While Charles Gounod’s ‘Roméo et Juliette’ is less well-known than his ‘Faust,’ it is blessed with four great show-stopping love duets that let its two title roles bask in lyrical luxury. In this Salzburg Festival production recorded at the Felsenreitschule, the titular heroes are the much acclaimed Mexican tenor Rolando Villazón and the young Georgian soprano Nino Machaidze – two singers and personalities with the makings of a new ‘dream couple.’ ‘Villazón is ‘an ideal Roméo … His vocal cords seem to be grafted directly onto his heart’ (Der Tagesspiegel). His Juliette, Nino Machaidze, unites captivating good looks with a bright, clear voice and an agile, youthful stage presence – a singer on her way to stardom! Broadway director Bartlett Sher and his team succeed in evoking Shakespeare’s Verona with a few evocative props, many fine
costumes and much plot-driven action.
Take super-tenor Rolando Villazón, baritone legend Thomas Hampson and the fast-rising baton star Yannick Nézet-Séguin. Add one of the world’s greatest orchestras, a summer’s night on Munich’s magnificent Odeonsplatz and a bouquet of famous opera arias, duets, overtures and choruses performed in celebration of Giuseppe Verdi and Richard Wagner. The result: a scintillating opera gala offering you the chance to experience and revisit the Odeonsplatz Concert 2013 in all ist glory and grandezza!
Sunday, the 29th of June, 2014, marks the 100th anniversary of Rafael Kubelík’s birth, Chief Conductor of the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks from 1961 to 1979. Violinist Gil Shaham and conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin have dedicated this concerts to the memory of the great artist and human being, Rafael Kubelík, who has left an indelible mark on the orchestra for many years right to the present day. On the program Béla Bartók’s Violin Concerto No. 2 and Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 1 in D major “Titan”.
2013 open air concert from the stunning Odeonsplatz in Munich was dedicated to the music of Giuseppe Verdi and Richard Wagner performed by star tenor Rolando Villazón and world-famous baritone Thomas Hampson joined bySymphonieorchester and Chor des Bayerischen Rundfunks. —— PROGRAM: Giuseppe Verdi: Ouverture to Les Vêpres Siciliennes; “Ce jour heureux est plein d’allégresse” from Don Carlos (Autodafé) // Jules Massenet: “Ce breuvage pourrait” – Vision fugitive from Hérodiade; “Ah! Tout est bien fini – O souverain” from Le Cid // Maurice Ravel: La Valse // Richard Wagner: “Freudig begrüßen wir die edle Halle” from Tannhäuser (Entry of the Guests); “Wie Todesahnung – O du mein holder Abendstern” from Tannhäuser; Prelude to Lohengrin, Act I // Giuseppe Verdi / Luciano Berio: L’Esule // Giuseppe Verdi: “Vedi le fosche notturne spoglie” from Il Trovatore (Anvil Chorus); “Dio, che nell’alma infondere” from Don Carlo
Yannick Nézet-Séguin gives his successful debut at the renowned, highly exclusive subscription concerts of the Wiener Philharmoniker. Joining him is piano legend Yefim Bronfman, who lives up to his reputation: “It was gratifying to hear how, in Beethoven’s Third Piano Concerto, a relaxed, silky-smooth beauty of sound repeatedly gave way to wiry accents of tension” (Der Standard). Bronfman proved an “ideal partner” (Kronenzeitung) for Nézet-Séguin and the Philharmoniker, who were “entirely in harmony with the soloist” (Die Presse). In the second half of the concert, “Richard Strauss’ Ein Heldenleben was given a refreshingly invigorating shake-up” (Der Standard). Program: Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 3; Strauss: Ein Heldenleben; Debussy: Images II, III. Poissons d’or
Canadian maestro Yannick Nézet-Séguin, a regular collaborator with the esteemed Vienna Philharmonic since 2010, is making a comeback to the world-famous Salzburg Festival in 2024 to conduct a spectacular performance of Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique with them! This symphony, composed by a 26-year-old Berlioz who was captivated by actress Harriet Smithson, his future wife, depicts an artist haunted by an all-consuming love that evolves from innocence to horror, including opium-induced dreams and a sinister witches’ sabbath.
