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A red hot ticket at the Metropolitan Opera in 2010/2011 was Donizetti’s comic gem, Don Pasquale, with Anna Netrebko reviving Norina, the part that made her a star in New York. Opera summed up the simple truth: “. . . everyone adored her”. John Del Carlo’s impressive singing and acting chops as the Don are given every boost by Otto Schenk’s hilarious staging and James Levine’s witty conducting. Leading this opera for the first time at the Met, the renowned maestro demonstrates that his gifts suit Donizetti as perfectly as Wagner. Mariusz Kwiecień and Matthew Polenzani scintillate as Malatesta and Ernesto. When Norina slaps Pasquale, the old man sees how deluded he has been to believe that the young beauty loves him. The San Francisco Chronicle paid homage to this turning point thus: “Netrebko captures the moment that gives the opera a heart it otherwise would lack”. Filmed in November 2010, the DVD features backstage intermission interviews caught during the hubbub of performance. “Donizetti's modest little domestic comedy almost sinks under the weight of such production values. That is stays afloat is a tribute to Netrebko who unleashes some fearsome coloratura; and to John de Carlo and Marius Kwiecien, who deliver 'Cheti, cheti, immantinente' with the speed of a Bugatti at full throttle.” BBC Music Magazine, October 2011 **** “With its huge sets and period costumes, Otto Schenk's 2006 production looks like a good old-fashioned Met warhorse, but it still has enough amusing choreography and dramatic truth to keep things ticking along nicely. Anna Netrebko steals the show both vocally and theatrically...but tenor Matthew Polenzani is also terrific as her lover...Levine's conducting is spirited.” Classic FM Magazine, September 2011 *** “[Netrebko] is alert to every note and movement, the voice bigger than the usual soubrette we get in this part, and her top notes gleam...Kwiecien is the ideal playmate for Netrebko: their sounds and styles blend perfectly; both ooze charm...Polenzani's smooth delivery, sweet tone and utter sincerity make him a valuable asset...it's clear that James Levine has the measure of this often witty, occasionally ravishing score.” International Record Review, July/August 2011 | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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Includes a three-language synopsis (English/French/German), full cast list and detailed track list. | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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The mid-price collection presents some of the most important and admired recordings of the EMI Classics and Virgin Classics catalogue which make EMI - The Home of Opera. Bonus Disc contains synopsis and libretto with translation. “The charm of this recording lies in the ensemble work, the elegance of Gösta Winbergh’s tenor, and the excellence of the orchestral playing. It is also a genuine production, with a sense of occasion: a sparkling occasion too and a pleasure to attend” Gramophone Magazine “this is a very enjoyable set, led by the vastly experienced Sesto Bruscantini in the title-role...Even better is the stylish, youthful singing of the late-lamented Gösta Winbergh as Ernesto: a performance of extraordinary grace and agility. The rest of the cast is strong - Mirella Freni's tone is (happily) lighter as Norina than in some recordings from this period in her career.” International Record Review, January 2011 | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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| |  | From the Teatro Lirico, 2002
Eva Mei, Alessandro Corbelli, Antonino Siragusa, Roberto de Candia & Giorgio Gatti Orchestra & Chorus of the Teatro Lirico, Cagliari, Gérard Korsten “The acting is first class, everybody relishing their roles, Alessandro Corbelli’s Pasquale, bumbling, pompous and outraged, Eva Mei’s Norina shrewish and petulant and full of good humour and Roberto de Candia, a knowing, hoodwinking Malatesta. … A visual delight, a sparkling production with fine comic performances.” MusicWeb International | | | In stock - usually despatched within 1 working day. |
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| |  | My Favourite Opera: Barbara Hendricks
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 “Visually attractive but leisurely documentary” BBC Music Magazine, May 2013 **** | 
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| |  | Donizetti: Don Pasquale
This recording of Don Pasquale, despite its age (1932), has long been regarded as the yardstick by which all subsequent versions of this sparkling opera have been measured. Still in fine voice, Ernesto Badini (1876 - 1937) in the title role was undoubtedly the finest basso buffo of the day - he was London's first Gianni Schicchi) and Tito Schipa was at the height of his career. Saraceni and Poli were also matchless in their roles. Also included are rare highlights in German with Rita Streich and Josef Greindl stylishly conducted by Fritz Lehmann, some tracks of which are on CD for the first time. There is also space for two further bonuses: Streich singing Norina's aria in Italian and the legendary version of Pronta io son with Lotte Schöne and Willi Domgraf-Fassbänder | | | Usually despatched in 4 - 5 working days. |
