EuroArts
Claudio Abbado - Hearing the Silence conveys an intensely moving view on one of the leading musicians of our time. In several interviews, Abbado talks about artistic, musical and biographical aspects of his life. The film shows excerpts from rehearsals and concerts with some of his favourite orchestras. Statements from colleagues and friends are combined with views from his favourite surroundings and help to characterize the "silent thinker".
Film Director Paul Smaczny had a very rare opportunity to get a glimpse of the immensely private personality of Claudio Abbado, described by many in the film as noble and elegant but also as a warm-hearted friend. The musicians all mention his reserved, but exact gestures, his respectful way of working in rehearsals and concerts and the atmosphere of co-operation this creates. Co-operation in music making is an aspect that, as Abbado indicates in one of his interviews, is very important to him and one that is at the core of his artistic intentions. Together with rarely seen historical filmed material and documents of him rehearsing and performing works by Beethoven, Brahms, Bruckner, Debussy, Dvorak, Strauss, Stravinsky and Nono. The film follows Abbado's work with the orchestras with whom he most frequently collaborated, making use...
Film Director Paul Smaczny had a very rare opportunity to get a glimpse of the immensely private personality of Claudio Abbado, described by many in the film as noble and elegant but also as a warm-hearted friend. The musicians all mention his reserved, but exact gestures, his respectful way of working in rehearsals and concerts and the atmosphere of co-operation this creates. Co-operation in music making is an aspect that, as Abbado indicates in one of his interviews, is very important to him and one that is at the core of his artistic intentions. Together with rarely seen historical filmed material and documents of him rehearsing and performing works by Beethoven, Brahms, Bruckner, Debussy, Dvorak, Strauss, Stravinsky and Nono. The film follows Abbado's work with the orchestras with whom he most frequently collaborated, making use...
One of the few complete concert performances of Louis "Satchmo" Armstrong , this live recording features the legendary jazz trumpeter and singer on an Australian tour in 1964, when he had already become an international superstar and a living symbol of 20th-century American culture. As a founding father of jazz he revolutionized the world of music and became one of the most influential artists and entertainers ever. The impressive structure of his melodic ideas and the radiant sonorities and flawless technique of his trumpet playing all marked him out as jazz's first soloist of genius. Louis Armstrong set new standards for swing feeling, improvisation, scat singing and command of his instrument, but also for stage presence and entertainment, providing a model for performers in virtually every field of jazz and on every conceivable instrument. With his All Stars sextet, which he formed in the wake of the Second World War, he acted as an ambassador for jazz, restlessly travelling the world. The present documentary was shot at a time when he succeeded in creating a song that was a minor miracle: Hello Dolly even displaced the Beatles from the number-one position in the charts in 1964, a fact of which Armstrong was unaware as he was touring at the time. Armstrong's associates -...
Celebrating the 200th birthday of Fryderyk Chopin, this major co-production not only tells the story of the composer's brief life but brings together some of the world's greatest pianists playing excerpts from some of his best-known works. It includes appearances by Arthur Rubinstein, rare footage of Martha Argerich, Krystian Zimerman and Evgeny Kissin in their early days, as well as Garrick Ohlsson (winner of the 1970 Chopin International Competition) who also provides his own perceptive observations on Chopin's genius.
Dutch conductor Sigiswald Kuijken presents the two Ascension Oratorios by father and son Bach. Johann Sebastian Bach's work was first performed in Leipzig on Ascension Day in 1735. The text mixes biblical and poetic material. Recorded live at the beautiful Church of St. Nikolai in Leipzig 2004, one of the venues in Leipzig for which J.S. Bach conceived many of his works, this video comes close to the atmosphere of the first performance, thus creating a feast of Baroque music surrounded by the beauty of a gothic cathedral. Sigiswald Kuijken is widely accepted as a leading authority on Baroque music. Together with La Petite Bande, an outstanding orchestra for early music, the chamber choir Ex Tempore, specialists in music of the 17th and 18th century and a cast of very refined soloists, he celebrates two remarkable vocal works by Johann Sebastian Bach and his most famous son, Carl Philipp Emmanuel Bach.
Ton Koopman, a leading authority on Baroque music, gathered his favourite orchestra and eminent Baroque singers for a concert focusing on the Magnificat , the traditional prayer said by the Virgin Mary after hearing that she would bear God's son. Bach's Magnificat - his greatest choral work - is programmed together with one of his most beautiful cantatas and a lesser-known baroque gem by Bach's predecessor at St. Thomas' Church, Johann Kuhnau, to form a concert in honour of the spiritual power of Baroque music. The concert was performed at St. Thomas' in Leipzig, the church for which Bach conceived most of his works. The recording captures the atmosphere of the impressive church and shows the musicians "at work". The film also focuses on Ton Koopman, offering insights into his friendly and encouraging conducting style.
The German Brass Ensemble presents some of Bach's most popular tunes in breathtakingly brilliant and virtuoso arrangements for brass instruments. Recorded live in "Bach's church" – the wonderful St Thomas's Church in Leipzig - the programme includes immortal pieces such as Toccata and Fugue in D minor , Adagio on a G string , Jesus bleibet meine Freude (Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring) and more.
German Brass counts among the most successful brass ensembles of our time and draws musicians from the best German orchestras, such as the Berliner Philharmoniker and the Munich Philharmonic. Filmed with a full view of the church for which Bach conceived most of his works and making use of the amazing acoustics, the state-of-the-art recording is a visual and aural feast and a most fitting celebration of Bach's music.
German Brass counts among the most successful brass ensembles of our time and draws musicians from the best German orchestras, such as the Berliner Philharmoniker and the Munich Philharmonic. Filmed with a full view of the church for which Bach conceived most of his works and making use of the amazing acoustics, the state-of-the-art recording is a visual and aural feast and a most fitting celebration of Bach's music.
In November 2004 a new name caused listeners to prick up their ears on the international orchestral scene: under Claudio Abbado's artistic guidance the Orchestra Mozart came into being. It combines both young instrumentalists on the threshold of a first-rate career as well as eminent chamber musicians such as Danusha Waskiewicz, Alois Posch, Jacques Zoon, Michaela Petri, Ottavio Dantone, Mario Brunello, Alessio Allegrini, Jonathan Williams and Reinhold Friedrich. As with his famous Lucerne Festival Orchestra, Abbado hand-picked an ensemble to his liking, this time one of early- and Baroque-music specialists, all masters in their field. Recorded live in the handsome 19th-century Teatro Municipale Romolo Valli in Reggio Emilia in 2007, this video documents Bach's Brandenburg Concertos performed in all their delicate beauty by this very special orchestra. Each concerto is scored for different forces and, in total, the six concertos draw on virtually the entire range of instruments that existed during the High Baroque. The instrumental variety of these pieces, together with Bach's genius as a composer, ensured that the Brandenburg Concertos soon came to occupy a key position in the history of music, a position they continue to hold to this day. Claudio Abbado, violinist...
When Bach was in the service of Prince Leopold in Cöthen, he had his own orchestra and was contracted to compose a great deal of instrumental music. This gave him an opportunity to try new techniques and to develop his own instrumental style. The six Brandenburg Concertos belongs to these masterpieces for a small ensemble. This joyously infectious performance of these famous landmarks in the history of music by the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra demonstrates both the musical satisfaction and the high professional standard that can be reached with period instruments. The performance was given in the Bach Anniversary Year 2000 – 250 years after his death – in the elegant Hall of Mirrors at Cöthen Castle. The Freiburg Baroque Orchestra’s members all have virtuoso skills. They take the spotlight gracefully for solos but also play with the true ensemble spirit required by the music. Their decision to perform without a conductor revives an eighteenth century practice.
Bonus features:
Cello Suite No.5, BWV 1011: Sarabande
Hille Perl, viola da gamba
Coffee Cantata, BWV 211: Die Katze lässt das Mausen nicht
Madeleine Vogt, soprano
Matthias Schubotz, tenor
Holger Krause, bass
Members of the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig
Back(h) in...
Bonus features:
Cello Suite No.5, BWV 1011: Sarabande
Hille Perl, viola da gamba
Coffee Cantata, BWV 211: Die Katze lässt das Mausen nicht
Madeleine Vogt, soprano
Matthias Schubotz, tenor
Holger Krause, bass
Members of the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig
Back(h) in...
Surely Bach's French Suites , which he composed during his years at Cothen (1717–1723), are among the finest inducements to practise that any teacher has ever made to a pupil. In this case Bach wrote them for his young wife, Anna Magdalena. The over-riding impression left by these suites is one of endearing tunefulness. Clavier-Ubung II is a later collection of didactic keyboard pieces. It comprises two greatly contrasted works: the Italian Concerto and the Overture in the French Style. These performances admirably demonstrate the thoughtful and persuasive approach that Andras Schiff adopts when performing Bach. Recorded live at the Bachfest 2010, Protestant Reformed Church of Leipzig, 11 June 2010.
Bonus features:
- Andras Schiff explains Bach
Bonus features:
- Andras Schiff explains Bach
Recorded at the atmospheric Academy of Sciences in Budapest, the Keller Quartet plays a version of Bach's unfinished masterpiece The Art of the Fugue for string quartet intertwined with works by renowned contemporary composer Gyorgy Kurtag - a programme that the four Hungarians developed and have successfully performed on international stages. Anner Bylsma, Dutch master cellist and world-renowned as a distinguished interpreter of Bach's cello music, plays the solo suites. The suites, on which he has also published an authoritative book, count among the most popular baroque chamber works. Anner Bylsma plays the famous Stradivarius "Servais" and the performance was recorded in the beautiful village church St. Bartholomew of Dornheim in Thuringia.
The famous Thomanerchor Leipzig – a traditional specialist in Bach's choral music – is joined by the superb Gewandhausorchester Leipzig and excellent soloists to perform one of Bach's most acclaimed pieces of religious choral music, the Mass in B Minor .
