revolutionaries, Nurses, Peasants, Visitors, Relatives.
Simon Hewett conducts the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House (Concert Master Sergey Levitin). Electronic music provided by the studio of The Technical University of West Berlin (Fritz Winckel and Rüdiger Rüfer); designs by Bob Crowley; lighting design by John B. Read; staging by Gary Harris. Directed for TV by Ross MacGibbon. Released 2017, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: B+
Read MoreJonathan Hope plays the grand organ of the Gloucester Cathedral. Priory specializes in church and organ music. This package has a Blu-ray, a DVD, and a CD! Recorded and produced by Paul Crichton; filmed and edited by Richard Knight; Associate Producer was Callum Ross; Executive Producer was Neil Collier. Released 2016, disc has 5.1 Dolby Digital surround sound. Grade: A-
Read MoreJohn Cage Music for Speaking Percussionist compilation.(Also called The Works for Percussion 4 by Mode Records). Performed 2010-2011 at the University of California, San Diego. Features percussionists Bonnie Whiting and Allen Otte. Recorded and edited by Josef Kucera; directed, filmed, and edited by Anton Cabaleiro; produced by Allen Otte and Brian Brandt. Released 2017, disc has uncompressed 48kHz/24-bit PCM stereo sound. (We usually exclude Blu-ray titles with only stereo sound. But we do make exceptions for classical music soloists when the recording otherwise has some special merit. Here we have a famous [among lovers of contemporary music anyway] percussionists performing rarely [or never-before] recorded works with instruments that would probably not benefit much or at all from surround sound. (This is our first title from Mode Records, which is the brainchild of Brian Brandt. Brandt is himself interviewed in another Blu-ray on our Alphalist, the John Cage - Journeys in Sound from Accentus Recordings.) Grade: A-
Read MoreJohn Cage - Journeys in Sound documentary film. Directed by Allan Miller and Paul Smaczny to mark the composer's centenary. The film has interviews with Wiliam Anastasi, Irvine Arditti, Dove Bradshaw, Brian Brandt, Merce Cunningham, Julia Henning, Toshio Hosokawa, John Lennon, Mayumi Miyata, Yoko Ono, Wolfgang Rihm, Steffen Schleiermacher, Calvin Tomkins, David Tudor, Christian Wolff, the Ensemble Modern, Schlagquartett Köln, and others. Written by Anne-Kathrin Peitz; edited by Steffen Hermann; produced by Paul Smaczny. Released 2012, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: B
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