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See Terms & Conditions for p&p rates. | |  | Recorded live at Festspielhaus Baden-Baden 29 Jan, 1 & 4 Feb 2010
Conducted by Christian Thielemann, this performance was the sensation of the 2010 Baden-Baden Festival. A one-act masterpiece inspired by Greek mythology, it is a dense, jagged cry for justice and vengeance. With its powerfully expressive chords, spooky waltz rhythms and mad dance of triumph, it shakes the audience to the core. Herbert Wernicke’s legendary production for the Bayerische Staatsoper stands out for its clear lines, classical structural elements and striking colour contrasts. Linda Watson, one of the great Wagnerian sopranos of today, superbly masters her role debut as Elektra, one of opera’s most demanding roles. Extra features: Cast gallery Running time 1 hour 40 mins Region code All regions Video codec AVC/MPEG-4 Disc size BD50 Picture format 1080i High Definition / 16:9 Sound format 2.0 LPCM + 5.1(5.0) DTS digital surround Menu language EN Subtitles: EN/FR/DE/ES “Watson has physical stature, an expressive face...the necessary intelligence and a suitable instrument, which is saying a great deal in this most formidable of roles...[Henschel] makes a capital Klytämnestra, lavishing lovelier tone on the role than it usually receives...Never do Christian Thielemann and the Munich Philharmonic overwhelm the singers: they make chamber music, in effect, with no bombast whatever” International Record Review, March 2011 “Perhaps taking its cue from Electra's repeated cry of 'Allein!' ('Alone!') the production presents all its characters as both alone and alienated from one another...Possibly in reaction to the statuesque starkness of the staging, Thielemann seems to want to tone down the score's mythic violence and tease out its moments of human (essentially womanly) warmth.” BBC Music Magazine, April 2011 *** | | | Usually despatched in 2 - 3 working days. |
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| |  | Recorded live at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden in March 2008.
David McVicar’s powerful 2008 production of Oscar Wilde’s bible-based drama takes the controversially disturbing film Salò as its visual reference, setting it in a debauched palace in Nazi Germany. Strauss’s ravishing and voluptuous score adds to the sexual alchemy conjured by an international cast led by Nadja Michael in the title role. Filmed for the big screen with High Definition cameras and recorded in true surround sound. Warning: Contains nudity and scenes of violence. Bonus material: Synopsis Cast gallery David McVicar: A work in process – a full ITV documentary on David McVicar and his work on Salome, with unique interviews and extensive backstage footage (itv Productions) Running time 169 mins Region code All regions Video codec: AVC/MPEG-4 Disc size: BD50 Picture format 1080i High Definition / 16:9 Sound format 2.0 PCM & 5.0 DTS Master Audio Menu language EN Subtitles EN/FR/DE/ES/IT “The only ideal voice to be heard is the first, Joseph Kaiser's as an angelic-sounding Narraboth; but most shortcomings are overridden by Jonathan Haswell's accomplished filming. McVicar's energetic, slightly scary part in all this, as actor and designer manqué, comes across entertainingly in the 50-minute documentary.” BBC Music Magazine, November 2008 **** “Nadia Michael… is an attractive Salome, moving like a dancer, as physically unafraid as she is vocally… Michael Volle is an imposing, rich-toned Narraboth… but it is Thomas Moser's weakly human Herod who emerges as the most truly lived-in character. Philippe Jordan seems... especially alert to the most modern twists of Strauss's harmonies. The filming (Jonathan Haswell) is sensitive to David McVicar's work while being much more than merely a static record.” Gramophone Magazine, February 2009 “For all its nudity and gore Salome ends the evening in a white petticoat red with blood (mostly from the executioner) – this is a conventional production which lays out the story straightforwardly.
It is based on Pasolini's film Salo which gives us the 1930s setting and 'decadent' extras (who could be much more animated) standing around watching an everyday story of the Herods. Es Devlin's handsome set shows us Herod's banquet in progress upstairs in addition to the main area of the basement, and becomes nicely mobile during a Dance in Seven Rooms (which, according to the accompanying documentary, depicts Salome's abused upbringing).