Recorded in the Thomaskirche in Leipzig in summer 2000, this was one of numerous performances to celebrate the 250th anniversary of J.S. Bach's death in the church where he served as musical director. The artistry of the performers under the assured baton of conductor George Christoph Biller is exemplary and the state-of-the-art filming shows the serene gothic church in full splendour – a fitting backdrop for the work that is generally regarded as the crowning glory of Bach's sacred choral music; a majestic work that showcases Bach's supreme craftsmanship and skill as a choral composer.
Recorded in the Thomaskirche in Leipzig in summer 2000, this was one of numerous performances to celebrate the 250th anniversary of J.S. Bach's death in the church where he served as musical director. The artistry of the performers under the assured baton of conductor George Christoph Biller is exemplary and the state-of-the-art filming shows the serene gothic church in full splendour – a fitting backdrop for the work that is generally regarded as the crowning glory of Bach's sacred choral music; a majestic work that showcases Bach's supreme craftsmanship and skill as a choral composer.
With this, his only Bach recording, Herbert Blomstedt pays homage to Bach and the city of Leipzig. The video was recorded in 2005 at the Leipzig Bach Festival, which is widely regarded as the world's leading festival celebrating Johann Sebastian Bach. This concert of Bach's masterwork, at the end of his tenure as the 18th Gewandhauskapellmeister did not really mark the end of Blomstedt's fruitful collaboration with the traditional orchestra. The Swedish conductor will continue to act as an honorary musical director to the ensemble. Performed with leading Bach singers at St. Thomas' Church, Leipzig, the church for which Bach conceived his works, this homage to Bach was a touching farewell to Herbert Blomstedt from his Leipzig audience.
Bonus feature:
- Bach and his B minor Mass: An introduction by Herbert Blomstedt
Bonus feature:
- Bach and his B minor Mass: An introduction by Herbert Blomstedt
This festive celebration concert from Berlin's Gethsemanekirche on the Day of German Unity also marks the 60th anniversary of the RIAS Kammerchor. Founded in 1948, this choir today enjoys a worldwide reputation as one of the best ensembles of its kind. Under the baton of their new chief conductor, Hans-Christoph Rademann, the RIAS Kammerchor and the Akademie fur Alte Musik Berlin perform famous motets by Johann Sebastian Bach, interspersed with some fine instrumental movements from his cantatas.
The Kuijken Ensemble, made up of the three Belgian Kuijken brothers on flute, violin and viola da gamba and the harpsichordist Robert Kohnen count among the most distinguished of all present-day early-music specialists. They have long since branched out into conducting and other far-reaching ways of propagating authentic Baroque style. But they are each masters of a different set of instruments, so their occasional reunions for concerts become genuine occasions. With The Musical Offering , played here in a rigorously reduced scoring, they demonstrate their great flair for style and their long-standing experience and although they don’t look at all alike, their shared musical heritage is audible. Bach’s late masterpiece The Musical Offering (1747) is a musical homage written on the occasion of Bach’s visit to King Frederick the Great of Prussia in Potsdam. Recorded in the beautiful setting of the historical Old Town Hall in Leipzig during the Bach anniversary year in 2000, the film captures some of the atmosphere of Bach’s times.
Dutch organist and harpsichordist Ton Koopman is one of the most distinguished Bach interpreters of our time. On this video, he is featured interpreting Johann Sebastian Bach's greatest organ works, including the popular Toccata in D minor and the Fugue in G minor . He plays on the world-famous Silbermann Organ in Freiberg (Saxony). The organ was completed in 1714 and thoroughly restored in 1982/1983 and it closely retains its original condition. Bach adored his contemporary Gottfried Silbermann's organs for their exquisite sound and the recording allows the listener to enjoy this sound to the full while offering a closer look at this marvellously crafted instrument. In the second part of this video Ton Koopman is "At Home with Bach!" He plays favourite harpsichord pieces and accompanies the eminent Bach singer Klaus Mertens in popular arias. This programme was filmed in the enchanting Gohlis Castle near Leipzig, a late baroque jewel built in 1755.
"For me, it's the utmost to play and work on the music of Bach!"
Violinist Frank Peter Zimmermann is one of the greatest artists of his generation. Accompanied by Enrico Pace, his pianist counterpart since 1998, he plays the unrivalled violin sonatas of Johann Sebastian Bach, recorded in one of Germany's most beautiful Baroque halls. And in the documentary Bach and Me he provides us with personal insights into his relationship with this famed Baroque composer as well as into his own life as an artist and human being.
Violinist Frank Peter Zimmermann is one of the greatest artists of his generation. Accompanied by Enrico Pace, his pianist counterpart since 1998, he plays the unrivalled violin sonatas of Johann Sebastian Bach, recorded in one of Germany's most beautiful Baroque halls. And in the documentary Bach and Me he provides us with personal insights into his relationship with this famed Baroque composer as well as into his own life as an artist and human being.
The choir and the orchestra of the Bach Collegium Japan perform the St John's Passion with a small ensemble - as was customary in the composer's time - under Masaaki Suzuki, former student of one of the nestors of authentic interpretation, Ton Koopman. One of the greatest musical treatments of the suffering and death of Jesus Christ receives a performance that is musically precise and stylistically close to what we now know of Bach's ideal. The Bach Collegium Japan has been regarded for some years now as a real discovery among baroque ensembles specialising in the performance of sacred music from the Baroque and Masaaki Suzuki, who conducts and plays the harpsichord, is a complete and thorough musician, deeply involved in the emotional overtones of the music as well as technical questions of tempo, balance, and phrasing. Recorded live from The Suntory Hall in Tokyo, Japan during the Bach Anniversary Year 2000 on the occasion of the 250th anniversary of the death of J.S. Bach.
This recording presents the most important work of the baroque keyboard repertoire – The Well-Tempered Clavier - played by four world-class pianists. Each artist performs twelve Preludes and Fugues selected from this well-cherished collection of educational and yet artistically highly-strung pieces. The performances were recorded at four exceptionally charming venues: the Palazzo Labia in Venice, the Guell Palace in Barcelona, the Wartburg in Eisenach, Germany and the New Art Gallery in Walsall in England. The performances were impressively staged and skilfully filmed, thus - together with interpretations by four high-class clavichordists – it opens up new perspectives on the work.
The West-Eastern Divan Orchestra is one of those success stories that is almost too perfect to be true. The internationally respected orchestra was founded by Daniel Barenboim and the late Palestinian writer and scholar Edward Said with young, highly talented Israeli and Arab musicians. The ensemble works to establish dialogue between the cultures of the Middle East through the experience of playing music together, and has gained cultural and musical respect all over the world. The concert proves that it can bear comparison with veteran orchestras, even in familiar repertory staples. Combining technical polish and security, tonal beauty and transparency with youthful expression, passion and exuberance, the ensemble plays music by Beethoven, Brahms and others. The event was broadcast live from the Palacio de Carlos V, Alhambra in Spanish Granada, thus hundreds of thousands of viewers across Europe were able to experience Barenboim's conducting and this special orchestra. The Alhambra (Red Castle) in Granada, Spain – a listed UNESCO World Heritage Site - was built and preserved over a period of social tolerance and cultural flowering, during the Moorish era, in which the three great religions lived together in an atmosphere of tolerance and mutual respect. Thus it...
Tango has long become more than the popular Argentine urban dance which developed after 1870 in the poor working class and immigrant areas on the outskirts of Buenos Aires. Tango has aficionados worldwide - be it for its music, culture or the dance. On New Year's Eve 2006, conductor and pianist Daniel Barenboim, Argentinean by birth and upbringing, celebrated the end of the year with a spectacular musical event: a festival of Argentinean music live from Buenos Aires. In a seamless fusion of classical and traditional music, the Orquesta Filarmonica de Buenos Aires under Barenboim joined the excellent bandoneon virtuoso Leopoldo Federico and his Orquesta Tipica to present an extraordinary show with popular tangos and Latin American orchestra classics to a crowd of 10,000 in a free open-air concert at the Plaza de la República. Enchanting new arrangements of works by the Argentinean artists Astor Piazzola, Carlos Gardel, Julio de Caro, Alberto Ginastera and Horacio Salgan and performances by the leading tango dancers Mora Godoy and Junior Cervila from Buenos Aires added to the atmosphere of a night of "Tangos sinfónicos".
With this festive concert the Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden under the baton of Fabio Luisi celebrated the moving reopening of the Frauenkirche in Dresden. After the bombing of Dresden on February 13, 1945, the church burnt out and its dome, the "The Stone Bell", collapsed. The church was always very dear to the heart of the Dresdeners and just as its ruins were a constant reminder of the Second World War, the rebuilt church will remain a monument to and a symbol of hope and conciliation. Thus the reopening proved to be a touching event of great solemnity, which was perfectly matched by the Missa Solemnis . On this recording, Beethoven's overwhelming music blends wonderfully with the camera shots of the impressive space. The cast of soloists is excellent. It includes Camilla Nylund and Rene Pape, who are among the most outstanding singers of the younger generation. An informative bonus film features the reconstruction of the Frauenkirche.
Bonus features:
- The Reconstruction of the Frauenkirche, Dresden
Bonus features:
- The Reconstruction of the Frauenkirche, Dresden
In November 2007, Daniel Barenboim completed a cycle of Beethoven's piano concertos. Recorded live at the prestigious Klavier-Festival Ruhr in May 2007, this recording reflects both a very individual and special reading of Beethoven's music and the artist's life-long dedication to the composer. Daniel Barenboim is one of the most prolific and high-profile artists performing on international stages today and Beethoven's masterpieces have been a key part of his repertoire throughout his career, both as conductor and as pianist. Beethoven himself was a keyboard virtuoso of almost awesome abilities who created a sensation wherever he played. It is no wonder, therefore, that the piano was central to Beethoven's overall output. Daniel Barenboim, artistic personality and former wunderkind, long an essential part of the international musical scene both on the conductor's podium and at the piano, is the perfect match for this demanding music. Conducting and playing at the same time, Barenboim chose his orchestra of almost two decades, the Staatskapelle Berlin, which he has praised warmly for its exceptional, dark and warm sound. With a tradition reaching back to 1570, the Staatskapelle Berlin is one of the oldest orchestras in the world.
