Paul Hindemith Mathis der Maler opera to a libretto by the composer. Directed 2012 by Keith Warner at the Theater an der Wien. Stars Wolfgang Koch (Mathis), Kurt Streit (Albrecht von Brandenburg), Franz Grundheber (Riedinger), Manuela Uhl (Ursula), Raymond Very (Hans Schwalb), Katerina Tretyakova (Regina), Martin Snell (Lorenz von Pommersfelden), Charles Reid (Wolfgang Capito), Oliver Ringelhahn (Sylverster von Schaumberg), Ben Connor (Truchseß von Waldburg), Andrew Owens (Helfenstein’s Piper), and Magdalena Anna Hofmann (Countess Helfenstein). Bertrand de Billy conducts the Wiener Symphoniker and the Slovak Philharmonic Choir (Chorus Master Blanka Juhaňáková). Set design by Johan Engels; costume design by Emma Ryott; lighting design by Mark Jonathan. Directed for TV by Peter Landsmann and Paul Landsmann. Sung in German. Released 2021, disc has PCM stereo sound. Grade: NA
This is an older video and only has stereo sound. But I decided not to exclude it. I’ll take a chance. This is the only video recording devoted 100% to Hindemith. The production back in 2012 and the Blu-ray have gotten good reviews. Although he is now neglected as composer, Hindemith was an important intellectual who resisted the Nazis in Germany. Finally, this opera was inspired by the astonishing Isenheim Alter by Mathis Grünewald (1470-1528). So this gives me a chance to do a tie-in to images of great painting! Irresistible!
Read MoreMozart Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute) opera to libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder. Directed 2017 at the Royal Opera House by Revival Director Thomas Guthrie after the 2003 production directed by David McVicar. Stars Mauro Peter (Tamino), Roderick Williams (Papageno), Sabine Devieilhe (Queen of the Night), Peter Bronder (Monostatos), Siobhan Stagg (Pamina), Mika Kares (Sarastro), Darren Jeffery (Speaker of the Temple), and Christina Gansch (Papagena). Julia Jones conducts the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House (Concert Master Vasko Vassilev) and the Royal Opera Chorus (Chorus Director William Spaulding). Set designs by John Macfarlane; lighting designs by Paule Constable; revival movement direction by Angelo Smimmo after Leah Hausman. Directed for TV by Jonathan Haswell. Sung in German. Released 2021, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound . Grade: NA
This was the sixth revival of the 2003 McVicar production that was recorded in 2003 and published in Blu-ray in 2008 (as one of the first opera Blu-rays to be released). The cast is all new. Diana Damrau’s depiction of the Queen of the Night in the 2003 became perhaps the most famous icon of opera in the 21st century—a tough act for Sabine Devieilhe to follow . . .
Read MoreRimsky-Korsakov Sadko opera to libretto by the composer with assistance from Vladimir Belsky. Directed 2020 by Dmitri Tcherniakov at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow. Stars Nazhmiddin Mavlyanov (Sadko), Aida Garifullina (Volkhova), Ekaterina Semenchuk (Lubava Buslaevna), Yuri Minenko (Nezhata), Stanislav Trofimov (Ocean Sea, the Sea Tsar), Mikhail Petrenko (Whistle), Maxim Paster (Fife), Dmitry Ulianov (Varangian Merchant), Alexey Nekludov (Indian Merchant), Andrey Zhilikhovsky (Venetian Merchant), Sergey Murzaev (Vision of the old mighty Warrior), Roman Muravitsky (Foma Nazaryich), Alexandra Durseneva (His Wife), Vladimir Komovich (Luka Zinovyich), and Irina Rubtsova (His Wife). Timur Zangiev directs the Orchestra and Chorus of the Bolshoi Theatre of Russia (Chorus Master Valery Borisov). Set design by Dmitri Tcherniakov; costume design by Elena Zaitseva; lighting design by Gleb Filshtinsky. Directed for TV by Andy Sommer; produced by François Duplat. Sung in Russian. Released 2021, disc has PCM stereo sound. Grade: NA
Tcherniakov continues his grand campaign as opera director to update all operas into the 21st century and to bring the glories of Russian opera to ignorant western audiences. In this title he achieves both goals by . . .