Nadja Michael has become in short order Europe's Number One not-quite-hochdramatische choice for physically demanding productions.
She is an attractive Salome, moving like a dancer, as physically unafraid as she is vocally – and this tricky sing, with its ferocious tuning, suits her. Michael Volle is an imposing, richtoned [Jokanaan], given little to do but emote about Jesus. Both these German artists make a considerable impact through their own voices and physicality – but it is Thomas Moser's weakly human Herod who emerges as the most truly lived-in character. Philippe Jordan seems to have balanced his orchestra extremely well for both house and cast and is especially alert to the most modern twists of Strauss's harmonies. The filming (Jonathan Haswell) is sensitive to David McVicar's work while being much more than merely a static record” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010 “The colourful sets amplify the decadence, and Salome's dance is sensuously managed. Michael's Salome can sing and dance with comparable flair and accuracy. Thomas Moser's Herod is genuinely moving...The orchestra plays splendidly under Philippe Jordan” Penguin Guide, 2010 edition ** | | | Usually despatched in 2 - 3 working days. |
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| |  | Live Recording from The Festspielhaus Baden-Baden, 2011
Stage Design by HANS-MARTIN SCHOLDER This highly acclaimed production of Strauss’ Salome from the Festspielhaus Baden-Baden is staged by German director Nikolaus Lehnhoff. Starring Angela Denoke as “a brilliant Salome” (FAZ), who is joined by a great ensemble of soloists, Kim Begley, Doris Soffel and Alan Held. Performing with “great aplomb” (FAZ), the Deutsches Sinfonie Orchester Berlin, conducted by Stefan Soltez, was also enthusiastically celebrated by critics and audience. Sound Format: PCM Stereo, dts-HD Master Audio 5.0 Picture Format: 16:9 Resolution: 1080i FULL HD Subtitle Languages: DE (Original Language), GB, IT, FR, ES, JP, Korean Running Time: 112 mins Blu-ray Disc: 25 GB (Single Layer) FSK: 12 “Denoke wins her place in the sun as a lithe if hardly sex-kittenish Salome. She has an expressive, secure and slightly dark-timbred voice...Held is a physically and vocally powerful prophet...It's all clear and slick throughout but never quite makes the flesh creep.” BBC Music Magazine, April 2012 *** “there's no denying the conviction of the performance, and the filming is suitably bold in its use of close-up...the unseen conductor Stefan Soltesz makes a powerful impression and the torrid score breathes but never drags. Denoke has the measure of the taxing title-role: assuming that we have is a single, unedited performance, she does particularly well to save an extra degree of vocal heft for the final scene.” Gramophone Magazine, May 2012 “this Nikolaus Lehnhoff-directed production draws vivid and valid characterizations and motivations...Kim Begley's big-voiced Herod is properly nasty; Doris Soffel's ageing movie-star-like Herodias is both shrill and menacing; and Alan Held's Jokanaan is filled with scorn, piety and grandeur.” International Record Review, April 2012 | | | Usually despatched in 2 - 3 working days. |
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| |  | Andris Nelsons and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra at Lucerne Festival, 4th September 2011
Andris Nelsons is one of the most sought-after young conductors on the international scene today and once again served notice of his extraordinary talent in Summer 2011 when he conducted two concerts with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam at the prestigious Lucerne Festival. In this concert (available on DVD and Blu-ray) orchestra and conductor demonstrate their brilliance in some of the most spectacular orchestral works ever written. Total: 100 minutes Andris Nelsons is one of the most sought-after young conductors on the international scene today and once again served notice of his extraordinary talent in Summer 2011 when he conducted two concerts with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam at the prestigious Lucerne Festival. In this concert (available on DVD and Blu-ray) orchestra and conductor demonstrate their brilliance in some of the most spectacular orchestral works ever written. Total: 100 minutes BD: DTS-HD MA 5.1, PCM Stereo Picture 16:9, HD | | | Usually despatched in 2 - 3 working days. |
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| |  | An Evening with Renée FlemingRecorded live at Waldbühne, Berlin, 2010
