Andris Nelsons and the Wiener Philharmoniker confront the uncompromising power of Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 6, the composer’s darkest and most enigmatic symphonic statement. With gripping intensity and architectural control, Nelsons traces the work’s inexorable march from martial determination to catastrophic collapse. The famous hammer blows in the finale strike with devastating force, while moments of lyrical repose are shaped with haunting restraint. This performance reveals Mahler’s Sixth as a tragic drama of fate and resistance, uncompromising in its emotional impact. Recorded at the Salzburg Festival, the concert forms part of the Wiener Philharmoniker’s Mahler cycle with Andris Nelsons. “Mahler’s ?tragedy’ as a cathartic experience in Salzburg. Standing ovations for the Wiener Philharmoniker under Andris Nelsons” (Die Presse)
Salzburg Opening Concert
Salzburg Festival, for many regarded as the world’s most renowned music festival, is by tradition a high-profile event. The 2009 Salzburg Festival opening concert with the Wiener Philharmoniker under Nikolaus Harnoncourt honors the conductor on his 80th birthday and it’s an homage to the Viennese dance.
Schubert’s Great C Major Symphony is a “stirring war painting” Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung
“There is a special philharmonic sound under Nikolaus Harnoncourt, and the Wiener Philharmoniker sound as they should in the best-possible case: velvety smooth and incredibly compelling” Salzburger Nachrichten
Messa da Requiem
TUTTO VERDI – this edition to mark the Verdi bicentenary sets standards by which all similar projects will be judged. It includes all twenty-six operas by the greatest Italian stage composer, together with his immortal Requiem, all of them in definitive performances. “This is how Verdi should be played” – Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung on TUTTO VERDI
Verdi wrote his Messa da Requiem in 1873-74 for Alessandro Manzoni. a poet whom he much admired. Like Brahms’s German Requiem, Verdi’s Mass for the Dead is not intended for liturgical use but for the concert hall. ln addition to its profound spirituality, this masterpiece brings together the finest qualities from Verdi’s operas: endless melodic lines and captivating musico-dramatic effects.
La Bohème
In this new production of the Arena di Verona, Giacomo Puccini’s masterpiece La Bohème emerges as an intimate drama. Director Alfonso Signorini contrasts the summer setting of the amphitheatre with a snow-covered vision of 19th-century Paris, placing the tragic love story of Mimì and Rodolfo within a striking visual frame. Audience favourite Vittorio Grigòlo gives a charismatic interpretation of Rodolfo, alongside soprano Juliana Grigoryan, who presents Mimì in her Arena debut. Luca Micheletti and Eleonora Bellocci complete the central quartet as Marcello and Musetta. Under the musical direction of Daniel Oren, the orchestra and chorus of the Arena di Verona bring Puccini’s score to life. “An evening of great occasions, with a cheering audience well in excess of ten thousand” (L’Adige).
Hotel Metamorphosis
As an endless source of inspiration, Ovid’s Metamorphoses have left a lasting mark on our culture for over two thousand years. Combining some of its episodes with music by Antonio Vivaldi, Stage Director Barrie Kosky creates a pasticcio for our times, a fascinating new work of rich imagination and breathless narratives. With a leading cast of singers assembled by Cecilia Bartoli, and with the participation of actor Angela Winkler, Hotel Metamorphosis stands out as “a panopticon of human emotions”. Vivaldi expert Gianluca Capuano conducts Les Musiciens du Prince – Monaco, presenting a unique variety of Vivaldi’s arias, ensembles and choruses, music with a particularly powerful emotional charge. “What a brilliant evening of theatre.” (BR Klassik) / “Checking into this hotel guarantees a luxury stay.” (Kurier) / “…the musical Champions League.” (Deutschlandfunk Kultur)
Giulio Cesare in Egitto
Handel’s Baroque opera Giulio Cesare in Egitto unfolds here as a high-stakes drama of power, passion and survival. Dmitri Tcherniakov’s powerful production strips the story to its psychological core, placing political rivalry and a fiery love story within the claustrophobic setting of an underground bunker. Christophe Dumaux delivers a compelling Cesare, while Olga Kulchynska shines as a “lyrical” Cleopatra in her Salzburg debut. With a superb supporting cast, above all Lucile Richardot as Cornelia “with her smouldering mezzo” (BR Klassik) and Federico Fiorio as Sesto, Emmanuelle Haïm conducts Le Concert d’Astrée from the harpsichord, shaping “a perfect whole” (Kurier) of musical brilliance and electrifying theatre.