Elected by members of the Berlin Philharmonic as Principal Conductor and fifth Artistic Director in 1989, Claudio Abbado resigned from the post in 2002, but remains close to the orchestra, which cherishes the conductor to this day. Listening to the music, one hears how the Berlin Philharmonic transforms Abbado's musical intentions into sound – there is a sense of unity that can only be achieved through many years of shared artistic experience and attention to detail. These live performances at the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome in 2001 were an overwhelming success: each concert ended in standing ovations, and the critics spoke of seminal moments in the history of music. Abbado's Beethoven cycle will certainly become a milestone for contemporary interpretation and this recording pays tribute to his achievement.
Bonus feature:
- Multi-Angle Feature - Conductor Camera ( Symphony No. 6 )
Bonus feature:
- Multi-Angle Feature - Conductor Camera ( Symphony No. 6 )
Elected by members of the Berlin Philharmonic as Principal Conductor and fifth Artistic Director in 1989, Claudio Abbado resigned from the post in 2002, but remains close to the orchestra, which cherishes the conductor to this day. Listening to the music, one hears how the Berlin Philharmonic transforms Abbado's musical intentions into sound – there is a sense of unity that can only be achieved through many years of shared artistic experience and attention to detail. These live performances at the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome in 2001 were an overwhelming success: each concert ended in standing ovations, and the critics spoke of seminal moments in the history of music. Abbado's Beethoven cycle will certainly become a milestone for contemporary interpretation and this recording pays tribute to his achievement.
Bonus feature:
- Multi-Angle Feature - Conductor Camera ( Symphony No. 5 )
Bonus feature:
- Multi-Angle Feature - Conductor Camera ( Symphony No. 5 )
Elected by members of the Berlin Philharmonic as Principal Conductor and fifth Artistic Director in 1989, Claudio Abbado resigned from the post in 2002, but remains close to the orchestra, which cherishes the conductor to this day. Listening to the music, one hears how the Berlin Philharmonic transforms Abbado's musical intentions into sound – there is a sense of unity that can only be achieved through many years of shared artistic experience and attention to detail. These live performances at the Philharmonie, Berlin in 2000 and the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome in 2001 were an overwhelming success: each concert ended in standing ovations, and the critics spoke of seminal moments in the history of music. Abbado's Beethoven cycle will certainly become a milestone for contemporary interpretation and this recording pays tribute to his achievement. For the popular Symphony No. 9 in D minor , the Berlin Philharmonic were joined by high-ranking singers and choirs.
Bonus feature:
- Multi-Angle Feature - Conductor Camera ( Symphony No.3 )
Bonus feature:
- Multi-Angle Feature - Conductor Camera ( Symphony No.3 )
Elected by members of the Berlin Philharmonic as Principal Conductor and fifth Artistic Director in 1989, Claudio Abbado resigned from the post in 2002, but remains close to the orchestra, which cherishes the conductor to this day. Listening to the music, one hears how the Berlin Philharmonic transforms Abbado's musical intentions into sound – there is a sense of unity that can only be achieved through many years of shared artistic experience and attention to detail. These live performances at the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome in 2001 were an overwhelming success: each concert ended in standing ovations, and the critics spoke of seminal moments in the history of music. Abbado's Beethoven cycle will certainly become a milestone for contemporary interpretation and this recording pays tribute to his achievement.
Bonus features:
- Multi-Angle Feature - Conductor Camera ( Symphony No. 7 )
- Documentary - Abbado on Beethoven
Bonus features:
- Multi-Angle Feature - Conductor Camera ( Symphony No. 7 )
- Documentary - Abbado on Beethoven
The West-Eastern Divan Orchestra was founded by Daniel Barenboim and the late Edward Said. It consists of young, highly talented Israeli and Arabian musicians and was founded to increase the dialogue between young people in the Middle East and represent the peaceful collaboration of the two cultures. In standard comparable to the most established orchestras, it combines tonal beauty and transparency with youthful expressiveness, passion and exuberance. This technically brilliant and incredibly enthusiastic orchestra brings out all levels of Beethoven's 9th symphony and we listen to Beethoven at his very best: exuberant, emotional, lucid, tender, clear, triumphant... simply magnificent! Needless to say, Daniel Barenboim conducts excellently and outstanding singers Angela Denoke, Waltraud Meier, Burkhard Fritz and Rene Pape contribute tremendously to this unforgettable concert. The standing ovations are well deserved!
The outstanding tenors of the 78 era: comprising thirteen episodes, each with a biographical and a musical focus, features bel canto singers captured on black and white sound film. Backed up with footage, much of which is shown here for the very first time, the individual artists are profiled and their exceptional talents demonstrated in representative recordings. Part I: Enrico Caruso, Beniamino Gigli, Tito Schipa, Richard Tauber, Leo Slezak, Joseph Schmidt.
This opera gala, recorded live at the Deutsche Oper Berlin, on November 8, 2003, marked the 10th anniversary of the annual benefit for the German AIDS Foundation. Conducted by Kent Nagano, then Principal Conductor and Artistic Director of the Berlin Deutsche Symphony Orchestra founded 1923. This recording features an illustrious roster of international artists from Germany, Austria, Italy, Russia, Bulgaria, the United States and Canada.
This 1993 recording must be hailed as a document of supreme historical importance as it is the first audio-visual live recording of a concert given by Sir Simon Rattle and the Berliner Philharmoniker. Six years later the orchestra voted by a large majority to appoint Rattle its new principal conductor and artistic director in succession to Claudio Abbado. Even at this early date Rattle was already attracting attention not only with the masterly conducting but also with his extremely interesting programming. In the present programme, for example, he combines the final work by Jean-Philippe Rameau, a composer who raised the music of the French Baroque to a level never to be surpassed, with the famous Symphonie fantastique by Hector Berlioz, who, only twenty-six at the time of the work's composition, was soon to be acclaimed as one of the "musicians of the future".
Simon Rattle and the Berlin Philharmonic set off fireworks of good humour and a contagious musical spirit at the traditional New Year's Eve Concert in 2002. Simon Rattle chose Leonard Bernstein's brilliant and entertaining musical comedy, Wonderful Town , for his first New Year's Eve Concert with the Berlin Philharmonic. Conductor and orchestra - both rank among the best in the world - joined forces with Broadway stars Kim Criswell and Audra McDonald and famous baritone Thomas Hampson. The audience enjoyed a great show full of dancing, choruses, fascinating light design and – above all – intoxicating music. The exuberant atmosphere of this event culminated in an overwhelming encore with the musicians and audience dancing through the hall! This video captures the atmosphere right in the middle of orchestra, singers and audience and recreates a wonderful night on the town.
Bizet's passionate tale of the self-willed gypsy woman Carmen is certainly one of the most popular works in the history of opera. It shows how a cigar factory worker in Seville enchants and bewitches the men around her. Melodies like Carmen's legendary 'Habanera'or Escamillo's 'Toreador March' are well known tunes all over the world. The Opéra Comique in Paris commissioned George Bizet to write Carmen in 1872 and Bizet's music portrays the characters with care and reveals itself to both the most naïve and the most sophisticated listener. The wild-romantic Roman quarry of St. Margarethen provided the perfect backdrop for this live recording of one of the key works of the so-called 'Hispanismo'-style. The film captures a summer's evening in 2005 when thousands of spectators gathered at one of Europe's most important open-air festivals, visited by 220.000 opera lovers annually. This exciting production brought horses, pyrotechnical special effects and more than 400 participants onto the stage.
A true celebration, ushering in the New Year with one of the finest orchestras and greatest conductors in the world. The 2007 Gala from Berlin features the Berlin Philharmonic and Sir Simon Rattle in Alexander Borodin's Second Symphony , a richly lyrical work of immense poetic grandeur and fairytale magic, in a programme that also includes one of the greatest classical hits ever: Modest Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition .
Featuring one of the finest voices of recent time, this documentary accompanies Montserrat Caballe on a journey to some of the most important places in her life. We witness her in conversation, in numerous historic performances and, through the testimonies of friends and fellow musicians, gain a deeper understanding of Montserrat the person and Caballé the artist.
Il matrimonio segreto is Cimarosa's most famous opera buffa and it is one of the few comic operas to have maintained its place in the repertoire until today. At its first performance in 1792, Austrian emperor Leopold II is reputed to have liked this masterpiece so much that he ordered the musicians to play it again from the beginning! Michael Hampe's elegant, colourful production had already won international acclaim when staged in Paris, Stockholm and London - where it won the Olivier Award for Best Opera Production. His stage direction is sensitive to the music's flow and brings a welcome clarity to the many twists and deceptions in the plot. This recording comes live from the exquisite palace rococo theatre at the Schwetzingen Festival in 1986. The Drottningholm Court Theatre Orchestra, an outstanding orchestra for early music, is specialized in music of the 17th and 18th century - their authentic interpretation sounds extremely fresh and colourful, and the playing is always full of energy and contrasts.
An evening of Viennese all-time classical favourites recorded live at the Carnegie Hall New York in October 2006. The programme includes Mozart's beloved Piano Concerto No. 17 , performed by acclaimed pianist Leif Ove Andsnes, and selections from the composer's opera Le Nozze di Figaro with soprano Dorothea Roschmann, the Light Cavalry Overture by Franz von Suppe, and to cap off the evening, Artist's Life , Annen-Polka , and the Overture to Die Fledermaus by the Waltz King, Johann Strauss Jr. Long considered one of America's greatest orchestras, the Cleveland Orchestra has joined the ranks of the world's most celebrated symphonic ensembles. It has a long standing commitment to the internationally successful conductor Franz Welser-Most. Multi-Grammy Award winner Leif Ove Andsnes is rapidly becoming known for his Mozart interpretations and Dorothea Roschmann has been charting her successful progress through the international opera scene for the past decade.