The Waldbühne in Berlin, one of the most appealing outdoor amphitheatres on the European continent, is the home of the Berliner Philharmoniker’s summer concerts. With over 20,000 attendances, these are some of the most popular classical music concerts in the world. This year the Berliner Philharmoniker play under the baton of Ion Marin, one of the most exciting conductors on today’s musical scene. They welcome "America's Beautiful Voice", Grammy Award winning soprano Renée Fleming, who has a devoted international following wherever she appears. Her career has been built on success across a wide range of musical styles, but she is best-known for her excellence in opera worldwide. The device of the evening was “Night of Love”- the most beautiful Opera Arias in combination with atmospheric instrumental pieces. | | | Usually despatched in 2 - 3 working days. |
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| |  | Bruckner: Symphony No. 7 & Wolf: LiederRecorded live at Semperoper Dresden, September 2012
The Dresden Staatskapelle has a living Bruckner tradition, stretching back a century and more, which is lovingly curated by its new music director, Christian Thielemann, who is himself a powerful advocate for the composer’s symphonies as the pinnacle of the Austro-German tradition; and in particular for the Wagnerian resonances of the Seventh, whose Adagio was shaped by news of Wagner’s death in Venice. Hugo Wolf was also deeply affected by that news; his songs, like Bruckner’s symphonies, can be seen as oblique reflections on the influence of Wagner, especially when sung, as they are here by Renée Fleming, with the utmost delicacy and intimacy. Christian Thielemann’s first concert as Principal Conductor of the Staatskapelle Dresden. Both Thielemann and Fleming are renowned interpreters of Romantic repertoire. Bruckner’s 7th Symphony premiered in 1884 to universal acclaim & established him as a serious composer of symphonic music, Wolf’s Songs were composed four years later. Wolf was a great admirer of Bruckner and both idolized Wagner, whose influence is felt in the 7th Symphony. Running time: 106 minutes Subtitles N/A Sound format: 2.0LPCM + 5.1(5.0) DTS | 
| | | Scheduled for release on 3 June 2013. Order it now and we will deliver it as soon as it is available. |
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| |  | Dances & Dreams: Gala from Berlin 2011Recorded live at the Berlin Philharmonic, 31 December 2011
In 2011 the Berliner Philharmoniker and their musical director Sir Simon Rattle welcomed in the New Year with a gala concert programmed with ‘Dances & Dreams’. Spinetingling and inspiring performances of music by Dvořák, Ravel, Richard Strauss, Stravinsky and Brahms are complemented by the extraordinary talent of the multi-awarded Russian pianist Evgeny Kissin. Kissin’s musicality, the depth and poetic quality of his interpretations, and his extraordinary virtuosity have placed him at the forefront of today’s pianists, and his passionate performance of the renowned Piano Concerto in A minor by Edvard Grieg is mesmerizing. Kissin's musicality, the depth and poetic quality of his interpretations, and his extraordinary virtuosity have placed him at the forefront of today's pianists. Picture format: 1080i Full HD 16:9 Sound formats: PCM 2.0, DTS-HD Master Audio Surround Region code: All (worldwide) Booklet notes: English, German, French Running time: 89 mins German FSK: 0 “Where Rattle and company radiate love, Kissin gives us duty. Still, nothing else casts a chill. Hearing the orchestra's splendours, observing the smiles and eye contact, you'd never believe the past stories of turbulence between musicians and conductor...The Blu-ray edition, as always, is markedly crisper” BBC Music Magazine, January 2013 **** | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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| |  | Jurowski conducts Strauss & RavelRecorded at Cité de la Musique - Paris, January 2009
This programme captures the musical encounter between one of the most talented conductors of his generation with arguably the best chamber orchestra musicians. They are joined by worldwide renowned pianist Hélène Grimaud in a programme featuring Strauss and Ravel, a perfect combination of familiar repertoire and works that deserve to be discovered. Vladimir Jurowski surprises the listener by a fresh style and approach. In combination with the charming and incisive Grimaud, he invites us to drift away with this extraordinary performance. Both artists are very thoughtful about the music they make and create a pure enjoyment for ear and eye. The award-winning Hélène Grimaud presents a lively rendition of Ravel’s concerto. Together with the orchestra lyricism and sonorous harmonies are expertly teased out. Picture format DVD: NTSC 16:9 Sounds formats DVD: PCM Stereo, DD 5.1, DTS 5.1 Region code: 0 Booklet notes: English, German, French Running time: 81 min FSK: 0 | | | Usually despatched in 2 - 3 working days. |
