DVD Videos

This DVD, centered on the dazzling German soprano Diana Damrau, complements a ravishing recital with a fascinating documentary.

In March 2013, Damrau achieved “a daring victory” (in the words of the New York Times) when the Metropolitan Opera witnessed her first-ever performances of Verdi’s La traviata. In recent years she has made the transition from glittering, stratospheric roles such as Mozart’s Queen of the Night and Strauss’ Zerbinetta to lyrical heroines of greater emotional complexity, such as Gilda in Rigoletto, Adina in L’elisir d’amore and Lucia di Lammermoor. A series of triumphs at the Met have made her a favourite singer in New York – as she is in other leading opera houses around the world.

In the documentary, Diana Damrau – Diva Divina, the soprano explains that, when she was just 12 years old, it was La traviata (in Franco Zeffirelli’s lavish 1982 cinematic version) that inspired her to make a career in opera. The documentary, directed by Beatrix Conrad, follows Damrau over the course of nine months, covering operatic performances and rehearsals in Geneva, New York, Paris and Munich, recitals, recordings and the arrival of her first child, Alexander.

The recital, filmed at the impressive Festspielhaus in Baden-Baden, pairs Damrau with the French harpist Xavier de Maistre in an exquisite selection of songs by Schumann, Fauré, Debussy and Strauss. Among the best-loved items in the programme are: Schumann’s ‘Widmung’; both Fauré’s and Debussy’s settings of Verlaine’s poem ‘Clair de lune’; Fauré’s ‘Après un rêve’; a harp arrangement of Debussy’s piano Arabesque No 1; Strauss’ ‘Morgen‘ and ‘Ständchen’ and, among the encores, the famed Bach-Gounod ‘Ave Maria’.

In the course of 2013, Damrau and de Maistre will also perform together in concert seasons in Washington D.C., Paris, Geneva, Lyon, Reykjavik, Hamburg, Munich and London and at festivals in Menton, Gstaad, Schwarzenberg and Grafenegg.

Reviewing the performance in Baden-Baden – for which the audience joined Damrau and de Maistre on the stage, rather than being distanced from them in the expansive auditorium – the Badische Neueste Nachrichten wrote of Damrau as a recitalist “whose vocal material and abilities as a storyteller approach perfection”, while the Badisches Tagblatt said:” Damrau’s diction is a pleasure, her vocal flexibility amazing. She sings phrases with ample breath, while her nuanced shadings create subtle changes of mood from song to song.” Die Rheinpfalz described the “gentle, sometimes ethereal tones of the harp” as being in perfect harmony with the “exceptionally subtle and detailed vocal art of the soprano … particularly exceptional are the delicate tracery and colours of Diana Damrau’s singing. Her shaping and accenting of the text is meticulous, her phrasing is of great sensitivity and her dynamics are richly nuanced, yet her song performances are never mannered, rather always full of lyrical feeling.”

Robert Wilson [director, lighting, design]

Giuseppe Frigeni [co-director]

Frida Parmeggiani [costumes]

Heinrich Brunke [lighting]

Naïve present Debussy's fascinating opera in the legendary staging by Robert Wilson. Eternity, minimalism, enigma, all those elements ideally connect to the unique atmosphere in Debussy's music.

Stéphane Degout and Elena Tsallagova lead an outstanding cast including Anne Sofie von Otter, Vincent Le Texier, Franz Joseph Selig…

‘Georg Solti is the hero of the British archive releases produced by ICA Classics.’ (Diapason)

In October 2012 music-lovers celebrated the centenary year of ‘one of the world’s greatest conductors’ (The Independent). This concert – a rare gem from the BBC archives – shows

Sir Georg Solti at the height of his powers with his favourite orchestra, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, of which he was music director from 1969 to 1991, in an alliance that was revered among audiences and critics alike.

Released for the first time on DVD, this concert is the last in Sir Georg Solti and his beloved CSO’s European tour in 1985. The Chicago Tribune wrote in January of that year, ‘He (Solti) and the CSO are firmly established as the most leonine team in symphonic music today, and that team has had everyone roaring from Stockholm to Zurich.’ Solti himself wrote: ‘My term as musical director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra was the happiest time in my professional life.’ The programme on this DVD features Mozart’s Symphony No.39, Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No.4, and an encore of Fêtes from Debussy’s Nocturnes – all performed with the flair, passion and majestic artistry for which Solti was famed.

His interpretation of Mozart has been hailed as arguably one of the greatest in history. ‘There are certain composers on whose work Solti has stamped his mark with a distinction that has never been equalled, nor probably ever will be, so that his conduit of their intentions has become integral to the experience of listening to them.’ (The Observer)

The booklet note for this release is written by Humphrey Burton, who directed the cameras for the BBC at London’s Royal Festival Hall on the 2 February 1985 – the concert from which this DVD is taken. His first-hand, unique insight and behind-the-scenes information provide a fascinating glimpse into the inner workings of the concert, the CSO and the maestro.

Sound format: Enhanced Mono

DVD format: NTSC

Picture format: 4:3

Running time: 83’

Subtitles: n/a

Menu languages: English

Booklet languages: E/F/G

Region code: 0

Territory Restrictions: None

Conducted by Grammy award winning Paavo Järvi the Orchestre de Paris exquisitely performs three landmark pieces of orchestral music.

Both of Stravinsky’s ballet scores and Debussy’s L’Après-midi d’un faune are well suited for a DVD recording. The wildly varying moods under Järvi’s expert guidance are superbly caught in this high quality production.

