Any performance of Bach’s monumental Mass in B minor is a special occasion, and so it proves with this 1998 performance filmed in the magnificent setting of the Wieskirche, the pilgrimage church of Steingaden Abbey near Schongau in Bavaria, a dazzling example of the exuberance of the late German baroque. Enoch zu Guttenberg brings a lifetime of love and engagement with Bach with him to conduct the and the Neubeuern Choral Society and the Orchester der Klangverwaltung with a special combination of authority and passion, which extends to the outstanding line-up of soloists. The result is truly a peformance to treasure.
Pretty Yende in Prague
Young South-African soprano Pretty Yende first came to international attention in 2010 when she was the first artist in the history of the Belvedere Competition to win First Prize in every category. In this concert at the stunning Smetana Hall in Prague she is performing works by Meyerbeer, Donizetti, Arditi, Mozart, Bellini, Delibes Suppé and Bernstein.
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
Cecilia Bartoli: Sacrificium – The Art of the Castrati
Mezzo-soprano Cecilia Bartoli, one of the most successful classical artists of her time, is a passionate musical explorer who regularly uncovers thrilling but little-known chapters of music history. This time her in-depth research takes her on a fascinating expedition into the world of castrato singers. The legendary art of the castratos continues to exert a strong fascination today, and, despite the great human sacrifice it exacted, this extraordinary period justifies the new assessment that she delivers.
Joyce DiDonato sings In War and Peace: Harmony through Music
„In the midst of chaos, how do you find peace?“, is one of the pressing topical questions that Joyce DiDonato asks in her powerful work In War & Piece – Harmony through Music. The Grammy Award winning mezzo-soprano fashions an intense semi-theatricalized concert production, including works by George Frideric Handel and Henry Purcell. Organizing a set of Baroque arias along thematic lines, DiDonato contemplates the interwoven worlds of external conflict and serenity, internal war and peace, and the challenges which they provide for every citizen of the world. Together with the period-instrument ensemble Il Pomo d’Oro under Maxim Emelyanychev, the singer creates a dramatic atmosphere on the stage of the Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona. In the music of Handel, DiDonato achieves a “purity that enhances the composer’s signature formula” (Washington Post).
The Mozart Requiem Project
Mozart’s legendary Requiem is certainly one of the composer’s most famous and frequently performed works. Raphaël Pichon and the ensemble “Pygmalion” – one of the leading music ensembles (a choir and orchestra) following historical criteria and playing on period instruments, now present the work in a unique version: divided into four blocks, it is interspersed with various vocal works, specially chosen to provide an overarching theme and sweeping vision within the context of the genius’ musical oeuvre. Performed in the Palau de la Música Catalana, UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the most beautiful concert halls in the world, the performance becomes “an aesthetic experience full of sensitivity, a performance close to the sublime and a refreshing reading of one of the most performed and programmed works of the sacred repertoire” (Platea Magazine).
The Red Square Concert
Appearing for the first time together on Red Square, two of the biggest names in opera to day, Anna Netrebko and Dmitri Hvorostovsky , performing for one night only in front of audience of 7,500 people. The exciting program includes arias from some of the most recognised operas including Tosca, Eugene Onegin, and Il trovatore. The singers are accompanied by conductor Constantine Orbelian, Russia’s State Academic Symphony Orchestra “Evgeny Svetlanov” and a large chorus. Director Frank Hof, whose work includes the memorable Anna Netrebko, Plácido Domingo, and Rolando Villazón performance at Berlin’s Waldbühne, shoot the Red Square performance with 18 cameras in magnificent HD to best capture the stunning backdrop of Red Square, and create an exclusive theatrical mix in 5.1 digital surround sound.
Le Donne di Puccini
RCO: Kerstmatinee 2016 – Bach: Christmas Oratorio (Cantatas IV-VI)
The Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra’s annual Kerstmatinee (Christmas Day Matinee) has become a beloved holiday tradition. For the second time, this matinee has been entirely dedicated to Bach’s inspirational Christmas Oratorio: The RCO presents the cantatas IV to VI, conducted by Trevor Pinnock, a renowned authority on eighteenth-century music. He leads the RCO in this masterpiece of Baroque music, accompanied by German coloratura soprano Marlis Petersen as well as Ursula Eittinger, Daniel Behle, Michael Nagy, and the “top ensemble” (Volkskrant) of the Nederlands Kamerkoor. The first three sections of the Christmas Oratorio, performed by the RCO under the baton of Jan Willem de Vriend, are also available: J.S. Bach: Christmas Oratorio (Cantatas I-III), Cat. No.: A 865 50025 0000.
RCO: Bach: Christmas Oratorio; Cantatas I – III (Kerstmatinee 2015)
The Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra’s annual Kerstmatinee (Christmas Day matinee) has become a beloved holiday tradition, yet this concert was the first matinee the occasion has been dedicated entirely to Bach’s inspirational Christmas Oratorio. In presenting this historically informed performance of the first three parts, Baroque specialist Jan Willem de Vriend adopts suitably buoyant tempi and opts for the jubilant opening chorus’s original and more apt text, “Tönet, ihr Pauken” (Timpani resound! Trumpets ring out!). The elite orchestra’s players are joined by a superb 28-voice chamber choir, Cappella Amsterdam, and international soloists. As the Evangelist, Swiss tenor Fabio Trümpy “was a fabulously beautiful story-teller” (Het Parool).