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See Terms & Conditions for p&p rates. | |  | Tchaikovsky Iolanta & Stravinsky Persephone2012 Teatro Real, Madrid
Amrita, Pequeños Cantores & Chorus and Orchestra of the Teatro Real, Teodor Currentzis (Musical Director) & Peter Sellars (Stage Director) Set Designer George Tsypin Costume Designers Martin Pakledinaz & Helen Siebrits Lighting Designer James F. Ingalls Iolanta is a one act lyric opera, sung in Russian, by Tchaikovsky. Performed in the style of a nineteenth-century Italian melodrama, the scenes have a recitative introduction followed by a single arioso, aria, duet or chorus. Persephone is a three act melodrama, sung in French, by Stravinsky. It is a story of regeneration, symbolised in Sellars use of dancers from the Cambodian dance company, Amrita Performing Arts. Peter Sellars, one of the most innovative creators on today's stage, has linked these two productions by using the same stage setting, instantly archaic yet modern, and lit by rich colours to define the journey from darkness to light. “There are fine performances from Dominique Blanc in the title role and Paul Groves as Eumolpe. The real touch of genius, though, is Sellars' decision to reimagine the piece in terms of eastern dance rather than ballet, and the choreography, by Cambodia's Amrita Performing Arts, is exquisite.” The Guardian, 13th December 2012 **** “Iolanta is concerned with the transition from darkness to light...one's attention is caught by Sellars's telling direction: faces suffused in light, faces caught in profile...Persephone, also about light and dark, is staged with the same set...Currentzis conducts both pieces impeccably: don't miss.” Gramophone Magazine, January 2013 “The singing in the present performance is admirable throughout, with idiomatic Russian singing but without the apparent wobble which can put off some non-Russian listeners. Match this with full-blooded playing from the Teatro Real orchestra. The production by Peter Sellars is generally clear although sometimes confused by a bizarre choice of camera angle or subject” MusicWeb International, February 2013 “It would be hard to find a more committed, vocally assured pair than Ekaterina Scherbachenko and Pavel Cernoch” BBC Music Magazine, March 2013 **** | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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Produced by EMI Classics in partnership with the prestigious National Gallery in London, The National Gallery Collection is a budget-price catalogue series bringing together the very best in fine art and classical music. The collection features a selection of classical masterworks in celebrated recordings from the EMI Classics catalogue, brought together with great artworks from The National Gallery’s permanent collection. | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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| |  | Libretto by Bertolt BrechtSung in English
Jane Henschel (Leocadia Begbick), Donald Kaasch (Fatty the Bookkeeper), Willard White (Trinity Moses), Measha Brueggergosman (Jenny Smith), Michael König (Jim Maclntyre), John Easterlin (Jack O’Brien / Toby Higgins), Otto Katzameier (Bank-Account Bill) & Steven Humes (Alaska-Wolf Joe) Orquesta y Coro del Teatro Real, Orquesta Sinfónica de Madrid & Coro Intermezzo, Pablo Heras-Casado Stage direction Alex Ollé, Carlus Padrissa – La Fura dels Baus Scenography Alfons Flores, Costumes Lluc Castells, Lighting Urs Schönebaum High Definition recording : Teatro Real - Madrid: 09/2010 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. Composed in the 1930s by Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht, this is a mordant satire on capitalism in a society in which the ultimate crime is not having money. In 20 scenes the authors tell the story of a city lost in the middle of a desert and run by three thugs; in Mahagonny food, sex, gambling and violence rule supreme. The production, by Alex Ollé and Carlus Padrissa of La Fura dels Baus, combines enormous inventiveness, joy and energy with awe-inspiring ferocity. Perfect casting brings together a group of singers – Measha Brueggergosman, Michael König, Jane Henschel and Willard White – who are also marvellous actors. The Teatro Real Orchestra and Chorus are directed by young Spanish conductor Pablo Heras-Casado, who received the “El Ojo Crítico” prize in 2010, awarded annually to Spain’s most outstanding artists. La Fura was founded in 1979 as a Catalan street theatre group. Key features of the ‘Furan’ language were already apparent: interaction with the audience, the use of unusual spaces and the adaptation of the show to the characteristics of each space. Their work for the opening ceremonies of the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona, Mediterráneo, mar olímpico brought La Fura dels Baus to an audience of billions throughout the world. Their first foray into opera was with La Atlántida, with frequent collaborator Jaume Plensa, and has developed as far as Wagner’s Ring Cycle and Boris Godunov, a daring reflection on the problem of terrorism, its limits and the manipulation it generates. Stunning images and more information on www.lafura.com 16/9, NTSC, PCM Stereo, Dolby Digital 5.1 Total timing : 138 minutes Subtitles : Fr, Eng, Ger, Spa “Brueggergosman's Jenny is stunning to behold...