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| |  | Mariss Jansons ConductsLive from The Philharmonie Im Gasteig, Munich, 2011
Beethoven wrote his Piano Concerto No. 3 around 1800, at a time in which the ambitious composer had created his fi rst important works in Vienna, such as the “Pathétique” Sonata and the “Moonlight” Sonata – personal works full of power and passion, with which he distanced himself from his mentor and model, Haydn. This performance of Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 3 with the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks under the direction of its principal conductor Mariss Jansons stars the distinguished pianist Mitsuko Uchida, who is known the world over for her outstanding interpretations of the piano works of Schubert, Mozart and Beethoven, as well as of 20th-century masters such as Schoenberg, Berg, Webern and Boulez. Richard Strauss wrote his tone poem for large orchestra Ein Heldenleben (A Hero’s Life) in 1898, shortly before he left Munich for the Berlin Court Opera, where he was appointed house conductor. In the imaginary hero whose eventful life is described in the work, the young Strauss apparently envisioned the freelance artist of his time, who was exposed to considerable hostility during the Wilhelminian era, just as Strauss himself in his early Munich period. Picture Format: 16:9, 1080i FULL HD Running Time: 90 mins Blu-ray Disc: 25 GB (Single Layer) FSK: 0 Region Code: Worldwide Worldwide available |
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| |  | Renée Fleming in ConcertRecorded live at the Salzburg Festival, August 2011
Gloriously affirming the Salzburg Festival’s long-standing reputation as a supreme musical event, this concert honours one of its founding fathers, Richard Strauss. Renée Fleming, Christian Thielemann and the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra unite for a programme of song, opera and tone poem, genres central to the composer’s extraordinarily fruitful career. Fleming interprets four of his songs with orchestra, including the deeply moving Befreit, and provides a substantial taste of perhaps her finest operatic role, Arabella. New vistas then open as Thielemann and the Vienna Philharmonic take the spectacular mountain journey mapped by the composer in his titanic Alpine Symphony. Running time: 84 minutes Subtitles: EN/FR/DE/ES Sound format: 2.0LPCM + 5.1(5.0) DTS “This is a rare case of visuals enhancing the listening experience, and the Vienna Philharmonic’s Strauss tradition is there for all to see. Thielemann doesn’t push or pull the music, but he is not a pretty sight: his left hand remains inexpressive...there is still no soprano I would rather hear in the soaring lines of “Traum durch die Dämmerung” and “Gesang der Apollopriesterin”.” Financial Times, 19th May 2012 **** “You can immediately hear the classiness of the orchestral support...Thielemann's journey up the mountain is more a question of inner feeling than outward tone-painting...But the summit sequence and the epilogue rival Herbert von Karajan's Berlin Philharmonic for tonal opulence...the cameras always know what to pinpoint in order to highlight visually Strauss's most ingenious orchestral passages.” BBC Music Magazine, August 2012 ***** “Thielemann, whose reading is satisfyingly spacious, reveals the work's structural mastery in intermingling and transforming its many themes. The excellent video director Michael Beyer expertly lays out the orchestra in front of us, following the music sensibly so that we can relish Strauss's detailed scoring...[Fleming] sings gloriously and the result is ravishing” Gramophone Magazine “it is more fun to actually see the players (kudos to video director Michael Beyer) than merely to listen...And no one will accuse the reading [of Ein Alpensinfonie] of not being exciting and the playing superb...In all, this is clearly a treat for Straussians and Fleming fans; she has been both better and worse, but overall, she's lovely here.” International Record Review, September 2012  BBC Music Magazine
DVD/Blu-ray Choice - August 2012 |
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