Claudio Abbado, who first conducted his new Lucerne Festival Orchestra in this Debussy concert in 2003, realised a dream come true with this exclusive ensemble of handpicked orchestral musicians and exceptional soloists such as Kolja Blacher, Emanuel Pahud and Sabine Meyer. This recording pays tribute to Claudio Abbado's vision and the Lucerne Festival orchestra's triumphant rebirth during the summer festival 2003.
Discovering Masterpieces of Classical Music is a series of audio-visual concert guides that allow the listener to experience and enjoy great music from the Baroque period up to the present day in an entirely new way, offering a combination of documentary material and a complete performance of the featured work. The Berlin and Vienna Philharmonic Orchestras, the Gewandhaus Orchestra and other eminent musical bodies join forces with acclaimed experts, famous soloists and outstanding conductors to highlight the distinctive features of twenty famous masterpieces by the most important composers through first class concert recordings. Each introductory feature is clearly designed and provides abundant information. Examples from the musical score help the viewer to follow the themes and rhythms and to understand the structure of the work. New film material documenting the birthplaces of the composers and locations of composition is combined with historic film material, works of art and original manuscripts. It allows the viewer to embark on a journey back to the time and place of composition and informs him about the life of the composer while providing a complete introduction to the work.
The Berlin Philharmonic present Béla Bartók's Concerto for Orchestra recorded live at the...
The Berlin Philharmonic present Béla Bartók's Concerto for Orchestra recorded live at the...
Discovering Masterpieces of Classical Music is an informative and entertaining guide to some of the most important symphonic works of music history. As well as featuring a complete concert performance, it also includes an insightful documentary, in which an expert presenter guides the viewer through the structure of the music. Renowned scholar Wulf Konold discusses Beethoven's life and the circumstances surrounding the composition of the Fifth Symphony . Footage of the composer's birthplace in Bonn, quotations from his contemporaries, as well as plentiful musical examples also help to bring the creation of this extraordinary masterpiece vividly to life.
Introducing Masterpieces of Classical Music is an informative and entertaining guide to some of the most important symphonic works of music history. As well as featuring a complete concert performance, it also includes an insightful documentary, in which an expert presenter guides the viewer through the structure of the music. Renowned scholar Wulf Konold discusses Berlioz's life and the dramatic circumstances surrounding the composition of the Symphonie fantastique . A detailed description of the programme, quotations from contemporary critics, as well as plentiful musical examples, help to bring this surreal masterpiece vividly to life.
Recorded live at the Teatro Massimo, Palermo in 2002, this video features the performances of Young virtuoso Gil Shaham and Brahms expert Wolfgang Sandberger. American-Israeli master violinist Gil Shaham made his debut at the age of 10 and became internationally famous in his early twenties when he was called to replace Itzhak Perlman for a series of concerts. He and his Stradivarius joined the world renowned Berlin Philharmonic under their long-standing former chief conductor Claudio Abbado. Discovering Masterpieces - Brahms: Violin Concerto relives the spectacular works of Johannes Brahms. This newly edited series brings you first-class concerts, an introductory documentary and an audio-visual concert guide to the highlights of classical music, providing the listener music from the Baroque period up to the present time in an entirely different way. The film contains historic documentary, artworks and original manuscripts of the composer, allowing the viewer to embark on a journey back to time.
Discovering Masterpieces of Classical Music is an informative and entertaining guide to some of the most important symphonic works of music history. As well as featuring a complete concert performance, it also includes an insightful documentary, in which an expert presenter guides the viewer through the structure of the music. Well-known author and journalist Habakuk Traber discusses Bruckner's life and the circumstances surrounding the composition of the Eighth Symphony . Footage of Bruckner's birthplace in Austria, quotations from contemporaries, as well as plentiful musical examples also help to bring this monumental masterpiece vividly to life.
Discovering Masterpieces of Classical Music is a series of audio-visual concert guides that allow the listener to experience and enjoy great music from the Baroque period up to the present day in an entirely new way, offering a combination of documentary material and a complete performance of the featured work. The Berlin and Vienna Philharmonic Orchestras, the Gewandhaus Orchestra and other eminent musical bodies join forces with acclaimed experts, famous soloists and outstanding conductors to highlight the distinctive features of twenty famous masterpieces by the most important composers through first class concert recordings. Each introductory feature is clearly designed and provides abundant information. Examples from the musical score help the viewer to follow the themes and rhythms and to understand the structure of the work. New film material documenting the birthplaces of the composers and locations of composition is combined with historic film material, works of art and original manuscripts. It allows the viewer to embark on a journey back to the time and place of composition and informs him about the life of the composer while providing a complete introduction to the work.
Recorded live at the Teatro Massimo in Palermo in 2002, the Berlin Philharmonic under...
Recorded live at the Teatro Massimo in Palermo in 2002, the Berlin Philharmonic under...
Discovering Masterpieces of Classical Music is an informative and entertaining guide to some of the most important symphonic works of music history. As well as featuring a complete concert performance it also includes an insightful documentary, in which an expert presenter guides the viewer through the structure of the music. Well-known musicologist and pianist Robert Levin discusses Haydn's life and the circumstances surrounding the composition of the Surprise Symphony. His analysis of each movement in turn, drawing out the wit and warm humour of the work through plentiful musical examples, helps to bring this beloved masterpiece vividly to life.
Discovering Masterpieces of Classical Music is an informative and entertaining guide to some of the most important symphonic works of music history. As well as featuring a complete concert performance, it also includes an insightful documentary, in which an expert presenter guides the viewer through the structure of the music. Well-known scholar Jeremy Barham discusses Mahler's life and the circumstances surrounding the composition of the Fifth Symphony . Footage of the beautiful Worthersee in Austria (where Mahler wrote the symphony), quotations from contemporaries, as well as plentiful musical examples all help to illuminate the meaning of this enigmatic masterpiece.
Discovering Masterpieces of Classical Music is a series of audio-visual concert guides that allow the listener to experience and enjoy great music from the Baroque period up to the present day in an entirely new way, offering a combination of documentary material and a complete performance of the featured work. The Berlin and Vienna Philharmonic Orchestras, the Gewandhaus Orchestra and other eminent musical bodies join forces with acclaimed experts, famous soloists and outstanding conductors to highlight the distinctive features of twenty famous masterpieces by the most important composers through first class concert recordings. Each introductory feature is clearly designed and provides abundant information. Examples from the musical score help the viewer to follow the themes and rhythms and to understand the structure of the work. New film material documenting the birthplaces of the composers and locations of composition is combined with historic film material, works of art and original manuscripts. It allows the viewer to embark on a journey back to the time and place of composition and informs him about the life of the composer while providing a complete introduction to the work.
Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy (1809-1847) was the orchestra's first conductor and the...
Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy (1809-1847) was the orchestra's first conductor and the...
Discovering Masterpieces of Classical Music is a series of audio-visual concert guides that allow the listener to experience and enjoy great music from the Baroque period up to the present day in an entirely new way, offering a combination of documentary material and a complete performance of the featured work. The Berlin and Vienna Philharmonic Orchestras, the Gewandhaus Orchestra and other eminent musical bodies join forces with acclaimed experts, famous soloists and outstanding conductors to highlight the distinctive features of twenty famous masterpieces by the most important composers through first class concert recordings. Each introductory feature is clearly designed and provides abundant information. Examples from the musical score help the viewer to follow the themes and rhythms and to understand the structure of the work. New film material documenting the birthplaces of the composers and locations of composition is combined with historic film material, works of art and original manuscripts. It allows the viewer to embark on a journey back to the time and place of composition and informs him about the life of the composer while providing a complete introduction to the work.
Recorded live at the Konzerthaus Berlin in November 2005, the series continues with the...
Recorded live at the Konzerthaus Berlin in November 2005, the series continues with the...
Discovering Masterpieces of Classical Music is a series of audio-visual concert guides that allow the listener to experience and enjoy great music from the Baroque period up to the present day in an entirely new way, offering a combination of documentary material and a complete performance of the featured work. The Berlin and Vienna Philharmonic Orchestras, the Gewandhaus Orchestra and other eminent musical bodies join forces with acclaimed experts, famous soloists and outstanding conductors to highlight the distinctive features of twenty famous masterpieces by the most important composers through first class concert recordings. Each introductory feature is clearly designed and provides abundant information. Examples from the musical score help the viewer to follow the themes and rhythms and to understand the structure of the work. New film material documenting the birthplaces of the composers and locations of composition is combined with historic film material, works of art and original manuscripts. It allows the viewer to embark on a journey back to the time and place of composition and informs him about the life of the composer while providing a complete introduction to the work.
Martha Argerich – often regarded as the greatest pianist of our time - plays Robert...
Martha Argerich – often regarded as the greatest pianist of our time - plays Robert...
Discovering Masterpieces of Classical Music is a series of audio-visual concert guides that allow the listener to experience and enjoy great music from the Baroque period up to the present day in an entirely new way, offering a combination of documentary material and a complete performance of the featured work. The Berlin and Vienna Philharmonic Orchestras, the Gewandhaus Orchestra and other eminent musical bodies join forces with acclaimed experts, famous soloists and outstanding conductors to highlight the distinctive features of twenty famous masterpieces by the most important composers through first class concert recordings. Each introductory feature is clearly designed and provides abundant information. Examples from the musical score help the viewer to follow the themes and rhythms and to understand the structure of the work. New film material documenting the birthplaces of the composers and locations of composition is combined with historic film material, works of art and original manuscripts. It allows the viewer to embark on a journey back to the time and place of composition and informs him about the life of the composer while providing a complete introduction to the work.
