Umberto Giordano Siberia opera to libretto by Luigi Illica. Directed 2021 by Roberto Andò at the Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino. Stars Sonya Yoncheva (Stephana), Giorgi Sturua (Vassili), George Petean (Gléby), Caterina PIva (Nikona), Giorgio MIsseri (Il Principe Alexis), Antonio Garés (Ivan), Francesco Verna (Il Banchiere Miskinsky), Emanuele Cordaro (Walinoff), Francesco Samuele Venuti (Il Capitano), Joseph Dahdah (Il Sergente), Alfonso Zambuto (Il Cosacco), Adolfo Corrado (Il Governatore), Davide Piva (L’Invalido), Amin Ahangaran (L’Ispettore), and Caterina Meldolesi (La Faniciulla). Also features extras Paulo Arcangeli, Mauro Barbiero, Fabrizio Casagrande, Alessandro Ciardini, Leonardo Cirri, Cristiano Colangelo, Giacomo Dominici, Stefano Francasi, Marco Martelli, Stefano Mascalehi, Matteo Mazzuccato, Domenico Nuovo, Federico Vazzola, and Silvio Zanoncelli. Gianandrea Noseda conducts the Orchestra e Coro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentio (Chorus Master Lorenzo Fratini). Features chorus soloist Alfio Vacanti. Set and light design by Gianni Carluccio; costume design by Nanà Cecchi; video design by Luca Scarzella. Directed for TV by Tiziano Mancini; video production by Metis; sound recording, editing and post-production by MASClassica Audio Recording with Claudio Speranzini and Antonio Martino. Sung in Italian, disc has 5.1 dts HD master audio sound. Released 2022, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
Read MoreHandel Saul oratorio (tagged opera here) to libretto by Charles Jennens. Directed 2021 by Claus Guth at the Theater and der Wien. Stars Florean Boesch (Saul), Jake Arditti (David), Anna Prohaska (Merab), Giulia Semenzato (Michal), Rupert Charlesworth (Jonathan), David Webb (Abner / High Priest / Doeg), Rafał Tomkiewicz (Witch of Endor), and Andrew Morstein (Amalekite). Christopher Moulds conducts the Freiburger Barockorchester and the Arnold Schoenberg Chor (Chorus Master Erwin Ortner). Set and costume design by Christian Schmidt; lighting design by Bernd Purkrabek; choreography by Ramses Sigl; video design by Arian Andiel; dramatic advisor was Yvonne Gebauer. Directed for TV by Tiziano Mancini. Sung in English. Released 2022, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
Read MoreProkofiev The Fiery Angel opera to libretto by the composer. Directed 2021 by Andrea Breth at the Theater an der Wien. Stars Aušrinė Stundytė (Renata), Bo Skovhus (Ruprecht), Natascha Petrinsky (Hostess of the Inn / Abbess), Elena Zaremba (Fortune Teller), Nikolai Schukoff (Agrippa von Nettesheim / Mephistopheles), Alexey Tikhomirov (Inquisitor), Markus Butter (Mathias / Faust), Andrew Owens (Jakob Glock / A Doctor), and Kristján Jóhannesson (innkeeper / A Servant). Constantin Trinks conducts the ORF Radio-Symphonieorchester Wien and the Arnold Schoenberg Chor (Chorus Master Erwin Ortner). Set design by Martin Zehetgruber; costume design by Carla Teti; light design by Alexander Koppelmann; dramatic advisor was by Antonio Cuenca Ruiz. Directed for TV by Tiziano Mancini. Sung in Russian. Released 2022, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
Read MoreBach St. John Passion oratorio. Perfored 2021 at the Sheldonian Theatre in Oxford. Stars Nick Pritchard (Evangelist), William Thomas (Christus), Alex Ashworth (Pilatus), Julia Doyle (soprano), Alexander Chance (countertenor), and Peter Davoren (tenor). Sir Eliot Gardiner conducts the English Baroque Soloists and The Monteverdi Choir. Released 2022, disc has Dolby Atmos sound. Package also has 2 audio-only CDs of the same performance. Grade: NA
Read MoreOffenbach Les Contes d'Hoffmann opera to a libretto by Jules Barbier. Directed 2021 by Daniele Finzi Pasca at the Staatsoper Hamburg. Stars Benjamin Bernheim (Hoffmann), Olga Peretyatko (Stella / Olympia / Antonia / Giulietta), Angela Brower (La Muse / Nicklausse), Luca Pisaroni (Lindorf / Coppélius / Dr. Miracle / Dapertutto), and Andrew Dickinson (Andrès / Cochenille / Frantz / Pitichinaccio). Kent Nagano conducts the Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg and the Chor der Hamburgischen Staatsoper. Stage design by Hugo Gargiulo; costume design by Giovanna Buzzi; choreography by Maria Bonzanigo. Directed for TV by Hennig Kasten. Sung in French. Released 2022, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
