ERICH WOLFGANG KORNGOLD
Korngold: Das Wunder der Heliane (complete opera recorded in 2018) Deutsche Oper Berlin / Sara Jakubiak, Brian Jagde, Josef Wagner, Okka von der Damerau, Derek Welton / Christof Loy [ Naxos DVD / 2 DVD - released 7/Jun/2019 ] Erich Wolfgang Korngold regarded Das Wunder der Heliane as his greatest work, but the opera has been neglected since its premiere in 1927. This 2018 production from the Deutsche Oper Berlin features the American soprano Sara Jakubiak as Heliane, and... |
PIETRO MASCAGNI
Mascagni: L'Amico Fritz (Complete Opera recorded in 2022) (Blu-ray) Maggio Musicale Fiorentino / Salome Jicia, Charles Castronovo, Teresa Iervolino, Massimo Cavalletti / Riccardo Frizza,(cond) [ Naxos / Dynamic Blu-ray / DVD - released 17/Feb/2023 ] "Cucchi evokes a lively society, never overstated, of friendship and good cheer...Frizza controls the ebb and flow in masterly fashion. The whole thing is very nicely done." Gramophone Blu-ray of the Month April 2023 |
JACQUES OFFENBACH
Offenbach: La Vie Parisienne (Complete Operetta recorded in 2021) Théâtre des Champs-Élysées / Jodie Devos, Rodolphe Briand, Marc MauIllon, Sandrine Buendia / Romain Dumas (cond) [ Naxos DVD / 2 DVD - released 10/Feb/2023 ] "Director Christian Lacroix's dazzling sets and costumes perfectly complement Offenbach's beguiling music (played by Les Musiciens du Louvre under the baton of conductor Romain Dumas), and it's charmingly sung by a superlative cast." FlipSide |
GIUSEPPE SAVERIO MERCADANTE
Mercadante: Didone abbandonata (complete opera recorded in 2018) Innsbruck Festival / Viktorija Miškūnaitė, Katrin Wundsam, Emilie Renard, Carlo Vincenzo Allemano, Diego Godoy / Alessandro De Marchi [ Naxos DVD / DVD - released 7/Jun/2019 ] Giuseppe Saverio Mercadante was a contemporary of Donizetti and Rossini, and his prolific output of operas proved influential in founding dramatic techniques that were taken on by Verdi. |
JAROMIR WEINBERGER
Weinberger: Frühlingsstürme [complete operetta recorded in 2020] Komische Oper Berlin / Stefan Kurt, Alma Sade, Vera-Lotte Boecker / Jordan de Souza (cond) [ Naxos DVD / 2 DVD - released 6/Nov/2020 ] Czech-born composer Jaromír Weinberger, best known for his opera Schwanda the Bagpiper, was forced to flee to America in order to escape Nazi terror. Frühlingsstürme was first staged in 1933. |
CLAUDIO MONTEVERDI
Monteverdi: L'Orfeo (Complete Opera recorded in June 2021) Opéra Comique, Paris / Luciana Mancini, Marc Mauillon, Sara Mingardo / A Capella Reial de Catalunya, Le Concert des Nations, Jordi Savall [ Naxos DVD / DVD - released 9/Sep/2022 ] Monteverdi's L'Orfeo was premiered in 1607 and is the oldest opera still performed today. The narrative is based on the Greek legend of Orpheus who, armed only with the weapons of music and love, descends into Hades. |
VERDI / BIZET / MOZART / PUCCINI / HANDEL / STRAUSS / WAGNER
150 Years Of Wiener Staatsoper: Great Opera Evenings (Limited Edition) Plácido Domingo, José Carreras, Carlos Álvarez, Johan Botha, Angelika Kirchschlager, Brigitte Fassbaender, Wiener Staatsopernorchester [ Arthaus DVD / 11 DVD Box Set - released 2/Aug/2019 ] Limited Edition - Experience four decades of opera history from the Wiener Staatsoper on 11 DVDs. 150 Years Vienna State Opera means 150 years of impressive opera events featuring the greatest conductors of all time, and, high-class opera stars. |
ALBENIZ / BIZET / BONOLIS / CASTELNUOVO-TEDESCO / de FALLA