Nabucco
With a spectacular cast and the staging direction of Stefano Poda, this production of Verdi’s Nabucco presents the Arena di Verona in a postmodern aesthetic brought to light through a futuristic vision, cosmic symbolism and absolute abstraction. Anna Netrebko gifts the festival’s audience with a powerful interpretation of one of Verdi’s most demanding roles: her Abigaille is “beautiful, vivacious, magnetic” (La Stampa) and “tackles this formidable challenge with great confidence” (Rivista Musica). Amartuvshin Enkhbat is “a marvellous performer of Nabucco, deeply moving” (Forum Opera). “Pinchas Steinberg conducts the choir and orchestra of the Arena di Verona with verve, power, brio and fire” (Der Merker), a magnificent performance that culminated in a rendition of “Va’ pensiero” brimming with pathos and intensity.
Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg
Wagner defined Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg as the most complete work that he had ever created. The Bayreuth Festival 2025 presents the comedy in a new production staged by Matthias Davids, whose playful irreverence stands between tradition and renewal. Under the exceptional baton of Daniele Gatti, who debuted in Bayreuth in 2008 with Parsifal, the cast showcases its brilliancy and finesse. Georg Zeppenfeld, at the core of the performance, interprets Hans Sachs with excellent vocal skills and particular sensibility. Equally remarkable performances are given by Michael Spyres and Christina Nilsson, respectively Walther and Eva, and Michael Nagy as a finely drawn Beckmesser. The result is a compelling piece of music theatre: “A comedy of manners where themes of art, tradition and human love arise naturally” (Seen and Heard International).Michael Spyres “has everything a Stolzing needs: he is effortlessly present, sounds light yet embodied in the upper register, a German knight with italianità.” (BR-KLASSIK)
Maria Stuarda
With a sublime cast and the revolutionary staging by Ulrich Rasche, this Salzburg Festival production of Donizetti’s Maria Stuarda transforms a bel canto masterpiece into an evening of theatre. The conflict between Maria and Elisabetta becomes tangible through contrasting costumes, a constantly shifting space of rotating platforms and projected images. Lisette Oropesa’s Maria showcases “a truly wonderful display of vocal intelligence, human warmth and a completely effortless, natural tone” (Süddeutsche Zeitung), while Kate Lindsey’s Elisabetta conveys the fury and despair of the English monarch with striking intensity. Under the baton of Antonello Manacorda and with the outstanding contribution of the Salzburg Experimental Academy of Dance, this production conquers through rhythm, movement and physical presence as expressive forces.
“Lisette Oropesa imbues all of this with vocal mastery and emotion. Beyond pure virtuosity she shapes the inner workings of the character into operatic drama” (Der Standard)
La forza del destino
Among Teatro alla Scala’s most unforgettable productions, this La forza del destino is a performance of striking musical energy, with Riccardo Chailly conducting an exceptional cast of opera stars. Anna Netrebko (Leonora), confirms her absolute dominance of the Verdian repertoire, showcasing “beautiful floating high notes and enviable fiato” (OperaWire). Brian Jagde (Don Alvaro) and Ludovic Tézier (Don Carlo), give impeccable performances of great emotional depth and timbral richness. Joining forces, Stage Director Leo Muscato and Set Designer Federica Parolini deliver a reinterpretation of Verdi’s classic in a modern key. On a set that impresses for both beauty and functionality, the scenes are set across different eras, reminding us that war is always part of humans’ fate. “The undisputed star of the evening is Anna Netrebko. She elevates Donna Leonora with her distinctive, dark, velvety timbre, impeccable high notes, and acting presence.” (Orpheus Magazine)