The Sächsische Staatskapelle, orchestra of the famous Dresden Semperoper gives a sample of...
The Sächsische Staatskapelle, orchestra of the famous Dresden Semperoper gives a sample of...
Divine Dancers is an exclusive dance event with some of the leading ballet stars of our time including Charles Jude, Daniil Simkin, Igor Zelensky, Delphine Baey and the exceptional young Russian dancer Polina Semyonova - acclaimed principal soloist of the Berlin State Ballet. Recorded in the sumptuous ambience of the Prague State Opera, the performances combine classical ballet pieces with modern and contemporary choreography. The Dancers present their favourite classical and modern pieces by choreographers like George Balanchine, Marius Petipa, Jose Limon and Kenneth MacMillan, former director of The Royal Ballet London. The stars dance to music by Tchaikovsky, Glazunov, Purcell, Gershwin, Weill and Jacques Brel. One highlight of the gala is The Moor's Pavane (1949) danced to music by Henry Purcell, which lasts a good 20 minutes: This expressive one-act ballet is Jose Limon's most important and most successful ballet and one of the best known works of the American modern dance repertoire.
A film by Paul Smaczny and Maria Stodtmeier. Venezuela's unique system of music education takes children from violent slums and turns some of them into world-class musicians. "El Sistema" shows how Venezuelan visionary Jose Antonio Abreu has changed the lives of hundreds of thousands of children over the past three decades. This lyrical and moving documentary takes us from the rubbish dumps and barrios of Caracas to the world's finest concert halls. Children from streets dominated by the gun battles of gang warfare are taken into music schools, given access to music, and taught through the model of the symphony orchestra how to build a better society. Paul Smaczny and Maria Stodtmeier's film finds hope and joy in unlikely places.
The Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra's European Concerts not only represent the Berlin Philharmonic's commemoration of its founding date but also emphasize the cultural life of the new European order. Each year the orchestra performs at a place of special significance in cultural history, always in a different country. This, the eleventh European Concert, took place in the city of Istanbul's oldest church, St. Irine (Hagia Irini) or the Church of the Holy Peace, which is magnificently situated on the promontory washed by the Bosporus and the Sea of Marmara. At the helm of this concert, Mariss Jansons, is one of today's most sought-after conductors. Since 1997, he has been principal conductor of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra; in 2003, he will assume the directorship of the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra. The flautist Emmanuel Pahud has won numerous international competitions and is a laureate of the Yehudi Menuhin Foundation and UNESCO's International Tribune for Musicians. At the age of 22, he became principal flautist of the Berlin Philharmonic under Claudio Abbado, having previously held that position with the Basle Radio Symphony Orchestra under Nello Santi and the Munich Philharmonic under Sergiu Celibidache.
The Berliner Philharmoniker's annual European Concerts are intended to recall the date on which the orchestra was founded, 1 May 1882, with a performance being given on this day in a different town or city of particular cultural and historical importance. In 2002 it was the turn of the Teatro Massimo in Palermo, one of Europe's most important opera houses both artistically and architecturally. This was also the last time in his twelve years as the orchestra's artistic director that the revered Italian maestro Claudio Abbado conducted a European Concert. In a programme of beloved pieces from the classical repertoire, with the celebrated Gil Shaham as soloist, Abbado once again demonstrated how he upheld the unsurpassed orchestral tradition of the Berliner Philharmoniker with his profound music-making.
The marvellous Portuguese pianist Maria Joao Pires was joined by Pierre Boulez and the Berlin Philharmonic for the European Concert 2003. Since 1991, when the Berlin Philharmonic gave their first European Concert, this annual musical summit in important cultural cities has become a brand name for excellent musicianship. This concert came from Lisbon and took place in a spectacular location, the 'Mosteiro dos Jeronimos' - an impressive monastery built in the early 16th century and a UNESCO-accredited World Heritage Site. The programme included Bartok's Concerto for Orchestra and Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 20 - a perfect programme choice, as Maria Joao Pires is a sought-after Mozart pianist and Pierre Boulez enjoys an excellent reputation as one of the greatest Bartok conductors ever.
Bonus features:
- A Portrait of Lisbon
- Picture Gallery: At Rehearsals
Bonus features:
- A Portrait of Lisbon
- Picture Gallery: At Rehearsals
Recorded live at the ancient Herodes Atticus Odeon in Athens 2004, this was the first European Concert that Sir Simon Rattle conducted in his new post as chief conductor of one of the most important orchestras of all times. Since 1991, when the Berlin Philharmonic gave their first European Concert, this annual musical summit in important cultural cities has become a brand name for excellence. This concert also represents the first musical encounter between Rattle and world-famous pianist and conductor Daniel Barenboim. This all Brahms programme features the wonderful Piano Concerto No. 1 with the romantic Adagio which Brahms wrote in reverence for Clara Schumann and Schoenberg's successful arrangement of the Piano Quartet No. 1 for orchestra.
Bonus feature:
- The European Concert in Olympic Athens
Bonus feature:
- The European Concert in Olympic Athens
The Berlin Philharmonic's annual "Concert for Europe", an annual musical summit in important cultural cities, has been a brand name for excellence since 1991, when the Berlin Philharmonic gave their first European Concert. This all-Mozart concert took place in Prague on 1 May 2006. In honour of the composers 250th birthday, the Berlin Philharmonic invited the pianist and conductor Daniel Barenboim to lead them through a concert featuring two masterpieces from the Mozart repertoire, the "Haffner" and "Linz" Symphonies. In his familiar dual role as soloist and conductor, he also performed the Piano Concerto No. 22 . The concert was performed and recorded in the Estates Theatre Prague, which is one of the most beautiful historical theatres in Europe. It was in this theatre that Mozart conducted the premier of Don Giovanni , a work written specially for Prague, in 1787 and for this concert recording, the orchestra sat in a reconstruction of the sets that had been used at the first performance of the opera.
Bonus feature:
- A Cultural Potrait of Prague
Bonus feature:
- A Cultural Potrait of Prague
Live from the Kabelwerk Oberspree in Berlin, Simon Rattle is conductor to the Berlin Philharmonic on its 125th anniversary on May 2007. With superb acoustics and magnificent architecture, the building proved to be an ideal setting for the annual Europa-Konzert. This recording features the magnificent works of Wagner and Brahms to be amazingly performed by Rattle, the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra and featured artists Lisa Batiashvili (violinist) and Truls Mørk (cellist).
The Berliner Philharmoniker's European Concert, held each year on 1 May, is invariably an international highlight. Performing in 2008 in Moscow's renowned Tchaikovsky Conservatory, the orchestra under Sir Simon Rattle presented outstanding performances of works by Beethoven, Stravinsky and Bruch, whose Violin Concerto featured one of today's most fascinating artists, the Russian violinist Vadim Repin.
May morning in Oxford, and the Berliner Philharmoniker join in the celebratory mood abroad in the university city's medieval streets with this concert in Sir Christopher Wren's glorious Sheldonian Theatre. For 20 years, the Philharmoniker have given a May Day concert in one of Europe's great historic cities, and here, under the baton of Daniel Barenboim, the Berlin players thrill the Oxford audience with the sonorous Prelude to Act III of Wagner's Die Meistersinger , a deeply-felt account of Elgar's autumnal Cello Concerto by the young American cellist Alisa Weilerstein, and a rousing performance of Brahms's life-affirming First Symphony .
Evelyn Glennie is the world's most in-demand percussion soloist, dazzling audiences worldwide with her musicality, creativity and charismatic energy. She was the first percussionist ever to sustain a full-time solo career on her instruments – an accomplishment even more astonishing as her hearing is significantly impaired leaving her to rely more on vibrations rather than acoustics. The phenomenally talented musician gives more than 100 critically acclaimed performances a year and has commissioned over 100 works for solo percussion. Evelyn Glennie regularly collaborates with leading musicians working in various musical styles and has recorded 20 albums, two of which have won Grammy Awards. In this video, recorded live at the Grand Theatre de la Ville de Luxembourg in 2004, she presents some of her greatest hits in a show of thrilling music and light design, playing snare drum, marimba and vibraphone. The various surprising sounds she creates and her lively performance are wonderfully captured on this state-of-the-art recording. This video also includes the bonus track Encountering Evelyn Glennie with a portrait of the artist.
On New Year's Eve 2009 Havana's legendary nightclub, Tropicana, celebrated its seventieth birthday with a colourful revue, and the evening's special guest was the world-famous Omara Portuondo. Together with her five-man band, which ranges in style from the Cuban guajira, bolero, mambo and son to elements of jazz, the grande dame of traditional Cuban singing offers a delightful contrast to the exuberant joy in dancing shown by the Tropicana Ballet. Recorded live at the Tropicana, Havana, 2009.
Bonus features:
- Omara Portuondo - an interview in which the singer gives a fascinating insight into her life as a musician.
- Equilibrists - feats of agility from the Tropicana.
Bonus features:
- Omara Portuondo - an interview in which the singer gives a fascinating insight into her life as a musician.
- Equilibrists - feats of agility from the Tropicana.
On the eve of its 300th birthday, St. Petersburg, Russia's fabled "window to Europe", celebrates this anniversary presenting a gala of distinguished musical art featuring Anna Netrebko, Dimitri Hvorostovsky, Mischa Maisky and many others. Yuri Temirkanov conducts one of the oldest Russian symphonic ensembles: the St. Petersburg Philharmonic.