Carmen - A ballet in two acts Rebecca Bianchi, Amar Ramasar / Corpo di Ballo & Orchestra of the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma, Louis Lohraseb (conductor) [ Naxos DVD / DVD - released 10/Oct/2020 ] Choreographer Jiří Bubeníček's Carmen celebrates the incredible inspiration of Bizet's timeless music in a completely new two-act ballet that also includes music by Albéniz, Castelnuovo-Tedesco and Falla, orchestrated and adapted by Gabriele Bonolis |
CARL NIELSEN
Nielsen: Maskarade (complete opera recorded in 2006) Royal Danish Orchestra / Royal Danish Opera Chorus / Stephen Milling / Susanne Resmark / Michael Shonwandt [ Naxos DVD / DVD - released 24/Feb/2008 ] Recorded at Operaen, Copenhagen on 13 and 15 November 2006 |
ALEXANDER ZEMLINSKY
Zemlinsky: Der Zwerg (complete opera recorded in 2019) Berlin Deutsche / Elena Tsallagova. Emily Magee, Philipp Jekal, Flurina Stucki / Donald Runnicles (cond) [ Naxos DVD / DVD - released 20/May/2020 ] Based on Oscar Wilde's story The Birthday of the Infanta, Zemlinsky's single-act opera Der Zwerg is the tragic tale of a dwarf who is presented at court, falls in love with the beautiful Donna Clara, but is ultimately forced to see himself as others... |
RICHARD WAGNER
Wagner: Das Rheingold (complete opera recorded in 2021) Berlin Opera / Derek Welton, Tobias Kehrer, Thomas Blondelle, Markus Blondelle / Sir Donald Runnicles (cond) [ Naxos DVD / DVD - released 16/Feb/2024 ] As early as 1851, Wagner wrote, 'I propose to produce my myth in three complete dramas, preceded by a lengthy Prelude.' The Prelude was Das Rheingold ('The Rhine Gold') the preliminary evening of Wagner's epic tetralogy Der Ring des Nibelungen ('The... |
RICHARD WAGNER
Wagner: Die Walkure (complete opera recorded in 2021) Berlin Opera / Nina Stemme, Iain Paterson, Brandon Jovanovich, Elisabeth Teige / Sir Donald Runnicles (cond) [ Naxos DVD / 2 DVD - released 15/Mar/2024 ] Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen ('The Ring of the Nibelung') comprises four operas of which Die Walküre ('The Valkyrie') is the second, famous for its spectacular set-pieces such as the Ride of the Valkyries and Wotan's Farewell. |
RICHARD WAGNER
Wagner: Die Walkure (complete opera recorded in 2021) Berlin Opera / Nina Stemme, Iain Paterson, Ya-Chung Huang, Tobias Kehrer / Sir Donald Runnicles (cond) [ Naxos DVD / 2 DVD - released 19/Apr/2024 ] Siegfried is the third of the four operas that comprise Wagner's epic tetralogy Der Ring des Nibelungen ('The Ring of the Nibelung'). Siegfried, raised by the evil dwarf Mime, discovers that he is the son of Siegmund and Sieglinde. He must negotiate... |
FRANZ SCHREKER
Schreker: Der Schatzgräber (complete opera recorded in 2022) Deutsche Oper Berlin / Elisabet Strid, Daniel Johansson, Michael Laurenz, Thomas Johannes Mayer / Marc Albrecht (cond) [ Naxos DVD / DVD - released 8/Nov/2023 ] Franz Schreker's career was cut short by the events of 1933 in Germany but he achieved real fame with his operas, and the huge success of Der Schatzgräber ('The Treasure Hunter') in the 1920s was the high point of his career. |
MIECZYSLAW WEINBERG
Weinberg: Die Passagierin [The Passenger] (complete opera recorded in 2021) Oper Graz / Dshamilja Kaiser, Nadja Stefanoff, Will Hartmann, Markus Butter / Roland Kluttig(cond) [ Naxos DVD / DVD - released 8/Jul/2022 ] Mieczysław Weinberg's powerful Holocaust drama Die Passagierin channels his and his family's ordeals of wartime and Soviet persecution, applying them musically to Zofia Posmysz's autobiographical novel. |
RICCARDO ZANDONAI
