Wagner Das Rheingold. Directed 2010 by Plamen Kartaloff at the National Opera and Ballet in Sofia, Bulgaria. Stars Nikolay Petrov (Wotan), Krastan Krastanov (Donner), Miroslav Andreev (Froh), Daniel Ostretsov (Loge), Biser Georgiev (Alberich), Krasimir Dinev (Mime), Stefan Vladimirov (Fasolt), Petar Buchkov (Fafner), Rumyana Petrova (Fricka), Veselina Vasileva (Freia), Blagovesta Mekki (Erda), Irina Zhekova (Woglinde), Dorotea Doroteeva (Wellgunde), and Tsveta Sarambelieva (Flosshilde). Pavel Baleff conducts the Orchestra of the Sofia Opera and Ballet. Assistant direction by Juliya Krasteva; set and costume design by Nikolay Panayotov; light design by Andrej Hajdinjak. Directed for TV by Rumen Kovachev and Plamen Kartaloff; sound engineer was Yordan Tomov; video editing by Angel Hristov. Sung in German. Released 2021, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: D
Read MoreWagner Die Walküre to a libretto by the composer. Directed 2011 by Plamen Kartaloff at the Sofia Opera and Ballet. Stars Martin Iliev (Siegmund), Angel Hristov (Hunding), Nikolay Petrov (Wotan), Tsvetana Bandalovska (Sieglinde), Rumyana Petrova (Fricka), Milena Gyurova (Helmwige), Mariana Tzvetkova (Brünnhilde), Irina Zhekova (Ortlinde), Lyubov Metodieva (Gerhilde), Dimitrinka Raycheva (Waltraute), Mariela Aleksandrova (Siegrune), Tsveta Sarambelieva (Rossweisse), Margarita Damyanova (Grimgerde), and Blagovesta Mekki-Tsvetkova (Schwertleite). Pavel Baleff conducts the Orchestra of the Sofia Opera and Ballet. Assistant stage direction by Yulia Krasteva and Vera Petrova; set and costume design by Nikolay Panayotov; lighting design by Andrej Hajdinjak and Emil Dinkov. Directed for TV by Rumen Kovachev and Plamen Kartaloff; sound engineering by Yordan Tomov; video editing by Angel Christov. Sung in German. Released 2021, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: D
Read MoreBeethoven Complete String Quartets. All 16 of the string quartets performed 2012 over 12 days (Große Fuge not counted separately) by the Belcea Quartet at the Wiener Konzerthaus. Quartet members were Corina Belcea, violin; Axel Schacher, violin; Krzystof Chorzelszki, viola; and Antoine Lederlin, cello. 4-disc set has a 47-minute documentary "On the Paths of the Beethoven String Quartets." Music recording directed for TV by Frédéric Delesques. Released 2014 and 2020, discs have 5.0 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: A+
We have not had much chamber music published in Blu-ray. This Beethoven Complete String Quartets has been the most important exception. The original version came in a fancy box in 2014. It sold fairly well and
Read MoreStanisław Moniuszko Halka opera to libretto by Włódzimierz Wolski. Directed 2019 by Natalia Babińska at the Opera Nova in Bydogszcz, Poland. Stars Jacek Greszta (Stolnik); Jolanta Wagner (Halka); Dorota Sobczak (Zofia); Tadeusz Szlenkier (Jontek); Łukasz Goliński (Janusz); Łukasz Jakubczak (Dziemba); Szymon Rona (Piper); Paweł Krasulak, Maciej Musiał, Łukasz Seremet, and Krysztof Zimny (Guests); and Angelika Wojciechowska (Ghost of Halka). Also features thsade Ballet of the Opera Nova and children from the Ballet Studio of the Opera Nova. Piotr Wajrak conducts Orchestra and Choir of the Opera Nova (Choir Master Henryk Wierzchoń). Set design by Diana Marszałek and Julia Skrzynecka; costume design by Paulina Czernek; choreography by Iwona Pasińka; multimedia projections by Ewa Krasucka; lighting design by Maciej Igielski. Sung in Polish. Released 2020, disc has 5.1 Dolby Digital sound. Grade: NA
Another tragic story about a village girl who believed what the young nobleman said
Read MoreWeinberg Trumpet Concerto and Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 4 concert. Performed 2019 with Andris Nelsons conducting the Gewandhausorchester at the Gewandhaus zu Leipzig. Features trumpeter Håkan Hardenberger. Directed for TV by Ute Feudel; produced by Paul Smaczny. Released 2020, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
Read MoreErich Wolfgang Korngold Violanta opera to a libretto by Hans Müller. Directed 2020 by Pier Luigi Pizzi at the Teatro Regio Torino. Stars Annemarie Kremer (Violanta), Michael Kupfer-Radecky (Simone Trovai), Norman Reinhardt (Alfonso), Peter Sonn (Giovanni Bracca), Soula Parassidis (Bice), Anna Maria Chiuri (Barbara), Joan Folqué (Matteo), Cristiano Olivieri (First Soldier), Gabriel Alexander Wernick (Second Soldier), Eugenia Braynova (First Maid), and Claudia De Pian (Second Maid). Pinchas Steinberg conducts the Orchestra and Chorus of the Teatro Regio Torino (Chorus Master Andrea Secchi). Set and costume design by Pier Luigi Pizzi; lighting design by Andrea Anfossi. Directed for TV by Matteo Ricchetti; editing by Adriano Figari; sound recording by Rino Trasi. Sung in German. Released 2020, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: C+
I happened by accident to see this recording streamed for free in the spring of 2020 on the website operavision.eu. I thought it
Read MoreMark Quinn Art. This is a collection of three previously-released documentaries about the protean plastic artist Mark Quinn:
New Directors (1997). A short firm made for Italian TV by Franca Cereghini and Gerald Fox.