Katia and Marielle Labeque received their first piano tuition at ages three and five and the sisters are famous for their unusual duo precision, their great musicality and the breadth of their repertoire. In this concert they perform with Il Giardino Armonico, a leading Italian ensemble specializing in period performing practice. Katia and Marielle Labeque throw themselves into the works with their typical verve and enthusiasm, demonstrating symbiotic synchrony and facile (facile means inconsequential, shallow - negative word) technique. With its unmistakable sound Il Giardino Armonico is one of today's most notable Baroque ensembles. Colourful, individualistic and stylish, it has won an enthusiastic international following and truly excels in performing Baroque music for a 21st century audience. The programme includes a wide variety of music by three different composers, all performed on historical instruments at the Vienna Musik Verein. One of the unique elements of this performance - recorded in the Bach Anniversary year 2000 - is the use of the fortepiano for Bach's keyboard concertos. This instrument, which Bach undoubtedly knew, and probably owned, is rarely used in Bach performances, yet the sound it offers is far more interesting than a modern piano. Together with...
In 2001, during the Verdi commemorative year, some of the finest singers of our time assembled in Parma to honour the maestro's memory in a Gran Gala di Verdi. Placido Domingo, Jose Carreras, Jose Cura, Marcelo Alvarez, Barbara Frittoli and Leo Nucci, to name but a few, joined the Coro del Festival Verdi and the Orchestra del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino under Zubin Mehta to perform some of the most popular opera arias ever.
Giuseppe Verdi (1813–1901) wrote 28 operas in all, including La Traviata , Aida , Nabucco and Rigoletto . A considerable number of them were world successes and have remained fixtures in every opera house's repertory throughout the last century. This recording demonstrates - better than any single opera could do - the breadth of Verdi's genius and melodic talent as it features highlights of most of his operas.
Giuseppe Verdi (1813–1901) wrote 28 operas in all, including La Traviata , Aida , Nabucco and Rigoletto . A considerable number of them were world successes and have remained fixtures in every opera house's repertory throughout the last century. This recording demonstrates - better than any single opera could do - the breadth of Verdi's genius and melodic talent as it features highlights of most of his operas.
Three renowned dancers from the world of international ballet, Vladimir Malakhov (winner of the Nijinsky Award 2002), Lucia Lacarra and Kiyoko Kimura, introduce and perform pieces that are especially close to their hearts, by the acclaimed choreographers Marius Petipa, Mikhail Fokine, Kenneth MacMillan, Uwe Scholz, Renato Zanella and Val Caniparoli. Featuring music by J.S. Bach, Bruckner, Chopin, Massenet, Mozart, Tchaikovsky and Weber, this is an essential film for ballet fans.
This great musical event presents a rare gathering of some of the most important and popular opera singers of our time. Recorded live at the Theatre Square Dresden in 1998-2000, the open-air concert featured the upper ranks of today's stars in the singing world. The program presents favourite scenes and arias from Rossini, Mozart, Bizet, J. Strauss, Puccini, Cilea, Verdi and Lehar. Particular highlights include Agnes Baltsa and Neil Shicoff singing the final scene from Carmen (both artists can be heard in solo arias as well) and Anna Tomowa-Sintow singing Cilea's Adriana Lecouvreur . The vast open-air event, with over 15,000 in attendance, was recorded live and with high-quality surround sound. It provides the viewer with a gala festival celebrating some of the most wonderful voices of on the current operatic circuit.
Composed when he was just twenty-four, Agrippina was Handel's first theatrical success and is a sparkling example of his early work. It is full of his fresh, exuberantly inventive music and employs one of the finest librettos with which George Frederic Handel ever worked. The opera was composed and first performed in Venice in 1709 and, in a witty plot by an Italian cardinal, it tells the farcical story of the private lives of two ruthless figures in roman history, Nero and his mother Agrippina, and how they become entangled with the innocent Ottone and his lover Poppea. Typically for a Handel opera, the work is centred on a series of towering arias designed to show off the virtuosity of the singers. This beautiful production by renowned opera director Michael Hampe was recorded at the exquisite 18th century palace theatre during the Schwetzingen Festival in1985. It combines the atmosphere of a true Baroque opera with an elegant, colourful staging and brilliant musicianship. The London Baroque Players, an outstanding orchestra for early music, which specializes in the music of the 17th and 18th century, joins an accomplished cast of singers, all baroque specialists.
This beautiful production of Handel's Serse presents a tale of intrigue, deception and true love. Xerxes, King of the Persians (the magnificent Paula Rasmussen) and his brother Arsamenes (Ann Hallenberg) are in love with Romilda. Romilda, however, only has eyes for Arsamenes, as does her sister Atalanta. Add to the mix a spurned lover, a doting father and an idiotic servant (the hilarious Matteo Peirone), and one is confronted with tragedy, comedy and romance in equal measures. Superbly performed under the baton of Christophe Rousset and Les Talens Lyriques, this is an elegant and charming production with an outstanding cast.
In the Summer of 2009, the British director Nigel Lowery and the Iranian choreographer Amir Hosseinpour brought to the stage of the Berlin State Opera Unter den Linden, with colour and full of humour, the fantastic and imaginative adventures of "Racing Roland". On the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the death of Joseph Haydn, the composer's most renowned opera during his lifetime, Orlando Paladino , was performed, a heroic-comical stage piece based on Ariost's famous Versepos . Singers such as Marlis Petersen (Angelica), Tom Randle (Orlando), Alexandrina Pendatchanska (Alcina), Pietro Spagnoli (Rodomonte), Sunhae Im (Eurilla) and Victor Torres (Pasquale) performed under the musical direction of period-music specialist René Jacobs. The Freiburg Baroque Orchestra completed this high-class production giving the music a beautiful sound and lively swing.
This video is a documentary of Heinz Holliger, the leading oboist of our day. As a composer Holliger has become a classic exponent of musical modernism, while as an oboist and conductor he is one of the most inspirational figures on the contemporary music scene. Here too we encounter him here as an enthusiastic guide through each of the work that recorded with the Keller Quartet in a private concert for the home viewer recorded at the Musik-Akademie in Basel in 2005. The programme is made up of four exceptionally interesting works, starting with Mozart's Quartet for oboe, violin, viola and cello K 370 , a kind of crypto-concerto that the 25 year-old composer wrote in Munich in 1781. The next work is another early piece, Benjamin Britten's Phantasy op. 2 for oboe and string quartet, which was composed in 1932, when the composer was 19. Holliger too was only 17 when he wrote his own Oboe Sonata in 1956–7, a work that strikes up a strange conversation between the oboist and his instrument. Bohuslav Martinu's Fantasia for theremin, oboe, string quartet and piano is a mature work dating from 1945, when the composer was already 55 years of age. It was written for an instrument that is something like a pioneer of electronic instruments, invented by the engineer Lev...
First staged at the Weimar Court Theatre under the baton of Richard Strauss in 1893, who hailed it as "a masterpiece of the highest quality", Humperdinck's debut opera Hänsel und Gretel has remained a solid favourite since its 1893 première. Engelbert Humperdinck (1854-1921) transformed Grimm's beloved fairy tale Hänsel und Gretel into opera entertainment for everyone from young children to the serious music lover; this is a tumultuous and joyful production for both children and adults. Director Katharina Thalbach cheerfully evokes a magic world of woodland sprites and candy dreams and creates an enchanting fantasy world filled with high spirits, fairytale fantasy and genial comedy. Recorded live at the world-famous Dresden Semperoper in December 2006, the production is also musically of the highest rank, with international soloists in the main roles, accompanied by the Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden under Michael Hofstetter.
Berlin music lovers know there is no better way of celebrating the New Year than revisiting the most beautiful works in the history of music with the Berlin Philharmoniker. It comes as no surprise that the concerts are always sold out and that people all around the world are glued to their screens during the live transmissions. It is our pleasure to present you a particularly stunning programme which was created by Daniel Barenboim. "Invitation to the dance" is a journey through 300 years of dance which leaves the listener beaming with joy.
Live from St. Thomas's Church - the church for which Bach conceived most of his works - comes a concert performed by the man who introduced Bach to the world of Jazz and vice versa. In 1959, Jacques Loussier hit upon the idea that was to make his international reputation, by combining his interest in jazz with his love of J.S. Bach. He created his very own view of Bach, blending the most beautiful tunes of the Baroque master with an irresistibly swinging sound. Loussier's trio achieved the breakthrough to popular commercial success enjoyed by only a select few jazz musicians. In fifteen years, the group sold over six million albums. On the occasion of Loussier's 70th birthday, the ensemble performed its greatest hits - jazz arrangements of Bach, Debussy, Satie and Ravel - in Bach's "own" church in Leipzig for the first time.
Bonus features:
- Jacques Loussier in Conversation
Bonus features:
- Jacques Loussier in Conversation
The Jerusalem International Chamber Music Festival is renowned for an exceptional repertoire as well as unique meetings with first-ranking soloists who do not usually meet each other on one stage in other contexts. The Festival has achieved incredible success with concerts performed to packed halls. This programme presents the highlights of the 2008 Festival whose theme was an exploration of the “national spirit” of music.
Daniel Barenboim established the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra with the late Palestinian writer Edward Said in order to bring together young musicians from across the political divide in the Middle East. Their hope was that music would heal and help to bring understanding and tolerance of different beliefs and cultures.The award-winning documentary was produced and directed by Paul Smaczny. The Ramallah Concert was a live recording at the Place of Culture in Ramallah, 21 August 2005.
Gidon Kremer celebrates his 60th birthday in 2007 - he is, and has always been, one of the most headstrong and original artists in the music business. His return to J. S. Bach's partitas is a major event as Kremer's first recording of these works was released almost a quarter of a century ago, and he hasn't played the partitas in public for over twenty years. Those who have followed Gidon Kremer's artistic development over the past 25 years will note how much his tone and articulation have changed. The new rendering displays Kremer's very personal sense of spontaneity and a readiness to take risks. In the early 1980s, after being declared persona non grata in the Soviet Union, Kremer moved to the West and made a recording of the solo partitas. The record went down in music history and for decades was a benchmark in the music guild. The young virtuoso was catapulted to fame virtually overnight in the Western world and hailed as the world's best violinist by Herbert von Karajan. This recording features the Violin Partita Nos.1, 2, and 3 , recorded at the Pfarrkirche Lockenhaus in 2002 and the documentary Back to Bach . The film includes rare archival footage and tells in a very personal way of Gidon Kremer's encounters with Bach's music, accompanying the famous violin virtuoso...