Zandonai: Francesca da Rimini (complete opera recorded in 2021) Deutsche Oper Berlin / Sara Jakubiak, Jonathan Telelman, Ivan Inverardi / Carlo Rizzi (cond) [ Naxos DVD / DVD - released 18/Feb/2022 ] "The whole thing is, I think, a great achievement. Do watch it." Gramophone Editor's Choice May 2022 |
LAURO ROSSI
Rossi: Cleopatra (complete opera recorded in 2008) Dimitra Theodossiou / Alessandro Liberatore / Paolo Pecchioli / Sebastian Catana / Orchestra Filarmonica Marchigiana, David Crescenzi [ Naxos Opera DVD / DVD - released 27/Oct/2010 ] From the brooding opening scene in which Diomedes foretells the fall of Egypt to Cleopatra's death scene, this gripping grand opera by one of Italy's forgotten masters springs vividly to life in this revival filmed at the 2008 Macerata Sferisterio... |
STEFANO LANDI
Landi: Morte d'Orfeo (complete opera recorded in 2018) Dutch National Opera / Cecilia Molinari, Renato Dolcini, Alexander Miminoshvili, Gaia Petrone / Christophe Rousset, conductor [ Naxos DVD / DVD - released 20/May/2020 ] Stefano Landi wrote the operas La morte d'Orfeo (1619) and Il Sant'Alessio (1632), as well as masses, psalms, madrigals and arias. He was maestro di cappella in Padua and Rome, and later a singer in the Sistine Chapel. |
ENGLEBERT HUMPERDINCK
Humperdinck: Konigskinder [The King's Children] (complete opera recorded in 2022) Dutch National Opera / Daniel Behle, Olga Kulchynska, Josef Wagner, Doris Soffel / Marc Albrecht (cond) [ Naxos DVD / DVD - released 11/Aug/2023 ] Hänsel und Gretel brought Humperdinck worldwide fame but his tragic fairy storybrought Humperdinck worldwide fame but his tragic fairy story KönigskinderKönigskinder ('The King's Children') offers a stark contrast to it and has only begun to be... |
GIACOMO PUCCINI
Puccini: Tosca (complete opera recorded in 2022) Dutch National Opera / Malin Byström, Joshua Guerrero, Gevorg Hakobyan / Lorenzo Viotti (cond) [ Naxos DVD / DVD - released 14/Apr/2023 ] "...this must be one of the bloodiest Toscas shown on stage, in a world where the characters' Christian faith is clearly a personal defence against the horror of the tyranny under which they live." Gramophone Editor's Choice July 2023 |
RICHARD STRAUSS
Strauss, R.: Ariadne auf Naxos (complete opera / original 1912 version recorded in 2012) Salzburg Festival / Emily Magee, Elena Mosuc, Jonas Kaufmann / Wiener Philharmoniker, Daniel Harding (conductor), Sven-Eric Bechtolf (director) [ Sony DVD / DVD - released 28/Jun/2014 ] "Jonas Kaufmann was spectacular as Bacchus, growing improbably stronger as he progressed. Emily Magee was scarcely less impressive in the demanding role of Ariadne." - New York Times |
DOMENICO CIMAROSA
Cimarosa: L'Italiana In Londra (complete opera recorded in 2021) Frankfurt Opera / Angela Vallone, Bianca Tognocchi, Theo Lebow, Jurii Samoilov / Leo Hussain (cond & fortepiano) [ Naxos DVD / DVD - released 16/Feb/2024 ] L'Italiana in Londra was Domenico Cimarosa's first international triumph, thrilling audiences all over Europe after its premiere in 1778. However, it later became eclipsed by the even bigger success of Il matrimonio segreto and has become a rarity on... |
NICOLAI RIMSKY-KORSAKOV
Rimsky-Korsakov: Christmas Eve (complete opera recorded in 2021) Frankfurt Opera / Julia Muzychenko, Enkelejda Shkoza, Alexey Tikhomirov, Anthony Robin Schneider / Sebastian Weigle (cond) [ Naxos DVD / DVD - released 11/Nov/2022 ] Composed using his own libretto, Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov created this magical opera based on the short story by Nikolay Gogol 'The Night before Christmas' in which Vakula the handsome blacksmith wants to marry the rich farmer's daughter Oksana, who... |
