Special budget-priced DVD and Blu-ray
100 minutes of the most stunning visual and musical highlights of this production by La Fura dels Baus
Incl. two new documentaries about Franc Aleu and Carlus Padrissa
Der Ring des Nibelungen
Press Quotes
In this production “the visual codes of the digital era become elemental and dazzlingly employed means of narration” (Opernwelt).
„Quite a spectacle, brilliantly sung.“ The Sunday Times
“It looks like a landmark Ring cycle, it is outstanding.” BBC Magazine
4 Stars in Rondo
“Wagner like this is fun even for pop fans” Spiegel Online
“Wagner’s music drama ingeniously illustrated” Fono Forum
“This production positively crackles with tension” Crescendo
Awards
Rheingold: Echo Klassik 2010
Der Ring des Nibelungen: German Record Critics’ Award of New Releases for the Second Quarter 2010
Die Walküre: German Record Critics’ Award of New Releases for the First Quarter 2010
Das Rheingold: Diapason d´Or, DIAMANT d’Opera Magazine
Der Ring des Nibelungen: Choc de Classica
Wagner: Das Rheingold
In the words of the prestigious German weekly “Die Zeit,” the stage production of Wagner’s “Rheingold” and “Walküre” by La Fura dels Baus “quite possibly shows us the path that musical theater will be taking in the future.” There’s no doubt about it: the Catalan city of Valencia is setting new accents in 21st-century opera not only with its spectacular new theater designed by Santiago Calatrava, but also with its visually transfixing production of Wagner’s “Ring” staged by Carlos Padrissa and his theater group La Fura dels Baus. The Barcelona-based Fura blends music, dance, acrobatics and technology into unforgettable stage events of sometimes raw but always captivating power. The Fura made its breakthrough in the classical establishment with its production of Berlioz’s “La damnation de Faust” at the 1999 Salzburg Festival. The Fura’s fertile visual fantasy and endless combinations of savvy video technology, lighting and props (often formed of human beings) are predestined for Wagner’s visionary expressive world. Wagner’s dream of a Gesamtkunstwerk becomes reality as this shape-shifting sequence of tableaux unfolds before our eyes: 3D computer projections that evoke computer games, organic structures built of athletic performers that recall the “Cirque du soleil,” and much more. In this production, “the visual codes of the digital era become elemental and dazzlingly employed means of narration” (Opernwelt). Musically, the first two parts of Wagner’s tetralogy – “Das Rheingold” and “Die Walküre” – are on a par with productions from historically more prestigious opera houses. Part Three, “Siegfried,” is scheduled for June 2008, and Part Four, “Götterdämmerung,” for June 2009. Legendary conductor Zubin Mehta leads world-class Wagner singers such as Peter Seiffert, Petra-Maria Schnitzer and Matti Salminen, and promising young talents that include Jennifer Wilson (Brünnhilde), John Daszak (Loge) and Juha Uusitalo (Wotan), whom the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung hailed as a new “Number One among the opera gods.” Equally outstanding is the Orquestra de la Comunitat Valenciana, an ensemble of top musicians hand-picked by Music Director Lorin Maazel.
In Rehearsal: Zubin Mehta
Featuring some of today’s leading conductors in rehearsal, this series gives a unique insight into the process of creating great music. The conductors’ very different styles and methods; the dialogue between an orchestra and an inspired interpreter; the intensity of the preparations for a concert performance; and the struggle towards perfection are captured in these revealing audio-visual records. Most episodes include a full run-through of the work rehearsed. All include interviews with the conductor who is seen at work. Zubin Mehta rehearses the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra for a performance of Richard Strauss’s Till Eulenspiegels lustige Streiche Op. 28.
Perlman in Russia
This documentary follows Itzhak Perlman when he travelled to Russia for the first time in 1991, accompanied by Zubin Mehta and the Israel Philharmonic. Perlman describes his experiences with wit and warmth, and speaks movingly of what it means to him, as a Jew, to perform in Russia with a Jewish orchestra.
