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ENGELBERT HUMPERDINCK
Humperdinck: Hansel und Gretel (Complete opera) (Rec 1953) (plus earlier recordings of excerpts) Elisabeth Schwarzkopf (soprano) Anny Felbermayer (soprano) Ines Maria Ferraris (soprano) Elisabeth Grummer (soprano) Herbert von Karajan (cond) [ Naxos Historic Opera / 2 CD - released 1/Feb/2005 ] "The cast is ideal. This type of music suits Schwarzkopf to a tee. Her clarity of tone and expression, coupled with her diction, is perfect for the role of Gretel. Her opposite number, her Hänsel, is Elisabeth Grümmer, in fine fettle here" - Bargain... |
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NICOLAI RIMSKY-KORSAKOV
Rimsky-Korsakov: Christmas Eve (complete opera recorded in 2021) BLU-RAY Frankfurt Opera / Julia Muzychenko, Enkelejda Shkoza, Alexey Tikhomirov, Anthony Robin Schneider / Sebastian Weigle (cond) [ Naxos Blu-ray / Blu-ray - released 11/Nov/2022 ] "Loy masses his choral scenes with gusto, and draws the characters with compassion and wit. It's the mixture of cheerfulness and melancholy that makes this opera sing, and Loy walks the line without compromise to his own aesthetic." Gramophone |
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RICHARD STRAUSS
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Strauss, (R.): 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 ] "This performance represents an above-average night at the Metropolitan 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 does best." |
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W. A. MOZART
Mozart: La finta giardiniera (complete opera recorded in 2018) BLU-RAY Teatro alla Scala / Krešimir Špicer, Julie Martin du Theil, Bernard Richter / Diego Fasolis (cond) [ Naxos Blu-ray / Blu-ray - released 9/Jul/2021 ] "The whole, remarkably filmed by Daniela Vismara, is to be seen by all those who are reluctant to opera: conversion is guaranteed!" © 2021 Crescendo |
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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 |
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RICHARD WAGNER
Wagner: Der Fliegende Hollander [The Flying Dutchman] ( Alfred Muff, Ingrid haubold, Erich Knodt, Peter Seiffert / Austrian Radio Symphony Orchestra & Chorus, Pinchas Steinberg [ Naxos Opera Classics / 2 CD Box Set - released 2/Feb/1992 ] "The recording is both atmospheric and clear, and the set comes with libretto, translation, notes and detailed synopsis, an outstanding bargain." Penguin Guide |
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RICHARD WAGNER
Wagner: Siegfried (complete opera recorded 2017) Simon O'Neill, Matthias Goerne, David Cangelosi, Heidi Melton, Werner van Mechelen / Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, Jaap van Zweden [ Naxos / 4 CD Box Set - released 2/Nov/2017 ] "New Zealand tenor Simon O'Neill is surely the Siegfried for our generation." MusicWeb |
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RICHARD STRAUSS
Strauss (R.): Ariadne auf Naxos (complete opera recorded in 2012) BLU-RAY Staatskapelle Dresden / Renée Fleming, Robert Dean Smith, Sophie Koch / Christian Thielemann (cond) [ Decca Blu-ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 20/May/2015 ] Filmed live in Baden-Baden by the veteran director Brian Large, Renée Fleming makes her debut in the role of Ariadne together with fellow key Strauss interpreters Sophie Koch and Christian Thielemann, following on from their Rosenkavalier... |
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GIOACHINO ROSSINI
Rossini: La Pietra del paragone (complete opera) Agata Bienkowska (mezzo) / Alessandro Codeluppi (tenor) / Raffaele Constantini (bass) / Anna Rita Gemmabella (sop) / Anke Herrmann (sop) [ Naxos Opera Classics / 3 CD Box Set - released 2/Jun/2004 ] "Polish mezzo Agata Bienkowska...here evinces a rich-toned flexible voice of considerable promise ..The conductor, Alessandro de Marchi, is well known in early music circles. He brings clear articulation to the ensembles." MusicWeb |
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GIOACHINO ROSSINI
Rossini: Ricciardo e Zoraide (complete opera) Alessandra Marianelli, Silvia Beltrami, Maxim Mironov, Randall Bills / Camerata Bach Choir, Poznań, Virtuosi Brunensis, José Miguel Pérez-Sierra [ Naxos / 3 CD Box Set - released 20/Feb/2018 ] "High standards of florid singing allow this performance to take flight and remain in the air: in fact..it's a vocal feast. Conductor José Miguel Pérez- Sierra shows considerable expertise" Opera, June 2018 |