RICHARD STRAUSS
Ariadne auf Naxos (Complete opera recorded in March 2013) Glyndebourne Opera / Soile Isokoski, Kate Lindsey, Laura Claycomb, Sergey Skorokhodov, Thomas Allen / Vladimir Jurowski (conductor) [ Opus Arte DVD / DVD - released 20/Aug/2014 ] Director Katharina Thoma sets Richard Strauss's comedy in a country house in the South Downs (a surrogate for Glyndebourne), immediately before and during the Second World War. Hofmannsthals' conceit - that a hapless young composer has to accept the... |
HECTOR BERLIOZ
Berlioz: Benvenuto Cellini (complete opera recorded in 2007) Grobes festspielhaus, Salzburg / Burkhard Fritz / Maija Kovalevska / Laurent Naouri / Brindley Sherratt / Valery Gergiev (cond) [ Naxos Unitel DVD / DVD - released 1/Jan/2010 ] "Burkhard Fritz as Benvenuto is a strong heroic tenor and copes well with the vocal demands of the role, while Maria Kovalevska as his beloved Teresa enchants us with her lovely voice and physical beauty." (The WholeNote.com) |
RICHARD STRAUSS
Ariadne auf Naxos (Complete opera recorded in 1988) Metropolitan Opera / Jessye Norman / Kathleen Battle / Tatiana Troyanos / James Levine (cond) [ Deutsche Grammophon / DVD - released 29/Aug/2002 ] G : - "This performance represents an above-average night at the Metropolitan Opera in the late 1980s: three of its most popular stars, a generally distinguished cast, the house's musical director conducting its great orchestra in one of the works he... |
GIOACHINO ROSSINI
Rossini: Equivoco stravagante (Complete Opera recorded in 2018) Königliches Kurtheater, Bad Wildbad / Antonella Colaianni, Giulio Mastrototaro, Emmanuel Franco, Patrick Kabongo / José Miguel Pérez-Sierra (cond) [ Naxos DVD / DVD - released 10/Oct/2021 ] No opera has been performed at Rossini in Wildbad as often as L'equivoco stravagante, so it was the perfect choice for the festival's 30th anniversary in 2018. |
VINCENZO BELLINI
Bellini: I Capuleti e i Montecchi (complete opera recorded in 2015) La Fenice / Jessica Pratt, Sonia Ganassi, Rubén Amoretti, Shalva Mukeria / Shalva Mukeria (cond) [ Naxos DVD / DVD - released 13/May/2022 ] "I can tell you that from the first to the fourth performance, which was on Sunday, enthusiasm reached, or perhaps surpassed, the levels of Il Pirata and La Straniera in Milan" Bellini in a letter to a friend |
W. A. MOZART
Mozart: La finta giardiniera (complete opera recorded in 2018) La Scala / Krešimir Špicer, Julie Martin du Theil, Bernard Richter / Diego Fasolis (cond) [ Naxos DVD / 2 DVD - released 9/Jul/2021 ] On 13 January La finta giardiniera, a dramma giocoso, was premiered at the Salvatortheater in Munich, then on 23 April the serenata Il re pastore was staged at the archbishop's palace in Salzburg. |
BENET CASABLANCAS
Casablancas: L'Enigma di Lea (complete opera recorded in 2019) Liceu Grand Theatre / Allison Cook, José Antonio López, Sara Blanch, Marta Infante, Sonia de Munck / Josep Pons (cond) [ Naxos DVD / DVD - released 21/Jan/2022 ] Recorded at the Gran Teatre del Liceu, Barcelona, Spain, 12-13 February 2019 |
NICOLAI RIMSKY-KORSAKOV
Rimsky-Korsakov: The Golden Cockerel (complete opera recorded in 2021) l'Opéra National de Lyon / Nina Minasyan, Margarita Neksarova, Andrey Popov, Dmitry Ulyanov / Daniele Rustioni (cond) [ Naxos DVD / DVD - released 12/Aug/2022 ] In the autumn of 1906, at a time when he was saying he didn't want to write anything further, Rimsky-Korsakov had the idea of starting an opera based on The Tale of the Golden Cockerel, the last of Pushkin's folk tales in verse, written in 1834. |
FRANCESCO CILEA
