From the English National Opera 1994: Tim Albery’s startlingly original treatment of Britten’s vivid tragedy was hailed as a landmark production when it was staged at the English National Opera. The critics were unanimous in their praise of Philip Langridge’s remarkable portrayal of Grimes, and the whole company, including Janice Cairns, Alan Opie and Ann Howard, won countless accolades, as did the inspired musical direction of conductor David Atherton. The individual set against the community: this is the theme of the opera and never has this stark opposition been so sharply realised as in Albery’s very abstract vision. Hildegard Bechtler’s stark but beautiful sets underline Grimes’ alienation. (Sung in English)
From the House of the Dead
From the Salzburg Festival 1992
Based on Dostoevsky’s ‘diary’ of his years as a political detainee, Janácek’s singular opera, with ist profoundly disturbing, but ultimately uplifting, message about the human condition, is set in a nineteenth-century Siberian prison camp. This Salzburg Festival production by Klaus-Michael Grüber graphically depicts the grinding tedium of life in this penal colony. A superb cast is headed by the great Bulgarian bass Nicolai Ghiaurov, and Claudio Abbado conducts the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra in a performance hailed as a musical triumph. (Sung in the original Czech version)
Prokofiev – The Prodigal Son
This revealing and evocative docu-drama about Sergei Prokofiev (1891-1953) was commissioned especially for television from the highly regarded Russian film-maker Andrei Nekrasov. He uses a cast of fine Russian actors, together with archive film clips and Prokofiev’s own writings, to tell the story of the composer’s life and career in his homeland and in the West. Voice-over narration describes events and sets them in context. The Kirov Opera Orchestra, conducted by Valéry Gergiev, plays Prokofiev’s music.
Kirov Classics – A Mixed Bill
This first-ever studio recording of the world-famous Kirov Ballet was made by the award-winning director Thomas Grimm at the Danmarks Radio Århus Dance Studio, the most advanced facility of ist kind. It showcases highlights from their repertoire, both classic and contemporary, and features a galaxy of star dancers, including Larissa Lezhnina, Altynai Asylmuratova, Sergei Vikharev, Faroukh Ruzimatov, Konstantin Zaklinsky, Yelena Pankova and Yulia Makhalina. These Kirov performances may be acquired separately or combined in a mixed bill; Petrushka (50′), Chopiniana (36′), Paquita (37′), Le Corsaire – pas de deux (9′), Markitenka – pas de six (16′), The Fairy Doll (12′), Barber’s Adagio (14′).
Symphony No. 2 in C minor
Bernard Haitink conducts the NOS Radio Choir and the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra in a performance of Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 in C minor (Resurrection), recorded live from the Doelen Concert Hall in Rotterdam. The soloists are Charlotte Margiono (soprano) and Jard van Nes (contralto).
Kiri Te Kanawa
Producer and TV director Nigel Wattis directed the film biography of incomparable soprano Kiri Te Kanawa. Melvyn Bragg, as narrator, leads us through the singer’s life, and talks to her about her life and career, while other artist personalities such as George Solti, Dame Joan Sutherland, Richard Bonynge, Jeffrey Tate, Stephen Barlow and John Hopkins add their personal impressions. This portrait, dedicated to Kiri Te Kanawa’s teacher of many years, Vera Rozas, was filmed in 1991, and accompanies the soprano through a whole year. It follows her on trips to New Zealand and the San Francisco Opera, where she was preparing her role in Strauss’ Capriccio. The film includes recordings of her in excerpts from arias by Handel, Mozart, Charpentier, Puccini and Cilèa, as well as in the final scene of Capriccio, and in songs by Richard Strauss.
Pique Dame (The Queen of Spades)
From the Glyndebourne Festival Opera 1992: Producer Graham Vick, designer Richard Hudson, conductor Sir Andrew Davis, the London Philharmonic and the full cast of singers won unanimous critical acclaim for their revelatory interpretation of this mesmeric and psychologically harrowing work. Hudson’s eighteenth-century costumes are sumptuously realistic, while his set is abstract and modern. The cast features three top Russian singers – Sergei Leiferkus, Dimitri Kharitonov and Yuri Marusin. Nancy Gustafson, Felicity Palmer and Louise Winter also won high praise for their performances in this “marvellous and brilliant piece of modern music-theatre” (Financial Times). (Sung in Russian)
La grande messe des morts (Requiem)
The magnificent cathedral of Regensburg is a perfect setting for this recording of Colin Davis conducting the Bayerischer Rundfunk Symphony Chorus and Orchestra in a splendid, moving performance of Berlioz’s monumental work, with tenor Keith Lewis as soloist. The performance is completed by the pealing of the cathedral bells. Regensburg Cathedral provides a superb setting for this live recording of Berlioz’s resounding Requiem, written in 1837 for the dead of Napoleon’s catastrophic wars. Sir Colin Davis conducts the Bavarian Radio Symphony Chorus and Orchestra in a magnificent and moving performance of this work, with soloist Keith Lewis (tenor).
Excerpts from Eugene Onegin Op.24
Hailed by the press as “the definitive video production” of Tchaikovsky’s music, this exceptional concert series, recorded live from the Alte Oper Frankfurt, features the leading Russian conductor Vladimir Fedoseyev and the Moscow Radio Symphony Orchestra. Fedoseyev’s perceptive reading of the works of his fellow countryman, the masterly playing of the orchestra and guest soloists combine to produce performances which are revelatory in their execution and understanding of Tchaikovsky’s music and the Russian heritage.
St Matthew Passion BWV 244
Recorded live from the Romanesque church in Alpirsbach, Enoch zu Guttenberg conducts the Neubeuern Choral Society and the Munich Bach Collegium, with soloists Claes-Hakon Ahnjsö (tenor), Margaret Marshall (soprano), Jard van Nes (contralto), Aldo Baldin (tenor) and Anton Scharinger (bass). The culmination of Bach’s writing for the Church, this massive choral work is a deeply moving combination of joy and grief which attains the utmost heights of expressiveness.