We live in a "renaissance of the piano", as the New York Times so surprisingly put it in summer 2005. A new generation is reviving the piano's popularity as pianists with a passion for virtuosity and a willingness to expand their repertoire take to the concert stages. In addition to the standard classics they perform formerly disparaged works or discover neglected composers. LEGATO is a series dedicated to presenting some of this new movement's most fascinating pianists - their development, their ideas and, of course, their music. Each episode portrays an artist and explores an aspect of the world of piano music. Viewers meet the artists and get to know their styles, their methods of working and their personal idiosyncrasies. The sum of these portraits provides viewers with an overall picture of the art of piano playing today. Boris Berezovsky, intelligent, curious and strong-minded, has established a remarkable reputation, both as the most powerful of virtuoso pianists and as a musician of unique insight and sensitivity. In a stunning recital recorded live at the newly-built Philharmonie Essen in 2006, he balances virtuosity with an unfaltering musical integrity, playing works by Ludwig van Beethoven, Nikolai Medtner, Dafydd Llywelyn, Leopold Godowsky and Anatoly Liadov....
We live in a "renaissance of the piano", as the New York Times so surprisingly put it in summer 2005. A new generation is reviving the piano's popularity as pianists with a passion for virtuosity and a willingness to expand their repertoire take to the concert stages. In addition to the standard classics, they perform formerly disparaged works or discover neglected composers. LEGATO is a series dedicated to presenting some of this new movement's most fascinating pianists - their development, their ideas and, of course, their music. Each episode in this series presents an artist and explores an aspect of the world of piano music. Viewers meet the artists and get to know their styles, their methods of working and their personal idiosyncrasies. The sum of these portraits provides viewers with an overall picture of the art of piano playing today. Montréal native Marc-André Hamelin is a perfect representative of this new group of pianists. Internationally renowned for his musical virtuosity and refined pianism, he operates on a level of virtuosity that "is simply way beyond mental reach," as The Times once wrote about one of his concerts. This video portrays Marc-André Hamelin in concert and interview. He presented works by Joseph Haydn, Frédéric Chopin, Claude Debussy, and...
LEGATO is a video series dedicated to presenting some of the most fascinating of today's younger generation pianists - their development, their ideas and, of course, their music. Each video in this series presents an artist and explores an aspect of the world of piano music. Viewers meet the artists and get to know their styles, their methods of working and their personal idiosyncrasies. The sum of these portraits provides an overall picture of the art of piano playing today. We live in a "renaissance of the piano", as the New York Times so surprisingly put it in summer 2005. A new generation is reviving the piano's popularity as pianists with a passion for virtuosity and a willingness to expand their repertoire take to the concert stages. In addition to the standard classics, they perform formerly disparaged works or discover neglected composers.
The Swedish pianist Roland Pöntinen was born in 1963. He made his debut at 17 with the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic and has since performed with major orchestras worldwide. Thanks to an insatiable musical appetite and a stupendous technique he has acquired a vast repertoire, ranging from the Baroque period to contemporary music. This recording portrays Roland Pöntinen in concert and interview. Recorded live at the Folkwang...
The Swedish pianist Roland Pöntinen was born in 1963. He made his debut at 17 with the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic and has since performed with major orchestras worldwide. Thanks to an insatiable musical appetite and a stupendous technique he has acquired a vast repertoire, ranging from the Baroque period to contemporary music. This recording portrays Roland Pöntinen in concert and interview. Recorded live at the Folkwang...
Max Lorenz was at the height of his career as a heldentenor in 1941. As a homosexual with a Jewish wife in Nazi Germany, he would have faced deportation. However, as Hitler’s favourite tenor and a symbol of his times, he was protected by Hitler and Göring. This gripping, well - researched documentary which is nominated for the FIPA festival boasts original footage of Max Lorenz, Haus Wahnfried and Hitler’s visits to Bayreuth (e.g. the first coloured picture of Hitler). Includes interviews with great artists such as Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau and René Kollo.
In his position as the king's composer, Jean Baptiste Lully (1632-1687) created the opera Persée for Louis XIV. The opera was considered the crowning achievement of 17th century French music theatre and was widely recognized as Lully's greatest work. Filled with dancing, fight scenes, monsters and special effects, this truly spectacular music drama recounts the thrilling story of Perseus, son of Zeus and heroic vanquisher of the snake-haired Gorgon Medusa. More than half a century after its premiere, Louis XV chose "Persée" to open the new Royal Opera House at the Chateau de Versailles, an event that formed part of the celebrations for the future Louis XVI's marriage to Marie Antoinette. Recorded live at the Elgin Theatre, Toronto in April 2004, this staging is a dazzling spectacle of gods and goddesses, dancing scenes, flying machines and monsters with fight scenes and special effects inspired by designs from the original 17th century performance. The excellent singer-actors and the "Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra and Chamber Choir" are leading specialists in early music.
This video presents Vladimir Jurowski, freshly appointed as Principal Conductor to the London Philharmonic Orchestra, in his first appearance in this new role, when he led the orchestra in a concert devoted to works by Wagner, Berg and Mahler at the newly restored Royal Festival Hall in London in September 2007. "It's chemistry – you cannot force it or fake it", says Vladimir Jurowski of his highly acclaimed relationship with the London Philharmonic Orchestra – "you just accept it!" The concert features works from the turn of the last century in a program ranging from the young Gustav Mahler's Das klagende Lied and the overture of Wagner's last completed music drama Parsifal to Alban Berg's Three Pieces for Orchestra , written to mark the fortieth birthday of the composer's teacher and spiritual mentor, Arnold Schoenberg. This concert recording shows the strength of that special bond between orchestra and conductor, and also pays tribute to a rising star on the international conductors scene. Vladimir Jurowski was born in Moscow in 1972, and studied in Germany. He has made a name for himself as an Opera conductor in the great houses in Berlin, London, Paris and New York.
Bonus features
- Interview with Vladimir Jurowski
- Footage filmed on the conductor...
Bonus features
- Interview with Vladimir Jurowski
- Footage filmed on the conductor...
Exactly one hundred and fifty years after the birth of the brilliant composer and conductor Gustav Mahler, a select band of artists gathered in his birthplace, Kaliste, to honour his creative talent in a very special way. Under the direction of the Austrian conductor Manfred Honeck and accompanied by the internationally acclaimed Mahler Chamber Orchestra, three world-famous soloists came to pay tribute to Mahler at a gala concert: Thomas Hampson, Anne Sofie von Otter and Marita Solberg. The result was an unforgettable summer evening of classical music made up of outstanding excerpts from Mahler's Second Symphony and his best-known orchestral songs, performed on an impressive open-air stage against the backdrop of an idyllic natural setting – it was, in short, a worthy tribute to the great Gustav Mahler.
The charismatic and inspiring Claudio Abbado and the mesmerising young pianist Yuja Wang, with the Lucerne Festival Orchestra, hold the audience spellbound in this opening concert of the 2009 Lucerne Festival. Prokofiev's popular and vibrant Third Piano Concerto demonstrates the composer's sharp musical wit, and Yuja Wang is a brilliant exponent of the work. Following this, and chiming beautifully with the festival's theme of the relationship between art and nature, Mahler's First Symphony is given an illuminating and rapturously received performance.
In 2005, the Staatsoper Berlin and its orchestra, the Staatskapelle Berlin under musical director Daniel Barenboim, celebrated a series of events to celebrate the 80th birthday of French conductor and composer Pierre Boulez. Artistically associated for decades with Barenboim and Berlin, Pierre Boulez is one of today's most distinguished composers and conductors. As part of the celebration, Boulez conducted a performance of Mahler's "Resurrection" Symphony at the Berlin Philharmonie. With his uncompromising approach to the score, Pierre Boulez's Mahler readings have long fascinated critics and audiences alike. Boulez eschews the romanticized readings common in performance tradition and, instead, reveals the real joy and terror in Mahler's large-scale symphonies. The Berlin Staatskapelle, singers Diana Damrau and Petra Lang and the Berlin State Opera Chorus joined forces to bring his vision of this gargantuan piece to life. Watching Boulez conducting on his 80th birthday is truly an experience, and his interpretation presents a new perspective on a much-loved symphony.
"It would be hard to find anything greater, more significant or more moving anywhere in musical life today: total harmony of mind and heart, poetry and outcry, fear and consolation, knowing and feeling," declared the Berne paper Der Bund after this stunning performance of Mahler's Resurrection Symphony in August 2003 by the newly founded Lucerne Festival Orchestra. Claudio Abbado had formed this ensemble from famous instrumentalists, celebrated chamber-musicians and experienced soloists from the world's best orchestras, and the event was sold out months in advance. The Neue Zürcher Zeitung reported: "Once again the applause at the end was unequalled; the immense final chord...broke a tension that had lasted over 90 minutes without relaxing for a moment."
This Claudio Abbado recording captures a very special night at the 2007 Lucerne Festival with the massive Third Symphony by Gustav Mahler (1860-1911). Ever since its debut in 2003, the Lucerne Festival Orchestra has been enthusiastically received by public and press alike. The orchestra is the realisation of a dream for Claudio Abbado, who handpicked famous soloists, chamber recitalists and orchestral musicians to form this ensemble. Time and again it has been praised for its extraordinary sound and refined playing in the finest spirit of chamber music under the direction of the exceptional Italian conductor. The line-up includes such luminaries as Kolja Blacher and Sabine Meyer, alongside sundry members of the world's great orchestras. The cello section alone boasts Natalia Gutman, Clemens Hagen and Valentin Erben. On this video, the viewer can join in the imposing experience of a live performance of Mahler's No.3 with its awesome silences and towering climaxes recorded in the acoustically superb Congress and Concert Hall Lucerne in August 2007. Mahler completed the symphony in 1896 and it counts among the longest ever composed, with a performance lasting at least one and a half hours. The popular work became famous through Luciano Visconti's film Death in Venice , where...