Cilea: Adriana Lecouvreur (Complete Opera recorded in 2021) Maggio Musicale Fiorentino / Maria José Siri, Ksenia Dudnikova, Martin Muehle, Paolo Antognetti / Daniel Harding (cond) [ Naxos / Dynamic DVD / DVD - released 9/Sep/2022 ] Francesco Cilea's Adriana Lecouvreur was inspired by the real-life story of a celebrated actress at the Comédie-Française who was much admired by Voltaire. Hailed as a masterpiece, the opera was triumphantly staged in cities around the world. |
W. A. MOZART
Mozart: Cosi fan Tutte (complete opera recorded in 2021) Maggio Musicale Fiorentino / Valentina Nafornita, Benedetta Torre, Vasilisa Berzhanskaya, Matthew Swensen, Thomas Hampson / Zubin Mehta (cond) [ Naxos DVD / 2 DVD - released 8/Apr/2022 ] The production of Mozart's classic comic opera from 2021 is directed by the acclaimed German director Sven-Eric Bechtolf. Conducted by Zubin Mehta, the cast includes Thomas Hampson as Don Alfonso, and the Moldovan soprano Valentina Naforniţa. |
GEORGES BIZET
Bizet: Carmen (Complete Opera recorded in June 2009) Opéra Comique, Paris / Anna Caterina Antonacci, Andrew Richards, Nicolas Cavallier, Monteverdi Choir / John Eliot Gardiner (cond) [ Naxos DVD / DVD - released 14/May/2021 ] On 3 June 1975, the day after the 33rd performance of Carmen - indicating limited success as the receipts were meagre - he died from a heart attack, at the age of 36, like Mozart. |
GIACOMO PUCCINI
Puccini: La Boheme (complete opera recorded in 2012) Norwegian National Opera / Diego Torre, Marita Salberg, Vasily Ladyuk, Jennifer Rowley / The Norwegian National Opera Orchestra, Eivind Gullberg [ Naxos DVD / DVD - released 10/Jun/2022 ] Who among us doesn't already have a personal relationship to La Bohème? Probably a deep and intimate one: this opera, perhaps more than any other, strikes a chord that resonates in us where we are most sensitive. Puccini, one could say, was the... |
LEO DELIBES
Delibes: Lakme (complete opera recorded in 2022) Opera Comique, Paris / Sabine Devieilhe, Grederic Antouni, Stephane Degout, Ambroisine Bre / Pygmalion, Raphael Pichon [ Naxos DVD / DVD - released 20/Oct/2023 ] "Laurent Pelly transforms Delibes's opera into an exploration of colonialism and cultural appropriation...Raphaël Pichon, conducting Pygmalion on original instruments, relishes Delibes's lush orchestration." BBC Music DVD of the Month Jan 2024 |
GIACOMO PUCCINI
Puccini: La Rondine (complete opera recorded in 2007) Opera de Nice / Svetla Vassileva / Maya Dashuk / Fabio Sartori / Alberto Veronesi [ Naxos DVD / DVD - released 1/Jul/2009 ] "Svetla Vassileva gives a totally committed acted performance..She puts her whole body and face into her acting whilst her phrasing, legato and vocal expression are first rate." (MusicWeb June 2009) |
HENRY PURCELL
Purcell: Dido and Aeneas (complete opera recorded in 2008) Opéra Comique / Malena Ernman, Christopher Maltman, Judith van Wanroij, Hilary Summers / Les Arts Florissants William Christie [ Naxos DVD / DVD - released 21/Jan/2022 ] Recorded at the Opéra Comique, Paris, France, 7 and 9 December 2008 |
REYNALDO HAHN
Hahn: Ciboulette (Complete Operetta recorded in 2013) Opéra Comique, Paris / Julie Fuchs, Jean-François Lapointe, Julien Behr, Eva Ganizate / Accentus Chamber Choir / Laurence Equilbey (cond) [ Naxos DVD / DVD - released 10/Oct/2021 ] Even if Ciboulette, with its fresh and spruce title, depicts the dawning of sentiments between two young people - the urban aristocrat and the little farm girl - it was written by an experienced and scrupulous composer of almost 50 years of age. |