[Henschel] has precisely the right dramatic-mezzo instrument for this role, and she can sing sensuously when required...[Easterlin] offers tone and diction as clear as a bell, along with a delightfully boyish characterization...[Heras-Casado] has the measure of the piece, as does the Madrid orchestra, which has reached the point where it makes playing a work such as this seem like falling off a log.” International Record Review, January 2012 “Superbly filmed by Andy Sommer, it makes for uncomfortable viewing, particularly during the current economic crisis. You might, however, find it musically less convincing. There's exceptional conducting from Pablo Heras-Casado, but the singing is variable.” The Guardian, 8th December 2011 **** | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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Reissue in slimmer packaging including a tracked synopsis in 3 languages, now that the original versions are no longer available. Libretto to be found on the web. “The two treats here are Dessay's Queen of the Night and the Pamina of the now sadly retired Mannion.” BBC Music Magazine, December 2011 *** “… this is as idiomatic and as deeply Mozartian a reading of the work as any in the catalogue. … the performance itself, which is euphonious to a degree and falls more sweetly and lovingly on the ear than any I can recall. … All this gives Christie
opportunities to shape the work subtly and sensitively … Taken overall, the performance is quick and light-textured - and often quite dramatic … Another strength lies in the shaping, cool and unselfconscious, of the two extended finales …These light
and soft textures and graceful phrasing are what above all characterize this recording.” Gramophone Magazine, May 1996 | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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| |  | DSD recording, live at the Barbican January 2009
Sung in Hungarian (spoken prologue in English) Text in Hungarian with English translation. Valery Gergiev is joined by two outstanding singers for his latest LSO Live release featuring Bartók's one-act opera. Despite being one of the greatest ever interpreters of the role of Bluebeard on stage, this is Sir Willard White's first complete recording of Bluebeard's Castle. His Judith is the outstanding young Russian-born, Berlin-based mezzo Elena Zhidkova. Sir Willard performs extensively around the world during 2009 including appearances at The Metropolitan Opera in New York and La Scala in Milan. Elena Zhidkova will appear with the LSO and Gergiev at the BBC Proms and make her debut at the Mariinsky Theatre. She also performs in Palermo, Dresden, Leipzig, Amsterdam, Prague and Tokyo as well as returning to La Scala. Bartók's only opera is a dark and intense work, involving only two characters. Bluebeard's young bride persuades him to open seven doors in his castle in order to let light into the grim interior. Behind each she finds increasingly disturbing sights, until behind the final door she discovers Bluebeard's former wives and learns her fate. CONCERT REVIEW: 'Who needs weeping walls and blood-stained jewels when you have the voice of Elena Zhidkova? As Bluebeard's wife she made us see and feel it all' The Times “Sonority wins over emotional display with Willard White’s Duke, but Elena Zhidkova makes partial amends as the anguished Judit.” The Times, 8th August 2009 *** “…Gergiev and his superlative orchestral forces and vocal soloists, supported by magnificent sound quality, present the enigmatic piece with great power, leaving us, as adequate performances always do, feeling stunned and somewhat bewildered. Willard White's Bluebeard, exceptionally firm of tone, implacable but tormented without ever indulging his pain, is magnificent. He needs to be to counter the superb Elena Zhidkova...” BBC Music Magazine, October 2009 ***** “For the perfect introduction to Bartók's Bluebeard look no further. …the pivotal moment is the sombre burbling of the lake of tears… where Judith is