Tristan & Isolde
There can be no half-measures with Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde: every performance demands supreme commitment, and that’s what it receives in this 1998 production from the Bavarian State Opera. No city has a longer Tristan pedigree than Munich, but Peter Konwitschny’s inventive updated staging is liberated rather than inhibited by that tradition. It’s a bold setting for a truly magnificent cast, and Gramophone described Waltraud Meier’s Isolde as “riveting”. Jon Frederic West, Kurt Moll and Marjana Lipvosek match her for intensity. With Zubin Mehta conducting and the Bavarian State Orchestra on radiant form, this is some of the finest Wagner singing – and playing – of its era.
Making of “Turandot”
Making of “Götterdämmerung” – Valencia
“This production quite possibly shows us the path that musical theater will be taking in the future” (Die Zeit). Indeed, the Catalan city of Valencia is setting new accents in 21st-century opera not only with its spectacular, futuristic opera house, the Palau de les Arts “Reina Sofía” designed by Santiago Calatrava, but also with the visually transfixing production of Wagner’s “Ring” staged there by Carlus Padrissa and his theater group La Fura dels Baus. The Barcelona-based Fura became known internationally when it designed and carried out the opening ceremonies of the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, and made its breakthrough in the classical world with its production of Berlioz’s “La damnation de Faust” at the 1999 Salzburg Festival. The Fura’s trademark is its spellbinding fusion of movement, sound, music, dance, acrobatics and technology into unforgettable stage events of sometimes raw but always captivating power. In the world of opera, the ensemble has defined its personal style through its exploitation of large-screen projections, the extraordinary mobility of the performers, and the magical use of human beings to create organic structures that evoke objects such as Valhalla (in this “Ring” production). Indeed, La Fura was predestined for Wagner’s visionary world: his dream of a Gesamtkunstwerk becomes reality as a shape-shifting sequence of tableaux unfolds before our eyes with all the elements that constitute the “lenguaje furero” or “Fura idiom”. Eminent conductor Zubin Mehta leads world-class Wagner singers such as Matti Salminen, Peter Seiffert, Juha Uusitalo, Jennifer Wilson and Lance Ryan. Most prominent among the younger cast members are Jennifer Wilson, a “singer we’ll be hearing more of” (Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung) and Juha Uusitalo, whom the F.A.Z. hailed as a new “Number One among the opera gods”. Equally outstanding is the Orquestra de la Comunitat Valenciana, one of the “youngest and best opera orchestras in Europe” (Opernglas), playing “with rapturous beauty under Zubin Mehta. […] The suppleness, rhythmic presence and singer-friendly dynamic that Mehta achieves with this orchestra are nothing less than miraculous” (F.A.Z.). UNITEL CLASSICA is delighted to continue its proven collaboration with the Palau de les Arts of Valencia, which now features productions of “Fidelio”, “Cyrano” and “Turandot” in addition to the Ring. UNITEL also offers a “Making of” to each of the four Ring operas, as well as documentaries on set designer Roland Olbeter, video designer Franc Aleu and director Carlus Padrissa. With this Ring from Valencia UNITEL continues its cycles of Ring productions begun with the “Centennial Ring” of Patrice Chéreau and Pierre Boulez of the late 70s/early 80s, and followed by the Harry Kupfer/Daniel Barenboim production of the early 90s, both in Bayreuth.