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A red hot ticket at the Metropolitan Opera in 2010/2011 was Donizetti’s comic gem, Don Pasquale, with Anna Netrebko reviving Norina, the part that made her a star in New York. Opera summed up the simple truth: “. . . everyone adored her”. John Del Carlo’s impressive singing and acting chops as the Don are given every boost by Otto Schenk’s hilarious staging and James Levine’s witty conducting. Leading this opera for the first time at the Met, the renowned maestro demonstrates that his gifts suit Donizetti as perfectly as Wagner. Mariusz Kwiecień and Matthew Polenzani scintillate as Malatesta and Ernesto. When Norina slaps Pasquale, the old man sees how deluded he has been to believe that the young beauty loves him. The San Francisco Chronicle paid homage to this turning point thus: “Netrebko captures the moment that gives the opera a heart it otherwise would lack”. Filmed in November 2010, the DVD features backstage intermission interviews caught during the hubbub of performance. “Donizetti's modest little domestic comedy almost sinks under the weight of such production values. That is stays afloat is a tribute to Netrebko who unleashes some fearsome coloratura; and to John de Carlo and Marius Kwiecien, who deliver 'Cheti, cheti, immantinente' with the speed of a Bugatti at full throttle” BBC Music Magazine, October 2011 **** “With its huge sets and period costumes, Otto Schenk's 2006 production looks like a good old-fashioned Met warhorse, but it still has enough amusing choreography and dramatic truth to keep things ticking along nicely. Anna Netrebko steals the show both vocally and theatrically...but tenor Matthew Polenzani is also terrific as her lover...Levine's conducting is spirited.” Classic FM Magazine, September 2011 *** “[Netrebko] is alert to every note and movement, the voice bigger than the usual soubrette we get in this part, and her top notes gleam...Kwiecien is the ideal playmate for Netrebko: their sounds and styles blend perfectly; both ooze charm...Polenzani's smooth delivery, sweet tone and utter sincerity make him a valuable asset...it's clear that James Levine has the measure of this often witty, occasionally ravishing score.” International Record Review, July/August 2011 | | | DG - 0734645 (Blu-ray) Normally: $27.00 Special: $20.25 |
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Donizetti’s Don Pasquale is one of the most famous of all Italian comic operas, often considered second only to Rossini’s The Barber of Seville. This 1988 recording features a seasoned, stylistically secure cast and outstanding conductor of this repertoire. | |
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| |  | Live Recording from The Teatro Alla Scala, 1994
Set Design by Susanna Rossi Jost Costume Design by Roberta Guidi di Bagno This DVD presents a sophisticated staging of Donizetti’s wittiest opera, Don Pasquale. This production was performed at the world famous Scala in Milan. It was directed by Stefano Vizioli, who was praised for stripping the piece of any clichés acquired over a century-and-a-half of performing tradition, and making the characters truly live and breathe. The approach emphasised the unaffected brightness and gaiety of the opera, especially as the director was brilliantly supported by a pre-eminent international cast of singer-actors. From the uproarious orchestral guffaw that opens the piece onwards, Riccardo Muti’s reading reveals a flexibility and poise that matches the overall intention to take the opera’s humour seriously. In a recent interview, Muti emphasised the vein of melancholy that runs through Don Pasquale, and stressed how much the libretto contributes to the perfection of the opera as a whole, how the composer manages to bend the music to the text, and bring out the deep meaning of every word. This Scala production embodied his conviction, in a performance marked by ‘absolute clarity of diction, the right emphasis for every word’ as the press hailed. Sound Format: PCM Stereo, DD 5.1, DTS 5.1 Picture Format: 4:3 DVD Format: DVD 9, NTSC Subtitle Languages: IT, GB, DE, FR, ES Running Time: 130 mins FSK: 0 “This is a classic account of Donizetti's adorable opera, with superb conducting by Riccardo Muti, and a virtually flawless cast; and it's ravishing to look at too.” BBC Music Magazine, May 2011 ***** “a scintillating performance...in which the La Scala Orchestra plays as if wound up to its highest pitch of tension, every tutti razor-sharp, every wind solo bubbling with energy. Recorded in 1994, this production caught Muti's reign at the height of his power and he presides over the performance with imperial authority.” Gramophone Magazine, April 2011 | | | Usually despatched in 2 - 3 working days. |
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