The orchestra undertake international tours and aims to reach all genres of people. Järvi became the Music Director at the beginning of the 2010/11 season, and after just seven months his contract was extended to the end of 2016.

Ariane et Barbe-bleue makes its premiere on Blu-ray.

Stéphane Denève is universally acclaimed for his interpretation of French repertoire.

This is the twelfth release from the Liceu-Opus Arte partnership.

Dukas's opera Ariane et Barbe-bleue, based on Maeterlinck's symbolist version of the classic tale, sees free spirit Ariane become the sixth wife of the infamous Barbe-bleue, who gives his new bride seven keys to seven doors, but prohibits the use of the last. Ariane discovers an array of glittering jewels behind the first six doors, but a terrifying reality awaits her as she unlocks the seventh.

José van Dam is cast as the villainous Barbe-bleue, while taking on the immensely demanding role of Ariane - who does not leave the stage throughout the entire opera - is American soprano Jeanne-Michèle Charbonnet.

Running time: 120 minutes

Subtitles: EN/FR/DE/ES/IT/CA/JP

Sound format: 2.0LPCM + 5.1(5.0) DTS

Major stars of the international opera stage come together with the Chor und Orchester of the Deutsche Oper Berlin, under the internationally acclaimed conductor Donald Runnicles, in this opera gala in aid of the German AIDS Foundation.

Highlights from operas by Rossini, Verdi, Meyerbeer, Wagner, Delibes, Sartori are performed by world-class musicians from around the globe.

Heading the star-studded line-up were established artists of the calibre of Adrianne Pieczonka, Vivica Genaux and Simone Kermes, while the younger generation is represented by tenors Francesco Demuro, Antonio Poli and Teodor Illincai, as well as the exciting soprano Kristin Lewis and mezzo-soprano Anna Smirnova. The result was truly an evening to remember.

Picture format DVD: NTSC 16:9

Sound format DVD: PCM Stereo

Region code: 0

Booklet notes: English, German, French

Runnning time: 75 mins

First recording on DVD Edition of the original French version.

The thorny subject of marital violence is set against a hilarious backdrop in this one-act farce where, contrary to what we are used to seeing in opera, tenor and baritone do their best to free themselves of the female protagonist, to whom both are married.

The result is a perfect balance of all elements, which makes of Rita a small but significant example of Donizetti’s musical experience.

NTSC – 16/9

Region Code 0 – All regions

Picture Format: 16:9

Subtitles: Fre, Eng, Ger, Spa, Ita

Running Time: 54 Minutes

Booklet Notes: Italian/English

Available Worldwide

My Favourite Opera – a new series of EuroArts: Here we study the results of involvement with a specific role. We witness musical and stage rehearsals in 1991, listen to what the artists have to say about the work in progress and share in private moments.

World famous and distinguished soprano Barbara Hendricks stars as the heroine Norina in Donizetti’s famous comic opera Don Pasquale amongst the great French baritone Gabriel Bacquier, the Canadian baritone Gino Quilico and the Italian tenor Luca Canonici.

Barbara Hendricks’ passion for detail preludes her participation in the fly-by-night operatic scene: it is fascinating to discover how thorough her work is when she sings opera.

The Hungarian feature-film director Márta Mészáros paints a telling picture of the artist at work and portrays with superb photography the idyllic setting of Aix-en-Provence Festival in the South of France.

This intimate portrait of a great opera singer also reveals how an opera production is created at the highest level.

Picture format DVD: NTSC 16:9

Sound format DVD: PCM Stereo

Region code: 0

Languages: English, German, French, Italian

Subtitles: English

Booklet notes: English, German, French

Running time: 55mins

Set Design by Rolf Glittenberg

A staging of Claude Debussy’s only completed opera, Pelléas et Mélisande, recorded live at the Zurich Opera House. The opera’s premiere in Paris in 1902 brought the new century to the stage. It came quietly, introducing a new female figure that provided the visual artists of l’art nouveau with a fascinating alternative to such femmes fatales as Oscar Wilde’s Lulu and Frank Wedekind’s Salome.

Debussy (1862-1918) adapted a dreamlike libretto by the Belgian playwright and poet, Maurice Maeterlinck (1862-1949) and in the music retained the symbolic quality of the mysterious, almost static fairytale. Conductor Franz Welser-Möst and director Sven-Eric Bechtolf have become one of the leading partnerships in contemporary music theatre. The characters are impressively enacted by Rodney Gilfrey and Isabel Rey in the title roles.

Occasionally placed in wheelchairs that hint at emotional as well as physical inadequacies and frequently doubled by puppets, Debussy’s protagonists are kept at a distance in their subconscious dream world. Franz Welser-Möst conducts a performance that is clear, well structured, unsentimental and attuned to the alertness and pioneering spirit of a score that even today has lost none of its radiance. The designer Rolf Glittenberg set the work in a remote operatic universe that is both greyish white and ice cold.

Sound Format: PCM Stereo, DD 5.0, DTS 5.0, dts-HD Master Audio 7.1

Picture Format: 16:9

Format: DVD 5 + DVD 9, NTSC

Subtitle Languages: FR (Original Language), GB, DE, IT, ES

Running Time: 161 mins

FSK: 0

Region Code: 0

Worldwide available, excluding Japan

Music by Ravel, Offenbach, Chabrier, Fauré, Debussy, Saint-Saëns and Godard