Read MoreDvořák Rusalka opera to libretto by Jaroslav Kvapil. Directed 2020 by Christof Loy at the Teatro Real in Madrid. Stars Asmik Grigorian (Rusalka); Eric Cutler (The Prince); Karita Mattila (The Foreign Princess), Maxim Kuzmin-Karavaev (Vodnik), Katarina Dalayman (Ježibaba); Sebastià Peris ( The Hunter), Manel ESteve (The Forester), Juliette Mars (The Kitchen Boy), and Julietta Aleksanyan, Rachel Kelly, and Alyona Abramova (Three Nymphs). Ivor Bolton conducts the Orchestra and Chorus of the Teatro Real (Chorus Master Andrés Máspero). Set design by Johannes Leiacker; costume design by Ursula Renzenbrink; lighting design by Bernd Purkrabek; choreography by Klevis Elmazaj. Directed for TV by Xavi Bové. Sung in Czech. Released 2021, disc has 5.0 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
Read MoreRameau Hippolyte et Aricie opera to a libretto by Simon-Joseph Pellegrin. Directed 2020 by Jeanne Candel at the Opéra Comique. Stars Reinoud Van Mechelen (Hippolyte), Elsa Benoit (Aricie), Sylvie Brunet-Grupposo (Phèdre), Stéphane Degout (Thésée), Séraphine Cotrez (Œnone), Arnaud Richard (Neptune / Pluton), Eugénie Lefebvre (Diane), Lea Desandre (Prêtresse de Diane / Chasseresse / Matelote / Bergère), Edwin Fardini (Tisiphone), Guillaume Gutierrez (Mercury), Constantin Goubet (First Fate), Martial Pauliat (Second Fate/Arcas), and Virgile Ancely (Third Fate). Raphaël Pichon conducts the Pygmalion Chorus and Orchestra. Dramaturgy and direction of actors by Lionel Gonzalez; set design by Lisa Navarro; costume design by Pauline Kieffer; lighting design by César Godefroy; movement collaborator was Yannick Bosc. Directed for TV by François Roussillon. Sung in French. Released 2021, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
The only review I found (October 2021) about this show (recorded during the pandemic with no audience) was . . .
Read MoreRiccardo Zandonai Francesca da Rimini opera to libretto by Tito Ricordi. Directed 2021 by Christof Loy at the Deutsche Oper Berlin. Stars Sara Jakubiak (Francesca), Jonathan Tetelman (Paolo il Bello), Ivan Inverardi (Giovanni lo Sciancato, or The Lame), Charles Workman (Malatestino dall’Occhio or The One-Eye), Alexandra Hutton (Samaritana), Samuel Dale Johnson (Ostasio), Meechot Marrero (Biancofiore), Mané Galoyan (Garsenda), Arianna Manganello (Altichiara), Karis Tucker (Adonella), Amira Elmadfa (Smaragdi), Andrew Dickinson (Ser Toldo Berardengo), Dean Murphy (Il giullare or The Jester), Patrick Cook (Il balestriere or The Crossbowman) / Prisoner’s Voice), Thomas Lehman (Il torrigiano or The Towerkeeper). Actors are Jan Gerrit Brüggemann, Farouk El-Khalili, Hanno Jusek, Marcus Mundes, Andrea Spartá, Koray Tuna, Benjamin Werth, Nicolas Franciscus, Franz Gnauck, Kay Bretschneider, Paul Krügener, Lukas Lehner, Maximilian Reisenger, and Pablo Nina Toculescu. Carlo Rizzi conducts the Orchestra of the Deutsche Oper Berlin, the Chorus of the Deutsche Oper Berlin (Chorus Master Jeremy Bines), and Supernumiaries of the Deutsche Oper Berlin. Set design by Johannes Leiacker; costume design by Klaus Bruns; lighting design by Olaf Winter. Directed for TV by Götz Filenius. Sung in Italian. Released 2022, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: A
In the 13th century the land now called Italy was divided into warring oligarchic city-states. In 1275 Francesca Polentani of Ravenna was married to Giovanni Malatesta of Rimini, known as Giovanni the Lame, to bolster the strength of both families . . .