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GIUSEPPE VERDI
Verdi: Don Carlo (complete opera) Antonietta Stella, Fedora Barbieri, Mario Filippeschi, Tito Gobbi, Boris Christoff / Rome Opera Chorus and Orchestra, Gabriele Santini [ Naxos Historical / 3 CD - released 7/Feb/2006 ] "Gobbi goes from strength to strength … Rodrigo's noble death scene elicits from this artist some of the loveliest baritone singing I have ever heard on record.With the cardinal rôles of the King and Posa finely done, with beautifully moulded... |
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GIOACHINO ROSSINI
Rossini: Torvaldo e Dorliska (complete opera) Anna Rita Gemmabella, Huw Rhys-Evans, Paola Cigna / ARS Brunensis Chamber Choir / Czech Chamber Soloists / Alessandro de Marchi [ Naxos Opera / 2 CD - released 14/Sep/2006 ] Torvaldo e Dorliska belongs to the category, stemming from France, of rescue opera, so called from the basic pattern of plot that is common to these pieces, among them Rossini's La gazza ladra as well as Beethoven's Fidelio. |
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GIUSEPPE VERDI
Verdi: Opera Choruses Slovak Philharmonic Choir & Orchestra, Oliver Dohnanyi [ Naxos / CD - released 10/Oct/1990 ] "The singing is crisp, the language is idiomatic, and the orchestral parts are nicely detailed. I was particularly delighted with the Trovatore choruses and with the bleak song of the Scottish exiles from Macbeth." Fanfare |
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CLAUDE DEBUSSY
Debussy: Pelleas et Melisande (complete opera) Mireille Delunsch, Gerard Theruel, Armand Arapian, Gabriel Bacquier / Lille National Orchestra & Nord-Pas-de-Calais Chorus, Jean-Claude Casadesus [ Naxos / 3 CD Box Set - released 26/Jul/1999 ] "An outstanding bargain" Penguin Guide |
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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... |
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ENRIQUE GRANADOS
Granados: María del Carmen (complete opera) Diana Veronese, Jesus Suaste, Larisa Kostyuk / Wexford Festival Opera Chorus, Belarussian National Philharmonic, Bragado-Darman [ Naxos / 2 CD - released 28/Sep/2016 ] María del Carmen was Enrique Granados' first great operatic success and the stage work he held in highest regard. It was received with great acclaim at its première in 1898, admired for its refined and brilliant orchestral writing and for its... |
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W. A. MOZART / VERDI / LEHAR / J. STRAUSS II / RICHARD STRAUSS
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Elisabeth Schwarzkopf - Opera arias Elisabeth Schwarzkopf (sop), with Karl Schmitt-Walter (bar) / Philharmonia Orchestra. Vienna Philharmonic, Herbert von Karajan, Wilhelm Furtwangler [ EMI / CD - released 2/Feb/1990 ] Recordings from 1950, Le Nozze di Figaro, to, 1959, Capriccio. |
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SERGEI RACHMANINOV
Rachmaninov: All-Night Vigil, Op. 37, Vespers Eugen Antoni, tenor / Raisa Palmu, soprano / Erja Wimeri, contralto / Finnish National Opera Chorus / Eric-Olof Soderstrom, conductor [ Naxos / CD - released 6/Dec/2004 ] Sergey Vasilyevich Rachmaninov was born into a wealthy estate-owner's family near Novgorod. His father squandered the family property, which had to be sold in 1880. The family moved to St Petersburg. |
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DANIEL-FRANCOIS AUBER
Auber: Le Philtre (complete opera) Eugenio Di Lieto, Luiza Fatyol, Emmanuel Franco, ;Adina Vilichi / Cracow Philharmonic Orchestra & Chorus, Luciano Acocella [ Naxos / 2 CD - released 27/Jan/2023 ] In 1831 Auber and his long-standing librettist Eugène Scribe produced Le Philtre, which took the concept of petit opéra to the extreme, even outdoing Rossini's Le Comte Ory in depicting a rural setting. |
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PIETRO MASCAGNI
Mascagni: Cavalleria Rusticana Giacomo Aragall, Stefka Evstatieva, Anna di Mauro, Alzbeta Michalkova / Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra, Slovak Philharmonic Chorus, Alexander Rahbari [ Naxos Opera Classics / CD - released 2/Feb/1995 ] Recorded: 1 - 10 April 1992 Recording Venue: Concert Hall of the Slovak Radio, Bratislava |
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HOWARD HANSON