Making of “Siegfried” – Valencia
“This production quite possibly shows us the path that musical theater will be taking in the future” (Die Zeit). Indeed, the Catalan city of Valencia is setting new accents in 21st-century opera not only with its spectacular, futuristic opera house, the Palau de les Arts “Reina Sofía” designed by Santiago Calatrava, but also with the visually transfixing production of Wagner’s “Ring” staged there by Carlus Padrissa and his theater group La Fura dels Baus. The Barcelona-based Fura became known internationally when it designed and carried out the opening ceremonies of the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, and made its breakthrough in the classical world with its production of Berlioz’s “La damnation de Faust” at the 1999 Salzburg Festival. The Fura’s trademark is its spellbinding fusion of movement, sound, music, dance, acrobatics and technology into unforgettable stage events of sometimes raw but always captivating power. In the world of opera, the ensemble has defined its personal style through its exploitation of large-screen projections, the extraordinary mobility of the performers, and the magical use of human beings to create organic structures that evoke objects such as Valhalla (in this “Ring” production). Indeed, La Fura was predestined for Wagner’s visionary world: his dream of a Gesamtkunstwerk becomes reality as a shape-shifting sequence of tableaux unfolds before our eyes with all the elements that constitute the “lenguaje furero” or “Fura idiom”. Eminent conductor Zubin Mehta leads world-class Wagner singers such as Matti Salminen, Peter Seiffert, Juha Uusitalo, Jennifer Wilson and Lance Ryan. Most prominent among the younger cast members are Jennifer Wilson, a “singer we’ll be hearing more of” (Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung) and Juha Uusitalo, whom the F.A.Z. hailed as a new “Number One among the opera gods”. Equally outstanding is the Orquestra de la Comunitat Valenciana, one of the “youngest and best opera orchestras in Europe” (Opernglas), playing “with rapturous beauty under Zubin Mehta. […] The suppleness, rhythmic presence and singer-friendly dynamic that Mehta achieves with this orchestra are nothing less than miraculous” (F.A.Z.). UNITEL CLASSICA is delighted to continue its proven collaboration with the Palau de les Arts of Valencia, which now features productions of “Fidelio”, “Cyrano” and “Turandot” in addition to the Ring. UNITEL also offers a “Making of” to each of the four Ring operas, as well as documentaries on set designer Roland Olbeter, video designer Franc Aleu and director Carlus Padrissa. With this Ring from Valencia UNITEL continues its cycles of Ring productions begun with the “Centennial Ring” of Patrice Chéreau and Pierre Boulez of the late 70s/early 80s, and followed by the Harry Kupfer/Daniel Barenboim production of the early 90s, both in Bayreuth.
Making of “Das Rheingold” – Valencia
“This production quite possibly shows us the path that musical theater will be taking in the future” (Die Zeit). Indeed, the Catalan city of Valencia is setting new accents in 21st-century opera not only with its spectacular, futuristic opera house, the Palau de les Arts “Reina Sofía” designed by Santiago Calatrava, but also with the visually transfixing production of Wagner’s “Ring” staged there by Carlus Padrissa and his theater group La Fura dels Baus. The Barcelona-based Fura became known internationally when it designed and carried out the opening ceremonies of the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, and made its breakthrough in the classical world with its production of Berlioz’s “La damnation de Faust” at the 1999 Salzburg Festival. The Fura’s trademark is its spellbinding fusion of movement, sound, music, dance, acrobatics and technology into unforgettable stage events of sometimes raw but always captivating power. In the world of opera, the ensemble has defined its personal style through its exploitation of large-screen projections, the extraordinary mobility of the performers, and the magical use of human beings to create organic structures that evoke objects such as Valhalla (in this “Ring” production). Indeed, La Fura was predestined for Wagner’s visionary world: his dream of a Gesamtkunstwerk becomes reality as a shape-shifting sequence of tableaux unfolds before our eyes with all the elements that constitute the “lenguaje furero” or “Fura idiom”. Eminent conductor Zubin Mehta leads world-class Wagner singers such as Matti Salminen, Peter Seiffert, Juha Uusitalo, Jennifer Wilson and Lance Ryan. Most prominent among the younger cast members are Jennifer Wilson, a “singer we’ll be hearing more of” (Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung) and Juha Uusitalo, whom the F.A.Z. hailed as a new “Number One among the opera gods”. Equally outstanding is the Orquestra de la Comunitat Valenciana, one of the “youngest and best opera orchestras in Europe” (Opernglas), playing “with rapturous beauty under Zubin Mehta. […] The suppleness, rhythmic presence and singer-friendly dynamic that Mehta achieves with this orchestra are nothing less than miraculous” (F.A.Z.). UNITEL CLASSICA is delighted to continue its proven collaboration with the Palau de les Arts of Valencia, which now features productions of “Fidelio”, “Cyrano” and “Turandot” in addition to the Ring. UNITEL also offers a “Making of” to each of the four Ring operas, as well as documentaries on set designer Roland Olbeter, video designer Franc Aleu and director Carlus Padrissa. With this Ring from Valencia UNITEL continues its cycles of Ring productions begun with the “Centennial Ring” of Patrice Chéreau and Pierre Boulez of the late 70s/early 80s, and followed by the Harry Kupfer/Daniel Barenboim production of the early 90s, both in Bayreuth.