Read MoreJohn Corigliano The Ghosts of Versailles opera to libretto by William M. Hoffman. Directed 2019 by Jay Lesenger at the Royal Opera of Versailles. Stars singers Teresa Perrotta (Marie Antoinette), Jonathan Bryan (Beaumarchais), Kayla Siembieda (Susanna), Ben Schaefer (Figaro), Brian Wallin (Count Almaviva), Joanna Latini (Countess Rosina), Peter Morgan (Louis XVI), Christian Sanders (Bégearss), Emily Misch (Florestine), and Spencer Britten (Léon), all from the Glimmerglass Young Artists program, as well as dancers from the Glimmerglass Festival. Joseph Colaneri conducts the Chorus of the Glimmerglass Festival and the Orchestre de l’Opéra Royal. Directed for TV by Olivier Simmonet. Sung in English. Title includes a Blu-ray disc, a DVD, and a CD. Released 2021, Blu-ray disc has 5.1 Dolby Digital sound. Grade: NA
After 7 years in composition, this opera premiered at the Met in 1991. It has since been produced in various forms a handful of times. Previous recordings of this consist of a VHS, a Laserdisc, and a 2-SACD audio album. (The show may be available via Met Opera on Demand, and there is a weak YouTube video of the Met show.) If this title is any good at all, it could be the only modern recording that you can buy.
Ghosts of Versailles is a comedy designed to provide a field day for (1) opera experts, (2) opera trivia fanatics, and (3) graduate students in history. Will this have appeal to the rest of us? Well, this recording will likely be the best way for the rest of us to find out . . .
Read MoreProgramme V (Audycja V) opera. Music by the Pole Andrzej Krzanowski to his own libretto, which includes texts from Polish poets. Directed by Natalia Babińska on September 23, 2018 at the ATM studio in Warsaw as part of the Warsaw Autumn International Festival of Contemporary Music. Szymon Bywalec conducts the New Music Orchestra (Orkiestra Muzyki Nowej) and singers from the Katowice City Singers’ Ensemble (Camerata Silesia). Assistant conductor was Wojciech Wantulok and choirmaster was Anna Szostak. Tape music by Pawel Hendrich. There is only one solo singer: soprano Joanna Freszel. She is joined in solo roles by two actors who recite Polish poetry: Jerzy Głybin and Przemysław Stippa. Karol Urbański is mime and choreographer for dancers of the Szczecin Castle Opera Ballet. Staging and costume design by Klaudia Klimka; mulitmedia and film by Marian Oslislo, Krzysztof Zygalski, and Tomasz Strojecki; lighting by Piotr Sadlik. Directed for TV by Jacek Dybowski. Performed in Polish + Salve Regina in Latin. Subtitles in Polish and English. Released 2020, disc has 5.1 surround sound. Grade: B
Andrzej Krzanowski, born into a working class family, was known as the “Chopin of the accordion.” He wrote contemporary classical music for the accordion and other forces before dying at age 39. The opera Programme V is his most complicated work. It’s unusual (maybe unique) in that Andrzej served as his own Regiedirector by specifying in the score all elements of the mise-en-scène and multimedia aspects . . .