Hanson: Merry Mount Op 31 (complete opera) Lauren Flanigan, Walter Macneil, Wrestling Bradford / Seattle Symphony Orchestra, Gerard Schwarz [ Naxos American Opera Classics / 2 CD - released 30/Apr/2007 ] "Good tunes and the Devil combine in an unabashed romantic American rarity. The leading roles are splendidly characterised by Lauren Flanigan and Richard Zeller, well supported in a rehabilitation that is a credit to all involved." Gramophone |
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PYOTR Il'yich TCHAIKOVSKY
Tchaikovsky: The Enchantress (complete opera recorded in 2022) BLU-RAY Frankfurt Opera / Asmik Grigorian, Iain MacNeil, Claudia Mahnke, Alexander Mikhailov / Valentin Uryupin [ Naxos Blu-ray / Blu-ray - released 11/Nov/2022 ] "Discover one of Tchaikovsky's least-known, least-performed mature operas in a fine production from Frankfurt Opera". © 2024 Gramophone |
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NIKOLAI RIMSKY-KORSAKOV
Rimsky-Korsakov: Christmas Eve (Complete opera recorded in 2021) Georgy Vasiliev (tenor) Julia Muzychenko (soprano) Enkelejda Shkoza (mezzo) Alexey Tikhomirov (bass) / Frankfurter Opern- und Museumsorchester [ Naxos / 2 CD - released 10/Nov/2023 ] "Some will doubtless be glad to enjoy Rimsky's ravishing score without Loy's visuals... It's also hugely enjoyable in its own right, throwing a particular spotlight on Sebastian Weigle's affectionate, alert conducting." Gramophone |
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GIOACHINO ROSSINI
Rossini: Mose in Egitto (1819 Naples version of the complete opera) Giuseppe Fedeli, Wojtek Gierlach, Lorenzo Regazzo, Giorgio Trucco / Wurttemberg Philharmonic Orchestra / Antonino Fogliani [ Naxos / 2 CD - released 30/Jan/2008 ] Rossini's Mosè in Egitto, described as an azione tragico-sacra, combines the biblical narrative of the release of Moses and the Israelites from Egypt, and a more characteristically operatic element in the love of Pharaoh's son Osiride for the Hebrew... |
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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) |
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VERDI
Macbeth (complete opera) - Sferisterio Opera Festival, 2007 Guiseppe Altomare / Ohla Zhuravel / Pavel Kudinov / Rubens Pelizzari / Marco Voleri / Marchigiana Philharmonic Orchestra / Daniele Callegari [ Naxos / 2 CD - released 1/Oct/2009 ] Verdi was justifiably pleased with Macbeth, his tenth opera and his first on a Shakespearian subject-it would long remain his own favourite among his 'early period' operas. Eighteen years later, at the invitation of the Théâtre Lyrique in Paris, he... |
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RICHARD WAGNER
Wagner: Gotterdammerung (complete opera recorded 2018) Gun-Brit Barkmin, Daniel Brenna, Eric Halfvarson, Shenyang, Amanda Majeski, Peter Kálmán / Hong Kong Philharmonic Chorus & Orchestra, Jaap van Zweden [ Naxos / 4 CD Box Set - released 1/Nov/2018 ] This is the third and penultimate release in the acclaimed cycle of Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen with the Hong Kong Philharmonic conducted by Jaap van Zweden. Of the star cast for Siegfried, Matthias Goerne has been singled out for particular... |
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KAROL SZYMANOWSK
Szymanowski: King Roger (Krol Roger), Op. 46 (Complete Opera) plus Prince Potemkin (Kniaz Patiomkin): Incidental Music to Act V Henryk Grychnik (tenor), Andrzej Hiolski (baritone), Anna Malewicz Madej (contralto) / Polish National Radio Symphony / Wit [ Naxos Opera Classics / 2 CD - released 6/Jan/2004 ] "The recorded sound surpasses the others. Perspective is good; voices aren't drowned, but the delicacy of the orchestration is not lost" - American Record Guide |
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RICHARD STRAUSS
Strauss, (R.): Ariadne auf Naxos (complete opera recorded in 1970) Hildegard Hillebrecht, Tatiana Troyanos, Reri Grist, Jess Thomas / Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Karl Böhm [ Australian Deutsche Grammophon SBS Eloquence / 2 CD - released 3/Apr/2015 ] "Reri Grist is my ideal Zerbinetta, precise of rhythm and intonation, witty in phrasing and verbal inflexion, tough in attack yet delectably sensual in vocal quality, the whore of one's dreams, sweet and permissive and utterly natural, never calculat |
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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. |
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JOHANN SIMON MAYR
