From the Glyndebourne Touring Opera 1990. Stephen Lawless’s production, conducted by Graeme Jenkins, won universal critical praise, typified by The Financial Times: “One may wonder whether the score has ever sounded fuller, richer in colour and content, more beautiful, than it did in [this] production… It opens a new chapter in the opera’s performance history.” Britten’s final opera, a haunting rendering of Thomas Mann’s story of obsessive, self-deluding love, features outstanding performances by Robert Tear and Alan Opie.” (Sung in English)
The Riddle of the Amphora
The Greek Archipelago is the setting for this six-part thriller series, ideal for family viewing. The story concerns the search for the fragments of a priceless ancient Greek amphora, which, if put together, will show where a long-lost civilsation hid its treasure. When Professor Sarah Nardin sets off from Piraeus, on the yacht Argo, with her teenage daughter Helena and Philip, the son of friends, she is unaware they are being followed by another boat, the Jason, crewed by a trio of shady characters who have wind of their plans. The events that ensue take them all around southern Greece, even to Turkey, and involve many exciting and dangerous adventures, as their pursuers prove to be both relentless and ruthless in their desire to find the treasure first. The story explores the spirit of Greece’s past, visiting ancient sites, and retelling the myths and legends.
Out of the Dark Ages
Written and presented by the eminent art historian and writer Edwin Mullins, this series tells the story of four monarchs – a single dynasty known as the Salians. They were men of extraordinary energy who, for a hundred years, from 1024-1125, forged and held an empire from the Baltic to the Mediterranean. Filmed on location throughout Europe, Out of the Dark Ages visits historic sites and uses dramatic reconstructions to shed light on political, religious, cultural and social aspects of Salic rule. It highlights key events and surveys the magnificent Salian legacy of Romanesque architecture and religious art.
Hindemith: A Pilgrim’s Progress
Hindemith’s symphonic suite, Mathis der Maler, forms the framework for Tony Palmer’s highly original film about the German composer, narrated by John Gielgud and Ronald Pickup. The music was inspired by the medieval painter Grünewald, who, like Hindemith (1895-1963), was an opponent of oppression in his day. Palmer uses tableaux vivants from Grünewald’s crowning achievement, the Isenheim altarpiece, archive film of Nazi Germany and readings from Bunyan’s A Pilgrim’s Progress, to make a powerful assault on the senses and the emotions.
Titjan
Titian is one of the most celebrated names in art history. This film travels to Venice, Rome, Madrid and Vienna to consider his life, work and legacy. It explores his manoeuvres to become Venice’s offical artist, his greed and ambition, fuelled by polemicist Aretino, his expedient flattery of his illustrious Clients, as well as his sublime use of colour and his supreme skill as an artist, which find full expression in the passionate paintings of his old age.
Kazimir Malevich
One of the post-Revolution Russian Avant-garde, Malevich (1878-1935) had the misfortune to die in official disfavour. With perestroika, his work resurfaced from storage and the first major retrospective of his work since his death was held at the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam. With film of this exhibition, Barrie Gavin fills the screen with his paintings and uses Malevich’s own vivid writings to tell his story and analyse his art.
Design
Design is all-pervasive in the man-made environment: it helps shape the society in which we live and influences our desires and aspirations. This series examines its impact on diverse and surprising aspects of contemporary life. Six films pivot on portraits of individual designers, but also place them in the context of their rivals and contemporaries. Car design, advertising, environmental design, communications, status symbols, even fantasy are brought into focus. Contributors include Ferdinand Porsche, Muriel Cooper of M.I.T’s Media Lab, Vogue editor Anna Wintour, Giorgio Armani and special effects man Bran Ferren.
William Forsythe at Work
As director of the Frankfurt Ballet, American choreographer William Forsythe leaped to prominence, shaping an international troupe of dancers into the brilliant instrument of his choreographic and theatrical imagination. This programme shows Forsythe working with the company on Impressing the Tsar, and introducing dancers of the New York City Ballet to his rigorous methods, as he prepares Behind the China Dogs.
Nigel Kennedy – The Four Seasons
Nigel Kennedy plays Vivaldi’s Four Seasons with the English Chamber Orchestra. An introductory interview with Mariella Frostrup and rehearsal footage are intercut throughout the programme.
Montserrat Caballe & Marilyn Horne Gala
Two great stars of the operatic stage, Spanish soprano Montserrat Caballé and American mezzo-soprano Marilyn Horne, give magnificent performances in these superb gala concerts featuring a variety of popular arias and duets from: Bajazet (Vivaldi), Les Huguenots (Meyerbeer), Le due ilustri rivali (Mercadante), Tancredi (Rossini), Semiramide (Rossini), Rodelinda (Handel), Giulio Cesare (Handel), Semiramide (Rossini), La donna del lago (Rossini), Gianni Schicchi (Puccini), Les Contes d’Hoffmann (Offenbach).