The Italian mezzo-soprano has been hailed as the most exciting, accomplished and beautiful Rossini singer to appear in modern times. Shot largely on location in Italy, this film celebrates the talents of both Bartoli and Rossini. She is seen performing Rossini arias at the famous Gran Teatro la Fenice in Venice, in recital in London, and at home in Rome. Throughout the programme, Bartoli exhibits the passion and enthusiasm she brings to all her performances.
Recital Cecilia Bartoli
Recorded at London’s Savoy Hotel, this recital by the acclaimed Italian mezzo-soprano includes well-known Arie Antiche by Pergolesi, Caldara, Paisiello and Vivaldi, a selection of arias from the ever-popular Mozart operas Così fan tutte and Le nozze di Figaro, as well as the lesser-known La clemenza di Tito. The highlight of the performance is the selection of songs and arias by Rossini. Miss Bartoli is accompanied by Georg Fischer.
Dancemakers: Lar Lubovitch
The Lar Lubovitch Dance Company exhibits a characteristic New York vitality and energy. Their idiosyncratic style of movement is loose-limbed and athletic, with a casual exuberance that asks not to be taken too seriously. Music is often the catalyst for Lubovitch’s choreography, and this is demonstrated by the two works performed in this studio recording: Concerto Six Twenty-Two, danced to Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto in A major K622, and North Star, to music by Philip Glass.
Gran Partita – Serenade No. 10 in B flat
Mozart’s Gran Partita – the Serenade No. 10 in B flat K361 – is scored for twelve wind instruments (two oboes, two clarinets, two basset horns, four horns, two bassoons) and a double bass. The seven-part work is performed by woodwind players of the Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century, specialists in authentic performances of the music of Mozart’s era.
La finta giardiniera
From the Drottningholm Court Theatre 1988: “The new production of La finta giardiniera at Drottningholm fully justified producer Goran Järvefelt’s and conductor Östman’s faith in the opera. It proved not only an evening of rare enchantment, but an instructive argument for period performance of Mozart” (The Independent). Britt-Marie Aruhn sings the role of the Countess, who disguises herself as a gardener in order to find and forgive her lover, who has fled, thinking he has killed her in a quarrel. (Sung in Italian)
Sinfonia Concertante in E flat K364
From the Munich Philharmonie comes a live recording of Sir Colin Davis conducting the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra in a performance of Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante in E flat K364, featuring the internationally-acclaimed soloists Yuri Bashmet (viola) and Vladimir Spivakov (violin). An introduction to the concert performance is available, which shows Sir Colin Davis working with the soloists and the orchestra, documenting the painstaking preparation that goes into achieving the conductor’s musical vision.
Requiem
Mozart’s last work, the Requiem Mass in D minor K626, receives a strong performance from the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and Chorus under Mozart specialist Sir Colin Davis in a classic recording made in 1984.
This live recording from the Herkulessaal in Munich featthe Maestro conducting the Bavarian Radio Symphony Chorus and Orchestra with the outstanding Peter Schreier, Edith Mathis and Trudeliese Schmidt as well as ever-popular Welsh bass Gwynne Howell.
Sounds Magnificent – The Story of the Symphony
This series, featuring Sir André Previn and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, tells the story of the symphony. In each programme, Previn introduces a performance of a major symphonic work. He sets the music to be performed in the context of its composer’s life and work, explaining the way in which it contributed to the development of the symphonic form. His comments are illustrated by the orchestra, who play a variety of supporting extracts. The music featured in the series is Haydn’s Symphony No. 87, Mozart’s Symphony No. 39, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 (extracts) and Symphony No. 7, Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique, Brahms’ Symphony No. 4, Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 6 (Pathetique), and Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 5. Six parts à 88′.
Opera Gala with Thomas Hampson and Luca Pisaroni
Two world-renowned baritones Thomas Hampson and Luca Pisaroni lead the audience through a gallery of opera characters which the “kings of high-Cs” cannot portray. They introduce themselves as devoted friends (Marquis Posa), rulers (Phillip II. and King Herod), devils (Mephistopheles) and the most famous operatic embodiment of evil (Iago) … . Most composers devoted the roles of lovers to tenors; yet, the most famous seducer of all times, Mozart’s Don Giovanni, is a baritone … . —— Works by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Charles Gounod, Jules Massenet, Giuseppe Verdi, Vincenzo Bellini, Gioacchino Rossini, Richard Rodgers & Oscar Hammerstein II, Leonard Bernstein, Gaetano Donizetti
WEDO and Barenboim: The Human Rights Concert
In order to celebrate the declaration of the “Human Rights” Daniel Barenboim and his West-Eastern Divan Orchestra perform at the heart of the United Nations in Geneva. The Orchestra, which was just recently designated as United Nations Global Advocate for Cultural Understanding by the UN is joined by rising cello virtuoso Kian Soltani in order to perform Joseph Haydn’s Concerto for Violoncello No. 1. This first part is followed by the Sinfonia Concertante for four winds by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, featuring four young soloists from Spain, Germany, Turkey and Israel. The imposing setting of the Human Rights Hall at the Palace of Nations, which houses the Miquel Barceló dome, provides a stunning backdrop for this concert highlighting the principles contained in the Universal Declaration.