transfixed by the water's unearthly hush and Bluebeard explains, "tears, my Judith, tears, tears…". Gergiev sustains a pretty slow tempo while clarinet and low strings embrace both protagonists with long, expressive lines. The opera's later episodes, such as the accelerating blood-rush as Judith susses the shocking truth (Gergiev and his players are on tremendous form here), Bluebeard pondering his past wives and the overwhelming moment when Judith at last joins them, all suggest similar levels of thoughtfulness, sense of theatre and sensitivity to mood.” Gramophone Magazine, October 2009 “Gergiev takes to the potent compound of searing psychology, soaring poetry...with characteristic gusto, at pains to stress the pulsing drama at the heart of the seemingly undramatic premise of the work...White’s Bluebeard is a biting, granite-edged performance of inscrutable and intimidating stature.” Michael Quinn, bbc.co.uk, 1st October 2009 | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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| |  | Grand Théâtre, Aix-en-Provence 2006
Robert Gambill (Siegmund), Mikhail Petrenko (Hunding), Willard White (Wotan), Eva-Maria Westbroek (Sieglinde), Eva Johansson (Brünnhilde), Lilli Paasikivi (Fricka), Joanna Porackova (Gerhilde), Elaine McKrill (Ortlinde), Julianne Young (Waltraute), Andrea Baker (Schwertleite), Erika Sunnegårdh (Helmwige), Heike Grötzinger (Siegrune), Eva Vogel (Grimgerde) & Annette Bod (Rossweisse) Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, Sir Simon Rattle (conductor) & Stéphane Braunschweig (director) In a career spanning more than 30 years, Sir Simon Rattle has distinguished himself through his long-term relationships with a number of orchestras, wide-ranging repertoire and innovative educational and audiencebuilding activities. He is currently Chief Conductor and Artistic Director of the Berliner Philharmoniker and Principal Artist with the OAE. Sir Simon first conducted the Berlin Philharmonic in 1987 and appeared regularly with the orchestra in subsequent years.The summer of 2006 saw the first instalment of their Wagner Ring Cycle at the Aix-en-Provence Festival. Sir Simon's most recent appearance at the Proms in Wagner brought forth ecstatic reviews, which bodes well for possible future installments of the Aix /Salzburg Ring on Bel Air Classiques. "In what is both Mr. Rattle's and Aix's first Ring Cycle, "Die Walküre," the Ring's second chapter, was magically transformed by the enclosed space and lively acoustics of the Grand Théâtre de Provence. But where the new theater makes another significant difference is in Mr. Braunschweig's staging of the opera. Far more than in last year's "Rheingold," even the gods, notably Wotan and his twin children, Siegmund and Sieglinde, can now be felt to experience deeply human emotions. The final curtain brought a standing ovation for both orchestra and singers, with Ms.Westbroek singled out for her "extraordinary power and lyricism," as Jean-Louis Validire, Le Figaro's music critic, put it… The Ring Cycle continues here with "Siegfried" in 2008 and "Götterdammerüng" in 2009 and, as with "Das Rheingold" and "Die Walküre," they will be presented afresh at the Salzburg Easter Festival the following year." The New York Times, July 5, 2007 “Sir Willard White's patriarchal Wotan seems subtler on screen, more smouldering than stiff, and sings richly… Eva Johansson's… makes a fiery, youthful Brünnhilde, more at one with her fellow Valkyries - a fine bunch - than usual. Rattle's conducting… is easy enough to enjoy - fluent, often sweeping - and, of course, beautifully played by the Berliners” BBC Music Magazine, December 2008 **** “Wind and brass detail, the accuracy and blending of the chording and that rhythmic precision which is a Rattle speciality lift the final colloquy between Wotan and Brünnhilde to Olympian heights.” Gramophone Magazine, January 2009 | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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| |  | Mozart - Requiem & Mass in C minor
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| |  | Willard White in Concert
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Subtitles: English , French, German, Italian “In an ideal world, operatic recordings would always evolve in this way...We've a real sense here of Gershwin's community, a feeling of oneness with the piece from singers who've not only lived with, but through, their characters. I doubt we'll ever hear the score in a better light. And what a score it is.” Gramophone Magazine, June 1989 | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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Penguin Guide