Life Support. (2000). Another film made for Italian TV with a dream-like journey into the mind of Quinn.
Making Waves. (2014). A feature-length movie about Quinn’s work and life.
The logo of Monarda Arts appears on the front cover. But this is an Arthaus Musik product published as Catalog Title No. 109403.
To people active in the world of contemporary art, this will likely be all old news. But to innocent souls like me, this is all new as I never heard of Mark Quinn before. Now that I’ve learned something about him, I’m a bit surprised that I didn’t encounter him earlier. But I’ve never been anywhere when he had a popular show going, nor did I ever happen see any of his famous and unforgettable large works of public art. So I’m excited to get this title and get a bit caught up!
Read MoreRobert Bolle, the God of Milan, has been featured in 3 ballet titles from Opus Arte. You can get more details for each title by using the links provided:
This box set provides an excellent value because all the titles are good with no loser in the bunch. The Gala has many times been a hit with audiences new to ballet. We don’t pay much attention to prices on this website, but the initial offering of this for about $40 is a true bargain.
Read MoreWagner Tannhäuser opera to libretto by the composer. Directed 2019 by Tobias Kratzer at the Bayreuth Festival. Stars Stephen Gould (Tannhäuser), Lise Davidsen (Elisabeth), Elena Zhidkova (Venus), Markus Eiche (Wofram von Eschenbach), Stephen Milling (Landgraf Hermann), Daniel Behle (Walther von der Vogelweide), Kay Stiefermann (Biterolf), Jorge Rodríguez-Norton (Heinrich der Schreiber), Wilhelm Schwinghammer (Reinmar von Zweter), and Katharina Konradi (Ein junger Hirt), Le Gateau Chocolat (Le Gateau Chocolat), and Manni Laudenbach (Oskar). Valery Gergiev conducts the Bayreuth Festival Orchestra and Chorus (Chorus Master Eberhard Friedrich). Set and costume design by Rainer Sellmaier; lighting by Reinhard Traub; video by Manuel Braun; dramaturgy by Konrad Kuhn. Directed for TV by Michael Beyer. Sung in German. Released 2020, disc has 5.0 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: A+
As the famous Tannhäuser Overture music begins, we are immediately thrown into a mini-opera explaining how Tannhäuser got tired of living with Venus. The mini-opera was shown at Bayreuth as a video, and we in the home theater probably see it better than the live audience did
Read MoreMozart Don Giovanni opera to libretto by Lorenzo da Ponte. Directed 2014 by Felix Breisach at the Theater an der Wien. Stars Andrè Schuen (Don Giovanni), Mika Kares (Masetto/Il Commendatore), Christine Schäfer (Donna Anna), Mauro Peter (Don Ottavio), Maite Beaumont (Donna Elvira), Ruben Drole (Leporello), and Mari Eriksmoen (Zerlina). Nikolaus Harnoncourt conducts the Concentus Musicus Wien and the Arnold Schoenberg Chor (Chorus Master Erwin Ortner). Costume design by Doris Maria Aigner. Scenic arrangement by Felix Breisach. Directed for TV by Felix Breisach. Sung in Italian. Released 2021, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: D
This video was made 6 years ago—a bad sign. There’s no director because this is an un-staged concert production of the opera. The package does credit Felix Breisach for “scenic arrangement.” That means, I think, that everyone asked Breisach from time to time, “Where should I stand for this number?” There is a stage and costume designer credited. This means, I think, that the singers may wear clothes that vaguely suggest something about their character without looking ridiculous, and there may be a few simple props. Is there some rather shameless puffing going on here? Well, maybe not.