Read MoreMozart Don Giovanni opera to libretto by Lorenzo da Ponte. Directed 2019 by Jack Furness after Kasper Holton at the Royal Opera House. Stars Roberto Tagliavini (Leporello), Malin Byström (Donna Anna), Erwin Schrott (Don Giovanni), Petros Magoulas (The Commendatore), Daniel Behle (Don Ottavio), Myrtò Papatanasiu (Donna Elvira), Louise Alder (Zerlina), and Leon Košavić (Masetto). Hartmut Haenchen conducts the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House (Concert Master Sergey Levitin) and the Royal Opera Chorus (Chorus Director Genevieve Ellis). Set design by Es Devlin; video design by Luke Halls; costume design by Anja Vang Kragh; lighting design by Bruno Poet. Directed for TV by Jonathan Haswell. Sung in Italian. Released 2022, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: N/A
Read MoreMozart Idomeneo opera to a libretto by Giovanni Battista Varesco. Directed 2019 by Kasper Holten at the Wiener Staatsoper. Stars Bernard Richter (Idomeneo), Rachel Frenkel (Idamante); Irina Lungu (Elettra); Valentina Naforniță (Ilia); Pavel Kolgatin (Arbace); Carlos Osuna (High Priest of Neptune); Peter Kellner (Voice of the Oracle); Dritan Luca and Ion Tibrea (Two Trojan Men); Thomas Köber and Michael Wilder (Two Cretan Men); and Seçil Ilker and Arina Holecek (Two Cretan Women). Tomáš Netopil conducts the Orchester der Wiener Staatsoper and the Chor der Wiener Staatsoper (Chorus Master Martin Schebesta). Set design by Mia Stensgaard; costume design by Anja Vang Kragh; lighting and video design by Jesper Kongshaug; movement direction by Signe Fabricius; dramaturgy by Adrian Mourby. Directed for TV by Jakob Pitzer and Hans Hadulla. Sung in Italian. Released 2022, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
Read MoreHans Abrahamsen The Snow Queen opera to libretto by Hans Abrahamsen and Henrik Engelbrecht. Directed 2019 and 2020 by Andreas Kriegenburg at the Bayerische Staatsoper. Stars Barbara Hannigan (Gerda), Rachel Wilson (Kay), Katarina Dalayman (Grandmother/Old Lady/Finn Woman/Snow Queen), Peter Rose (Reindeer/Clock), Caroline Wettergreen (Princess), Dean Power (Prince), Kevin Conners (Forest Crow), and Owen Willetts (Castle Crow). Cornelius Meister conducts the Bayerisches Staatsorchester and Bayerischer Staatsopernchor (Chorus Master Stellario Fagone). Set design by Harald B. Thor; costume design by Andrea Schraad; lighting design by Michael Bauer. Directed for TV by Christoph Engel. Sung in German. Released 2022, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
Read MoreCarl Maria von Weber Der Freischütz opera to libretto by Johann Friedrich Kind. Directed 2018 by Christian Räth at the Wiener Staatsoper. Stars Adrian Eröd (Ottokar), Clemens Unterreiner (Cuno), Camilla Nylund (Agathe), Daniela Fally (Ännchen), Alan Held (Caspar), Andreas Schager (Max), Albert Dohmen (Hermit), Gabriel Bermúdez (Kilian), and Hans Peter Kammerer (Samiel). Tomáš Netopil conducts the Orchester der Wiener Staatsoper and the Chor der Wiener Staatsoper (Chorus Master Thomas Lang). Set and costume design by Gary McCann; lighting design by Thomas Hase; video design by Nina Dunn; choreography by Vesna Orlic. Directed for TV by Agnes Méth. Sung in German. Released 2022, disc has 5.0 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
Read MoreStanisław Moniuszko Halka opera to libretto by Włódzimierz Wolski. Directed 2019 by Mariusz Treliński at the Theater an der Wien. Stars Corinne Winters (Halka), Tomasz Konieczny (Janusz), Piotr Beczała (Jontek), Alexey Tikhomirov (Stolnik), Natalia Kawałek (Zofia), Łukasz Jakobski (Dziemba), Sreten Manojlović (Dudziarz), and Paul Schweinsester (Góral). Łukasz Borowicz conducts the ORF Radio-Symphonieorchester Wien and the Arnold Schoenberg Chor (Chorus Master Erwin Ortner). Set design by Boris Kudlička; costume design by Dorothée Roqueplo; lighting design by Marc Heinz; video design by Bartek Macias; choreography by Tomasz Jan Wygoda; hair and make up design by Łukasz Pycior; dramatic advisor was Piotr Gruszczyński. Directed for TV by Tiziano Mancini. Sung in Polish. Released 2022, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