Mayr: Stabat Mater in F minor / Eja mater / Ave maris stella Jaewon Yun (soprano), Theresa Holzhauser (contralto), Robert Sellier (tenor), Jens Hamann (bass) / Bavarian State Opera Chorus, I Virtuosi Italiani [ Naxos / CD - released 17/Aug/2017 ] Restored by Mayr expert Frans Hauk from two extant manuscript versions and heard here in its world premiere recording, Simon Mayr's Stabat mater in F minor was singled out by a contemporary biographer "for its marvelous effect" and "heavenly beauty."... |
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DANIEL-FRANCOIS AUBER
Auber: Sirène (complete opera) Jeanne Crousaud, Dorothee Lorthiois, Xavier Flabat / Les Métaboles, Orchestre des Frivolités Parisiennes, David Reiland [ Naxos / CD - released 1/Apr/2019 ] Auber earned international adulation in the late 1820s for his revolutionary grand opera La Muette de Portici and by the time he composed La Sirène, the success of which inspired potpourris of its melodies, he occupied a central place in French... |
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RICHARD STRAUSS
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Strauss, (R.): Ariadne auf Naxos (Complete opera recorded in 1988) Jessye Norman, Julia Varady, Edita Gruberova / Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra. Kurt Masur [ Philips / 2 CD Box Set - released 1/May/1989 ] "Jessye Norman's is a commanding, noble, deeply felt performance, ranging extraordinarily wide; she provides the perfectfocus for a cast as near ideal as anyone could assemble today." (Penguin Guide) |
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LEONARD BALADA
Balada: Cristobal Colon (Christopher Columbus) [Opera] Jose Carreras (tenor) Miguel Sola, Luis Alvarez (baritones) Montserrat Caballe (sop) / Liceu Grand Theatre Orchestra / Theo Alcantara [ Naxos / 2 CD - released 1/Sep/2009 ] From one of the world's great opera houses, the Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona, comes Leonardo Balada's richly melodic opera about one of the world's great explorers, Christopher Columbus, commissioned by the Spanish government for the 5th... |
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BENJAMIN BRITTEN
Britten: Albert Herring (Complete opera) Josephine Barstow (soprano) Christopher Gillett (tenor) Robert Lloyd (bass) Felicity Palmer (mezzo) / Northern Sinfonia / Steuart Bedford [ Naxos Opera Classics / 2 CD Box Set - released 19/May/2003 ] "At the new price, there's no excuse for not having one of Britten's richest but least appreciated operatic scores in your collection." BBC Music |
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MAURICE RAVEL
Ravel: L'Enfant et les sortileges (complete opera) / Sheherazade Julie Boulianne / Genevieve Despres / Kirsten Gunlogson / Chattanooga Boys Choir / Nashville Symphony Orchestra / Alastair Willis [ Naxos Opera Classics / CD - released 1/Apr/2009 ] "raucous humour with heartfelt tenderness... Julie Boulianne's child has wide-eyed wonder... She can be heard in grown-up, and decidedly seductive mode in the accompanying Shéhérazade." BBC Music |
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VARIOUS COMPOSERS
Jussi Bjorling: Opera Arias Jussi Bjorling (Tenor) / Stockholm Royal Opera Orchestra, Stockholm Symphony Orchestra, Nils Grevillius [ NAXOS HISTORICAL GREAT SINGERS / CD ] Recorded in the small auditorium of the Stockholm Concert Hall |
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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. |
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VARIOUS COMPOSERS
Booming Bass & Baritone: Best Loved Opera Arias Lado Ataneli (Baritone), Matthias Goerne, (Baritone), Carlo Colombara (Bass), Samuel Ramey (Bass) [ Naxos / CD - released 23/Apr/2021 ] From the jack-of-all-trades, Figaro, to the impotent jester Rigoletto, and from the heroic William Tell to the mischievous Méphistophélès, these larger-than-life characters for baritone and bass represent the grandeur of great music. |
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GIUSEPPE VERDI
Verdi: Otello (complete opera recorded in 1938) Giovanni Martinelli, Elizabeth Rethberg, Lawrence Tibbett / New York Metropolitan Opera Orchestra & Chorus, Ettore Panizza [ Naxos Great Opera Performances / 2 CD - released 27/Jun/2005 ] "Tibbett's Iago is superbly caught, the best account of the role on records…It is a mercurial portrayal, now genial, now ironic or insinuative, nakedly malignant. …his response to every phrase is specific and vivid; and his voice resonates richly." |