Read MorePuccini Suor Angelica to libretto by Giovacchino Forzano. Directed 2019 by Denis Krief at the Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino. Stars Maria José Siri (Suor Angelica); Anna Maria Chiuri (La Zia Principessa); Marina Ogii (La Badessa); Anna Malavasi (La Suora Zelatrice); Giada Frasconi (La Maestra delle Novizie); Costanza Fontana (Suor Genovieffa); Elena Cavini (Suor Osmina); Nikoleta Kapetanidou (Suor Dolcina); Carmen Buendia (La Suora Infermiera); Eunsong Lim (Prima Sorella Cercatrice); Francesca Longari (Seconda Sorella Cercatrice); Marilena Ruta (Prima Conversa); Emma Alessi Innocenti (Seconda Conversa); Marta Pluda (Prima Novizia); Julia Costa (Seconda Novizia); and Daniela Losi, Consuelo Cellai, and Amanada Ferri (Tre suore).. Valerio Galli conducts the Orchestra, Coro, e Coro delle voci bianche del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino (Chorus Master Lorenzo Fratini). Set, costume, and lighting design by Denis Krief. Directed for TV by Tiziano Mancini; video editing by Metis; recording and editing by MASClassica Audio Recording, Claudio Speranzini, and Antonio Martino. Sung in Italian. Released 2020, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
Read MoreThe Art of Natalia Osipova 4 Disc Set released 2020. Below are the discs for four ballets featuring Natalia Osipova at the ROB. Three of these titles already been reported on this website, and you can get more details by using the links provided:
Giselle. Tchaikovsky. 2014. Grade: A-
La fille mal gardée, Minkus. 2015. Grade: A-
Swan Lake. Tchaikovsky. 2015. Grade: B-
Force of Nature Natalia. Documentary Film. 2020. Grade: NA
Read MoreMozart Die Zauberflöte (the Magic Flute) opera to libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder. Directed 2019 by Barbe & Doucet at Glyndebourne. Stars David Portillo (Tamino); Sofia Fomina (Pamina); Brindley Sherratt (Sarastro); Björn Bürger (Papageno); Caroline Wettergreen (Queen of the Night); Michael Kraus (Speaker); Esther Dierkes, Marta Fontanals-Simmons, and Katharina Magiera (Three Ladies); Jörg Schneidre (Monostatos); Alison Rose (Papagena); Freddie Jemison, Aman de Silva, and Stephan Dyakonov (Three Boys); and Thomas Akins and Martin Snell (Priests and Men in Armour). Ryan Wigglesworth conducts the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment (Leader Matthew Truscott) and the Glyndebourne Chorus (Chorus Director Aidan Oliver). Set design by Barbe & Doucet; lighting design by Guy Simard; puppet designs and coaching by Patrick Martel. Directed for TV by François Roussillon. Sung in German. Released 2020, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
Read MoreThe Bach Project: Cello Suites concert. Performed 2019 at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus in Athens. Yo-Yo Ma plays all six Cello Suites by Bach. Directed for TV and produced by Bernhard Fleischer. Released 2020, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
Read MoreVerdi Simon Boccanegra opera to a libretto by Francesco Maria Piave and later revised by Arrigo Boito. Directed 2019 by Andreas Kriegenburg at the Salzburg Festival. Stars Luca Salsi (Simon Boccanegra), Marina Rebeka (Amelia Grimaldi), René Pape (Jacopo Fiesco), Charles Castronovo (Gabriele Adorno), André Heyboer (Paolo Albiani), Antonio di Matteo (Pietro), Long Long (Captain), and Marianne Sattmann (Amelia’s Maid). Valery Gergiev conducts the Wiener Philharmoniker and the Konzertvereinigung Wiener Staatsopernchor (Chorus Master Ernst Raffelsberger). Set design by Harald B. Thor; costume design by Tanja Hofmann; lighting design by Andreas Grüter; video design by Peter Venus; dramatic advisor was Julia Weinreich. Directed for TV by Tiziano Mancini. Sung in Italian. Released 2020, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: B-
This opera has a complicated libretto. Thanks to Unitel/C Major for an excellent synopsis in the keepcase booklet. I hope the screenshots below will help you keep track of who is who if you watch this title . . .
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