NIKOLAY RIMSKY-KORSAKOV
Rimsky-Korsakov: Le Coq d'Or (Complete opera filmed at Mariinsky II, St Petersburg 2014) BLU-RAY/DVD Mariinsky Theatre / Vladimir Feliauer, Andrei Popov & Aida Garifullina / Valery Gergiev (cond) [ Mariinsky DVD + Blu-Ray / 2 Blu-ray Disc/DVD - released 1/Jul/2017 ] "There are some good individual performances, especially from Aida Garifullina as the seductive Queen of Shemakha, and Andrei Popov in the high tenor role of the Astrologer." The Guardian |
SERGEI PROKOFIEV
Prokofiev: War and Peace (complete opera recorded in 1991) Mariinsky Theatre / Yelena Prochina, Irina Bogachova, Alexander Gergalov / Valery Gergiev (cond) [ Arthaus Legendary Performances DVD / DVD - released 12/Sep/2016 ] Sergei Prokofiev devoted the last twelve years of his life to War and Peace. He completed the orchestration by April 1942 and the entire score was ready in March 1943. Having completed the first version (containing eleven scenes) unusually quickly,... |
BENJAMIN BRITTEN
Britten: Death in Venice (complete opera recorded live in 2008) Marlin Miller / R.-François Bitar / Scott Hendricks / Alessandro Riga / Orchestra e Coro del Teatro La Fenice / Bruno Bartoletti [ Dynamic DVD / DVD - released 16/Feb/2011 ] "Marlin Miller sings with a refined lyrical sensibility...the beauty and grandeur of the production on DVD make it an exceptional treat. It is unlikely we will see a Death in Venice to rival this one visually for a long time." (Gramophone Award... |
KURT WEILL
Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny (complete opera recorded in 2010) Measha Brueggergosman / Jane Henschel / Willard White / Michael Konig / Teatro Real Madrid / Pablo Heras-Casado [ Bel Air Classiques DVD / DVD - released 9/Nov/2011 ] Bel Air present the hard-hitting new production of Kurt Weill's Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny by Catalan collective, La Fura dels Baus, from the Teatro Real de Madrid. |
GEORGES BIZET
Bizet: Carmen (complete opera recorded in 1988) Metropolitan Opera / Agnes Baltsa, Jose Carreras, Leona Mitchell, Samuel Ramey / James Levine (cond) [ Deutsche Grammophon DVD / DVD - released 3/Jun/2000 ] Georges Bizet's Carmen, which takes place in and around Seville, Spain tells of the downfall of a soldier, Don José, seduced by the wiles of the fiery gypsy, Carmen. José abandons his sweetheart and his military duties for Carmen. |
GIUSEPPE VERDI
Verdi: Falstaff (complete opera recorded in December 2013) BLU-RAY Metropolitan Opera / Ambrogio Maestri, Angela Meade, Franco Vassallo, Lisette Oropesa, Paolo Fanale / James Levine (cond) [ Decca Blu-ray / Blu-ray Disc - released 10/Oct/2015 ] Verdi's brilliant final masterpiece Falstaff, in its first new Met production in 50 years -- and conducted by Met Music Director James Levine in his first new production since his return to his podium at the Met. |
GIUSEPPE VERDI
Verdi: Aida (complete opera recorded in 1989) Metropolitan Opera / Aprile Millo, Dolora Zajick, Placido Domingo / James Levine, conductor [ Deutsche Grammophon DVD / DVD - released 20/Sep/2003 ] "Levine's is a stalwart reading, less flashy than Maazel's and with a finer orchestra, although he could have turned up the tempo and temperature a little for the war declaration and the tomb scene." Gramophone |
RICHARD WAGNER
Wagner: Die Meistersinger von Nurnberg (The Mastersingers of Nuremberg - complete opera) Metropolitan Opera / Ben Heppner / Karita Mattila / James Morris / Rene Pape / James Morris / James Levine (cond) [ Deutsche Grammophon DVD / 2 DVD - released 1/Feb/2005 ] G :- The MET video production of Richard Wagner's only comedy Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg features the revival of Otto Schenk's 1993 production in December 2001, with an unmatchable ensemble. |
WAGNER
Die Walkure (Complete opera recorded in 2012) Metropolitan Opera / Bryn Terfel, Jonas Kaufmann, Jay Hunter Morris, Deborah Voigt / James Levine (cond) [ Deutsche Grammophon DVD / 2 DVD - released 14/Mar/2013 ] "Terfel is twice the Wotan he seemed at Covent Garden, displaying commanding tone and rough-hewn sensitivity. Deborah Voigt's Brunnhilde is attractively lyrical...Jonas Kaufmann and Eva-Maria Westbroek are superb" BBC Music Magazine, June 2013 **** |
RICHARD WAGNER
