DVD Videos

Staged by Lamberto Puggelli

C Major presents a production of Il corsaro, performed in 2008 at the Verdi Festival in Parma.

Written in 1848, this three-act opera is based on Lord Byron's poem The Corsair.

Staged by Ruggero Cappuccio

C Major presents a World Première on Blu-ray of Verdi’s opera La Battaglia di Legnano, as part of their Tutto Verdi project.

The opera is based on the play La Bataille de Toulouse by Joseph Méry.

The performance is conducted by Boris Brott, who served as Assistant Conductor to the New York Philharmonic under Leonard Bernstein, and Music Director and Conductor for the Royal Ballet.

SOUND: DVD: DTS 5.1, PCM Stereo

RUNNING TIME: Total: 129 minutes (Opera: 119 minutes, Bonus: 10 minutes)

SUBTITLES: Italian (original language), English, German, French, Spanish, Chinese, Korean, Japanese

When Britten started to work on Owen Wingrave he conceived the opera both for performance on stage and for TV production.

In fact the first TV production of Owen Wingrave was broadcast in 1971, two years before the staged premiere at Covent Garden. This 2001 production, made for Channel 4 television, intriguingly tells the drama of Owen, who refuses to follow a military career like his ancestors. The story, in which pacifism makes up the main theme, was written by Henry James, and the libretto adapted by Myfanwy Piper. The Canadian baritone Gerald Finley stars as Owen with Peter Savidge, Hilton Marlton and Josephine Barstow at his side.

The production was directed by the award winning TV director Margaret Williams. Highly acclaimed conductor Kent Nagano is the musical director of this performance featuring the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin.

“The cast is outstanding: Gerald Finley as Owen, the formidable Dame Josephine Barstow as his terrifying aunt and Martyn Hill as his militaristic grandfather. Who says singers can‘t act? One of the best opera films ever.” The Sunday Times

Sound Format: PCM Stereo

Picture Format: 16:9

DVD Format: DVD 9 / NTSC

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

Running Time: 92 mins

Rossini was 24 years old when in 1816 he wrote his seventeenth and most famous opera The Barber of Seville in an astonishing three weeks. Michael Hampe’s humorous direction of his 1988 live performance at the Schwetzingen SWR Festival stands out with its fast tempo that makes for a highly exuberant production. Ezio Firgerio’s appealing stage and Mauro Pagano’s colourful costumes heighten the comic effect. The musical direction of conductor Gabriele Ferro strikes a beautiful balance between a vibrant orchestral performance and a superb ensemble of singers. The irresistible Cecilia Bartoli as Rosina leads a cast that also includes David Kuebler, Gino Quilico and Carlos Feller.

“This is an effective, straightforward traditional performance under Gabriele Ferro, with Cecilia Bartoli in excellent voice, making this an irresistible production which should be in every collection.” Classical London

Sound Format: PCM Stereo

Picture Format: 4:3

DVD Format: DVD 9 / NTSC

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

Running time: 185 minutes

La forza del destino (The Force of Fate), premiered in St. Petersburg 1862, is one of Verdi’s most important opera compositions.

Its plot is complicated and combines a sequence of interlaced unfortunate strokes of fate. Donna Leonora is the centre of events, together with her brother Don Carlo di Vargas and her lover Don Alvaro.

The story was originally set in 18th century Spain, however the French director Nicolas Joël established the action in a slightly later period, in the time of the Empire, the early 19th century.

The 2007 performance at the beautiful Maggio Musicale theatre in Florence, conducted by Zubin Mehta, who is a frequent guest artist there, stars Violeta Urmana as Donna Leonora with Carlo Guelfi and Marcello Giordani as Don Carlo and Don Alvaro.

“The singing and playing are fantastic, and the production is faithful and unobtrusive. [...] To my mind this set now leads the field and takes its place as one of the great Verdi productions [...] A real classic.” MusicWeb International

Staged by Denis Krief

C Major’s Tutto Verdi project continues with a production of Luisa Miller.

The opera was based on the play Kabale und Liebe by Friedrich von Schiller and features a Great cast of singers including Marcelo Álvarez, Leo Nucci, Fiorenca Cedolins and Giorgio Surian.

PICTURE: 16:9, HD

SOUND: DVD: DTS 5.1, PCM Stereo

RUNNING TIME: Total: 156 minutes (Opera: 146 minutes, Bonus: 10 minutes )

SUBTITLES: Italian (original language), English, German, French, Spanish, Chinese, Korean, Japanese

AVAILABLE WORLDWIDE

Le nozze di Figaro, Mozart’s timeless opera buffa, is one of the greatest of all operatic masterpieces. It is based on Beaumarchais’ comedy Le Mariage de Figaro and tells the tale of the servant Figaro, who is about to marry the maid Susanna. Count Almaviva, keeping an eye on Susanna himself, tries to prevent this marriage with the help of Bartolo, the doctor, but is continually thwarted.

This classic 1973 production by legendary director Peter Hall features a cast of renowned opera singers lead by Kiri Te Kanawa as the Countess, arguably her finest role and certainly the role that made her an international superstar. Knut

Skram’s charming and charismatic take on the character of Figaro complements Ileana Cotrubas’ gentle Susanna, and also noteworthy is the outstanding performance by Frederica von Stade as Cherubino.

It is doubtless thanks to the supreme conductorship of John Pritchard that excellent singers, who perform even in supporting roles, provide a well-rounded ensemble performance. Pritchard had been associated to the Glyndebourne theatre since 1947, and he gradually took over to continue Fritz Busch’s initial work as a Choirmaster and Assistant.

Sound Format: PCM Stereo

Picture Format: 4:3

DVD Format: DVD 9 / NTSC

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

Running Time: 185 mins

FSK: 0

Legendary Broadway stars Alfred Drake and Doretta Morrow head the cast of this made-for-TV musical about the adventures of Marco Polo, with songs and dance numbers based on themes by Rimsky-Korsakov. Hailed by the The New York Times as “an eye-filling version of a fascinating story, accompanied…by superior music”. Marco Polo is rich in songs and exotic numbers, offering a rare opportunity to see Alfred Drake and Doretta Morrow (the stars of the Broadway hit Kismet) together on screen.