Read MoreSister of Gods opera. “Sister of Gods” translates to ahat-ilī [Akkadian] and Siostra bogów (Polish). The actual title of the opera is “Ahat ilī—siostra bogów.“ The libretto was written in Polish, but then translated into English to improve the marketability of the work. So “ahat ilī—Sister of the Gods” is the name you will likely see most often. I call it “Sister of the Gods” to help you find it in our Alphalist. Music by the Pole Aleksander Nowak. Libretto by Pole Olga Tokarczuk inspired by her own novel Anna in the Tombs of the World, which was in turn inspired by ancient Sumerian myth. This performance, the world premiere of the opera, was directed by Pia Partum in 2018 at the Sacrum-Profanum festival in Kraków, Poland. Stars Urszula Kryger (Ninshubur), Joanna Freszel (Inanna), Ewa Biegas (Ereshkigal), Jan Jakub Monowid (Dumuzi), Łukasz Konieczny (Father 1—grammarian and priest), Bartłomiej Misiuda (Father 2—logician), Sebastian Szumski (Father 3—sociobiologist). Marek Moś conducts AUKSO, the Chamber Orchestra of the City of Tychy, and the Polish Radio Choir (Choirmaster Maria Piotrawska-Bogalecka). Stage design and costumes by Magdalena Maciejewska; lighting by Jacqueline Sobiszewski; choreography and assistant direction by Agnieszka Dmochowska-Sławiec; video by Agnieszka Beaupre and Patryk Stokłosa; hanging and circling objects by Franciszek Wardyński. Sung in English with some parts in Akkadian, Latin, Ancient Greek, Proto-Slavic, and Aztec. Directed for TV by Andrzei Kosowski. Exhaustive and beautiful keepcase booklet has complete libretto in English and Polish. Subtitles in English and Polish. Released 2020, disc has 5.1 surround sound. Grade: A+
Read MoreRimsky-Korsakov The Snow Maiden (La Fille de Niege) opera to a libretto by the composer. Directed 2017 by Dmitri Tcherniakov at the Opéra national de Paris (Opéra Bastille). Stars Aida Garifullina (Snow Maiden), Yuriy Mynenko (Lel), Martina Serafin (Kupava), Maxim Paster (Tsar Berendey), Thomas Johannes Mayer (Mizguir), Elena Manistina (Spring Beauty), Vladimir Ognovenko (Father Frost), Franz Hawlata (Bermyata), and Vasily Gorshkov (Babyl Bakula). Mikhail Tatarnikov conducts the Orchestre de l’Opéra national de Paris (Musical Director Philippe Jordan), the Choers de l’Opéra national de Paris, Maîtrise des Hauts-de-Seine, and the Choeur d’Enfants de l’Opéra national de Paris (Chorus Master José Luis Basso). Set design by Dmitri Tcherniakov; costume design by Elena Zaytseva; lighting design by Gleb Filshtinsky; video by Tiena Burkhalter. Directed for TV by Andy Sommer; produced by François Duplat and Laurent Métivier. Sung in Russian. Released 2021, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: A+
Tcherniakov has long stated that he hopes to bring all the glories of Russian opera to ignorant western audiences. In 2017, the Paris Opera went all out to help him with this. Seems strange that it took 4 years to get this released in Blu-ray. It probably was shown a lot before 2021 on TV in Europe. Let’s start with a shot of the vertigo . . .
Read MoreHandel Ariodante opera to a libretto by an anonymous author. Directed 2017 by Christof Loy at the Haus für Mozart as part of the Salzburg Festival. Stars Cecilia Bartoli (Ariodante), Nathan Berg (King of Scotland), Kathryn Lewek (Ginevra), Rolando Villazón (Lurcanio), Christophe Dumaux (Polinesso), Sandrine Piau (Dalinda), and Kristofer Lundin (Odoardo). Also stars dancers William John Banks, Christopher Basile, Andrew Cummings, Chris Agius Darmanin, Rouven Pabst, Glauber Silva, Rory Stead, and Jack Widdowson. Gianluca Capuano conducts Les Musiciens du Prince - Monaco and the Salzburger Bachchor (Chorus Master Alois Glassner). Set design by Johannes Leiacker; costume design by Ursula Renzenbrink; lighting design by Roland Edrich; choreography by Andreas Heise; dramatic advisor was Klaus Bertisch. Directed for TV by Tiziano Mancini. Sung in Italian. Released 2021, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: A+