Read MoreVerdi Rigoletto opera to libretto by Francesco Maria Piave. Directed 2021 by Davide Livermore at the Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino. Stars Javier Camarena (Il Duca di Mantova), Luca Salsi (Rigoletto), Enkeleda Kamani (Gilda), Alessio Cacciamani (Sparafucile), Caterina Piva (Maddalena), Valentina Corò (Giovanna), Roman Lyulkin (Il Conte di Monterone), Francesco Samuele Venuti (Marullo), Antonio Garés (Matteo Borsa), Davide PIva (Il Conte di Ceprano), Rosalia Cid (La Contessa di Ceprano), Amin Ahangaran (Usciere di corte), and Greta Doveri (Paggio della Duchessa). Riccardo Frizza conducts the Coro e Orchestra del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino (Chorus Master Lorenzo Fratini). Set design by Giò Forma; costume design by Gianluca Falaschi; lighting design by Antonio Castro; video by D-wok. Directed for TV by Tiziano Mancini; video production by Metis; recording, editing, and post-production by MASClassica Audio Recording, Claudio Speranzini, and Antonio Martino. Sung in Italian. Released 2022, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
Read MoreBenet Casablancas L’Enigma di Lea opera to a libretto by Rafael Argullol. Directed 2019 by Carme Portaceli at the Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona. Stars Allison Cook (Lea), José Antonio López (Ram), Sara Blanch (Primera dama de la frontera), Anaïs Masllorens (Segunda dama de la frontera), Marta Infante (Tercera dama de la frontera), Sonia de Munck (Millebocche), Felipe Bou (Milleocchi), Xavier Sabata (Dr. Schicksal), David Alegret (Michele), Antonio Lozano (Lorenzo), and Juan Noval-Moro (Augusta). Josep Pons conducts the Symphony Orchestra and Chorus of the Gran Teatre del Liceu. Choreography by Ferran Carvajal; set design by Paco Azorín; costume design by Antonio Belart; lighting design by Ignasi Camprodon; video design by Miquel Àngel Raió. Directed for TV by Pep Hernández. Sung in Italian and Catalan. Released 2022, disc has PCM stereo sound. Grade: NA
Read MoreBruckner Symphony No. 2 and Symphony No. 8 performed 2019 by Christian Thielemann and the Wiener Philharmoniker at the Wiener Musikverein. Directed for TV by Dick Kuijs. Released 2022, disc has 5.0 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: D+
This is part of a project by United, Thielemann, and the Wiener Phil to record all the Bruckner symphonies beginning with two early symphonic efforts, “00” and “0”, which have not been previously considered part of the canon of 9 symphonies. The title of this grand effort is Bruckner 11. If the project is completed, there will no doubt be a Bruckner 11 box set for sale. For now we grade this D+. This doesn’t mean it’s bad. But don’t buy this unless you know what you are doing.
Read MoreBeethoven Fidelio opera (1814 version) to libretto by Joseph Ferdinand von Sonnleithner, Stephan von Breuning, and Georg Friedrich Treitschke. Directed 2020 by Tobias Kratzer at the Royal Opera House. Stars Robin Tritschler (Jaquino), Amanda Forsythe (Marzelline), Lise Davidsen (Leonore/Fidelio), Georg Zeppenfeld (Rocco), Simon Neal (Don PIzarro), Filipe Manu (First Prisoner), Timothy Dawkins (Second Prisoner), David Butt Philip (Florestan), and Egils Siliņš (Don Fernando). Antonio Pappano conducts the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House (Guest Concert Master Jan Schmolck) and the Royal Opera Chorus (Chorus Director William Spaulding). Set and costume design by Rainer Sellmaier; lighting design by Michael Bauer; video design by Manuel Braun; dramaturgy by Bettina Bartz. Directed for TV by Rhodri Huw. Sung in German. Released 2022, disc has 5.1 dts-HD Master Audio sound. Grade: NA
Read MorePaul 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!
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