Wagner: Gotterdammerung (Complete operas recorded in 2012) Metropolitan Opera / Waltaud Meier, Iain Paterson, Jay Hunter Morris, Deborah Voigt / Fabio Luisi (cond) [ Deutsche Grammophon DVD / 2 DVD - released 14/Mar/2013 ] "Deborah Voigt's Brunnhilde is attractively lyrical. Jay Hunter Morris's stand-in Siegfried is a discovery, a handsome, extrovert giant...Hans-Peter Konig is a brutish Hagen." BBC Music Magazine, June 2013 **** |
GIACOMO PUCCINI
Puccini: Turandot (complete opera recorded in 1988) Metropolitan Opera / Eva Marton, Placido Domingo, Leona Mitchell / James Levine (cond) [ Deutsche Grammophon DVD / DVD - released 17/May/2003 ] Stage production & set design: Franco Zeffirelli |
JOHN ADAMS
Doctor Atomic (complete opera recorded in 2008) Metropolitan Opera / Gerald Finley, Sasha Cooke, Eric Owens / Alan Gilbert (cond) [ Sony Metropolitan Series DVD / 2 DVD - released 20/Feb/2011 ] "Video and audio are state-of-the-art. This is a major addition to the operatic DVD catalog." (ClassicalCdReview) |
GIUSEPPE VERDI
Verdi: Otello (complete opera recorded in 1978) Metropolitan Opera / Jon Vickers, Renata Scotto, Cornell MacNeil / James Levine (cond) [ Sony Metropolitan Series DVD / DVD - released 25/Sep/2011 ] |
GIUSEPPE VERDI
Verdi: Simon Boccanegra (the complete opera recorded in 1995) Metropolitan Opera / Kiri Te Kanawa, Vladimir Chernov, Placido Domingo, Robert Lloyd / James Levine (conductor) [ Deutsche Grammophon DVD / DVD - released 16/Sep/2004 ] "Vladimir Chernov's Boccanegra, a compelling portrayal, beautifully and intensely sung. His eyes tell us throughout of Boccanegra's torments of mind and heart. Levine draws fine performances from his players, but Solti does as well if not... |
GIACOMO PUCCINI
Puccini: Madama Butterfly (complete opera recorded in 2009) Metropolitan Opera / Patricia Racette, Marcello Giordani, Maria Zifchak / Patrick Summers (cond) [ Sony Metropolitan Series DVD / 2 DVD - released 20/Feb/2011 ] "No one could fault any of the singing in this large-scale production which is often stunningly beautiful, particularly the first act ending. Sets and props are minimal-effects are achieved primarily through color. Video and audio are... |
RICHARD WAGNER
Wagner: Parsifal (complete opera recorded in 2013) Metropolitan Opera / Peter Mattei, Rene Papp, Jonas Kaufmann, Katarina Dalayman / Daniele Gatti (cond) [ Sony DVD / DVD - released 10/Apr/2014 ] "The impassioned intensity Jonas Kaufmann brings to Parsifal's music is matched by the rhetorical conviction of Peter Mattei's Amfortas and Evgeny Nikitin's Klingsor." (Gramophone Award Nomination 2015 - Opera) |
GIUSEPPE VERDI
Verdi: Simon Boccanegra (complete opera recorded in 2010) Metropolitan Opera / Plácido Domingo, Adrianne Pieczonka, James Morris, Marcello Giordani / James Levine (cond) [ Sony Metropolitan Series DVD / 2 DVD - released 20/Feb/2011 ] "(Domingo's) portrayal is touching and sounds beautiful, particularly in the last act; in its own way, it is yet another triumph for him in what is a very long career of triumphs." (ClassicsToday) |
VERDI / JOHAN STRAUSS
Metropolitan Opera Gala 1991: 25th Anniversary at Lincoln Center [2 DVDs] The Metropolitan Opera with Placido Domingo, Mirella Freni, Luciano Pavarotti, Cheryl Studer, Anne Sofie von Otter, Barbara Daniels, and many others [ Deutsche Grammophon DVD / 2 DVD - released 6/May/2010 ] G - Thrill to "hours and hours of glorious opera...A triumphant celebration of virtuosity (Toronto Globe and Mail) as New York's legendary opera company celebrates its first quarter century at Lincoln Center with "one of the most exquisitely refined... |
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. |
VERDI / MOZART / MONTEVERDI / OFFENBACH / PUCCINI / WAGNER
The Essential Opera Collection (19 DVD) Muziektheater Amsterdam / Glyndebourne Opera / Madrid Teatro Real / Gran Teatre del Liceu / Netherlands Opera / Royal Opera House / Paris Opera [ Opus Arte Essential Opera Collection DVD / 19 DVD Box Set - released 20/Nov/2015 ] The 'Essential Opera Collection' is an exciting new mid-price series that brings together popular operas and classic productions in simple stylish packaging. The ten launch titles represent the leading opera houses of the world, including The Royal... |