Read MoreJean-Baptiste Lully Atys opera to a libretto by Philippe Quinault. Directed 2011 at the Opéra Comique by Jean-Marie Villégier and associate stage director Christophe Galland. Stars Bernhard Richter (Atys), Stéphanie d'Oustrac (Cybèle), Emmanuelle de Negri (Sangaride), Nicolas Rivenq (Célénus), Marc Mauillon (Idas), Sophie Daneman (Doris), Jaël Azzaretti (Mélisse), Bernard Deletré (Le Temps/le fleuve [river] Sangar), Paul Agnew (Dieu du Sommeil), Cyril Auvity (Morphée), Callum Thorpe (Phobétor), Benjamin Alunni (Phantase), Arnaud Richard (Songe furneste), Jean-Charles di Zazzo (Maître des cérémonies/Alecton), Olivier Collin (L'impresario), Elodie Fonnard (Flore, suite de Sangar), Rachel Redmond (Iris), Anna Reinhold (Melpomène), Francisco Fernández-Rueda (Zéphir, suite de Sangar), and Reinoud Van Mechelen (Zéphir). Also stars the dancers of the Compagnie Fêtes galantes et Gil Isoart de l'Opéra national de Paris. William Christie conducts Les Arts Florissants. Choreography by the late Francine Lancelot and Béatrice Massin; set design by Carlo Tommasi; costumes by Patrice Cauchetier; lighting by Patrick Méeüs; wigs by Daniel Blanc; makeup by Suzanne Pisteur. Directed for TV by François Roussillon; produced by Toni Hajal. Sung in French. Released in 2021, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: A+
Read MoreDonizetti Le convenienze ed inconvenienze teatrali (Conventions and Inconveniences of the Stage) opera to a libretto by Domenico Gilardoni. Directed 2017 by Laurent Pelly. Stars Christophe Galland. Stars Laurent Naouri (Mamma Agata), Patrizia Ciofi (Daria), Charles Rice (Procolo), Clara Meloni (Luigia), Enea Scala (Guglielmo), Pietro di Bianco (Biscroma Strappaviscere), Enric Martinez-Castignani (Cesare Salsapariglia), Piotr Micinski (L’impresario), Katherine Aitken (Pippetto), and Dominique Beneforti (Le Directeur du Théâtre). Lorenzo Viotti conducts the Orchestra of Opéra de Lyon and the Chorus of Opéra de Lyon (Chorus Master Pierre Bleuse). Costume design by Laurent Pelly; set design by Chantal Thomas; lighting design by Joël Adam. Directed for TV by Vincent Massip. Sung in Italian. Released in 2021, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
Read MoreMassenet Thaïs to a libretto by Louis Gallet. Directed 2021 by Peter Konwitschny at the Theater an der Wien. Stars Nicole Chevalier (Thaïs), Josef Wagner (Athanaël), Roberto Saccà (Nicias), Carolina Lippo (Crobyle), Sofia Vinnik (Myrtale/Albine), Güneş Gürle (Paléman), and Samuel Wegleitner (Amor). Leo Hussain conducts the ORF Radio-Symphonieorchester Wien and the Arnold Schoenberg Chor (Chorus Master Erwin Ortner). Set and costume design by Johannes Leiacker; lighting design by Guido Petzold. Directed for TV by Tiziano Mancini. Sung in French. Released 2021, disc has dts-HD Master Audio 5.1 sound. Grade NA
Read MoreRameau Platée opera to a libretto by Adrien-Joseph Le Valois d'Orville. Directed 2020 by Robert Carsen at the Theater an der Wien. Stars Marcel Beekman (Platée), Jeanine De Bique (La Folie), Cyril Auvity (Mercure/Thespis), Marc Mauillon (Momus /Cithéron), Edwin Crossley-Mercer (Jupiter), Emmanuelle de Negri (Amour/Clarine), Emile Renard (Junon), Ilona Revolskaya (Thalie), and Padraic Rowan (Mommuss/Satyre). William Christie conducts Les Arts Florissants and the Arnold Schoenberg Chor (Chorus Master Erwin Ortner). Set and costume design by Gideon Davey; lighting design by Robert Carsen and Peter van Praet; choreography by Nicholas Paul; dramatic advisor was Ian Burton. Directed for TV by Davide Mancini. Sung in French. Released 2021, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
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