Claudio Abbado has realised a dream with his new Lucerne Festival Orchestra. The orchestra, an exclusive ensemble of handpicked orchestral musicians, has set new standards in the field of classical music with exceptional soloists such as violinist Kolja Blacher, flutist Emanuel Pahud and clarinettist Sabine Meyer on the first desks. In August 2004 they performed in the Lucerne Festival Hall, presenting a programme that, once again, confirmed Claudio Abbado's fame as a supreme Mahler conductor. His long-time association with Mahler ensures a marvellous reading of the composer's Fifth and most popular Symphony, which became world-famous as the soundtrack to Visconti's film Death in Venice . An innovative special feature makes this audio-visually appealing video even more attractive. The film is shot using a multi-angle perspective, which enables the viewer to switch easily from the regular to the "Conductor" Camera thus experiencing Claudio Abbado from the orchestra's perspective. The is a wonderful homage to the interplay between orchestra and conductor celebrating the composer and a triumphant masterwork - Gustav Mahler's glorious Symphony No. 5 in C sharp minor .
Bonus feautres:
- Multi-Angle Feature - Conductor Camera
Bonus feautres:
- Multi-Angle Feature - Conductor Camera
Claudio Abbado has realised a dream with his new Lucerne Festival Orchestra. The orchestra, an exclusive ensemble of handpicked orchestral musicians, opens up new dimensions in the interpretation of symphonic music with exceptional soloists such as violinist Kolja Blacher, cellist Natalia Gutman and clarinettist Sabine Meyer filling the first desks. Claudio Abbado is undeniably a supreme Mahler conductor and his recordings with the Lucerne Festival Orchestra have set new standards in interpretation of works by Gustav Mahler (1860–1911). His long-time association with the composer ensures a marvellous reading of the Sixth Symphony , especially as he has long been the work's most respected interpreter. The sixth symphony – first performed in 1906 and sometimes referred to as Tragic – ends on a much sadder, almost nihilistic, note than most of the other Mahler symphonies. This imposing music is captured live in a performance marked by awesome silences and towering climaxes conjured by the Lucerne Festival Orchestra. Filmed in August 2006 using state-of-the-art equipment to take full advantage of the new and acoustically superb Concert Hall Lucerne.
Claudio Abbado, who first conducted his new Lucerne Festival Orchestra in the summer of 2003, realised a dream with this exclusive ensemble. Handpicked orchestral musicians and exceptional soloists such as violinist Kolja Blacher, flutist Emmanuel Pahud, clarinettist Sabine Meyer, oboist Albrecht Mayer, violist Wolfram Christ, cellist Natalia Gutman, the Hagen Quartet and members of the Alban Berg Quartet to name just a few, make the Lucerne Festival Orchestra a star-studded ensemble, while the core of the orchestra is provided by the Mahler Chamber Orchestra, itself an élite body of players. Claudio Abbado is undeniably a supreme Mahler conductor and his Mahler recordings with the Lucerne Festival Orchestra have set new benchmarks in Mahler interpretation. This wonderful performance of the impressive five movement Symphony No. 7 was recorded live at the new and acoustically superb Concert Hall Lucerne in August 2005.
The Gustav Mahler Jugendorchester was founded in 1986 at the initiative of Claudio Abbado and has since become the world's best youth orchestra. Named after the great composer, the programme is marked by the special relationship between the maestro and the young orchestra and their relationship to Gustav Mahler. Claudio Abbado is undeniably the supreme Mahler conductor of our time and his long-time association with this repertoire culminates in this stirring performance of Mahler's last Symphony, written shortly before the composer's untimely death. Recorded at Accademia di Santa Cecilia in Rome 2004, the film vividly shows the joy, talent and professionalism of the young musicians drawn from all over Europe and their devotion to Claudio Abbado. The is a wonderful homage to orchestra, conductor, composer and, last but not least, to a triumphant master work - Gustav Mahler's magnificent Symphony No. 9 in D major .
One of the great legends in American music, the virtuoso saxophonist Charlie Parker – nicknamed Bird – created a new style of jazz and won equal fame as the king of the hipsters. Celebrating Bird – The Triumph of Charlie Parker is a revealing look at an enigmatic yet endlessly appealing man, who soared to the heights of creative freedom but couldn't beat a lifelong addiction to heroin, and it includes Parker's only surviving TV appearance playing Hot House. With Dizzy Gillespie, Roy Haynes, Jay McShann, Frank Morgan, Chan Parker and others.
Lady Day - The Many Faces of Billie Holiday invites viewers to see the many faces of this "dark lady of the sonnets", as one poet called her, and to appreciate her undying art more deeply. Most presentations feature Lady Day as the sad victim of hard times and drugs. The single fact of her life that matters above all others is that she was a great artist who, with Louis Armstrong, invented modern jazz singing. Mining a treasure trove of completely new information, the producers set the record straight – and beautifully. In a voice that is Billie-like in its rasping wiseness and its ring, stage and screen star Ruby Dee reads from Holiday’s autobiography Lady Sings the Blues .
Masters of American Music is an award-winning television series – as entertaining as it is educational and memorable – that celebrates a pantheon of the greatest innovators in jazz. Individual programmes trace the lives and works of master musicians who defined the course of America's classical music. From its birth in New Orleans to swing, the big bands, bebop, free jazz and beyond – all of it is explored with sensitivity and in unique depth.
Over 80 interviews were filmed in the making of the series. Featured artists come to life through these conversations,...
Masters of American Music is an award-winning television series – as entertaining as it is educational and memorable – that celebrates a pantheon of the greatest innovators in jazz. Individual programmes trace the lives and works of master musicians who defined the course of America's classical music. From its birth in New Orleans to swing, the big bands, bebop, free jazz and beyond – all of it is explored with sensitivity and in unique depth.
Over 80 interviews were filmed in the making of the series. Featured artists come to life through these conversations,...
Sarah Vaughan - The Divine One recounts the stellar singer's career, from her beginnings at the Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Newark, New Jersey, to her debut at the Apollo Theater and her pre-eminence in nightclubs, concert halls and jazz festivals around the world. Packed with insightful interviews - many with Sarah herself - and live performances spanning her entire career, this is a very special portrait of a woman who was professionally unparalleled.
The Story of Jazz puts the crown on the Masters of American Music series. As entertaining as it is informative, this is a seamless array of performances, comments and compelling historic insight. This colourful tale of cross-cultural influences that produced a constantly evolving and enduring music is a rich 98-minute weave of sounds, rare film clips, stills and interviews. Never before have the filmed comments of so many important jazz artists been assembled for one project, and never before has the history of jazz been told as vividly and with such attention to historic detail.
Masters of American Music is an award-winning television series – as entertaining as it is educational and memorable – that celebrates a pantheon of the greatest innovators in jazz. Individual programmes trace the lives and works of master musicians who defined the course of America's classical music. From its birth in New Orleans to swing, the big bands, bebop, free jazz and beyond – all of it is explored with sensitivity and in unique depth.
Over 80 interviews were filmed in the making of the series. Featured artists come to life through these conversations, exciting rare performances, period footage and vintage photographs meticulously reproduced. Both the video and audio...
Masters of American Music is an award-winning television series – as entertaining as it is educational and memorable – that celebrates a pantheon of the greatest innovators in jazz. Individual programmes trace the lives and works of master musicians who defined the course of America's classical music. From its birth in New Orleans to swing, the big bands, bebop, free jazz and beyond – all of it is explored with sensitivity and in unique depth.
Over 80 interviews were filmed in the making of the series. Featured artists come to life through these conversations, exciting rare performances, period footage and vintage photographs meticulously reproduced. Both the video and audio...
Innovative, influential and strongly revered, John Coltrane was the most revolutionary and widely imitated saxophonist in jazz. With previously unseen footage, The World According to John Coltrane celebrates this extraordinary and passionate musician who strove with "relentless curiosity" for a musical ideal and cultivated an almost saintly reputation among listeners and fellow musicians. This film includes extensive performance footage and culminates in a fascinating musical meeting between the Art Ensemble of Chicago saxophonist Roscoe Mitchell and dervish musicians in Morocco's Sahara desert in 1990.
Through a more personal and conversational style of documentary,
Thelonious Monk – American Composer was the first fully rounded portrait of this terribly misunderstood man and musician. He was the pianistic ringleader of the bebop revolution and, after Duke Ellington, jazz' first major composer. Thelonious Sphere Monk – a most original talent – remained a highly productive musician after more than thirty years of musical activity and continued to be a growing artist, exploring his art and extending his range.
Masters of American Music is an award-winning television series – as entertaining as it is educational and memorable – that celebrates a pantheon of the greatest innovators in jazz. Individual programmes trace the lives and works of master musicians who defined the course of America's classical music. From its birth in New Orleans to swing, the big bands, bebop, free jazz and beyond – all of it is explored with sensitivity and in unique depth.
Over 80 interviews were filmed in the making of the series. Featured artists come to life through these conversations, exciting rare performances, period footage and vintage photographs meticulously reproduced. Both the video and audio content has been restored and remastered in...
Thelonious Monk – American Composer was the first fully rounded portrait of this terribly misunderstood man and musician. He was the pianistic ringleader of the bebop revolution and, after Duke Ellington, jazz' first major composer. Thelonious Sphere Monk – a most original talent – remained a highly productive musician after more than thirty years of musical activity and continued to be a growing artist, exploring his art and extending his range.
Masters of American Music is an award-winning television series – as entertaining as it is educational and memorable – that celebrates a pantheon of the greatest innovators in jazz. Individual programmes trace the lives and works of master musicians who defined the course of America's classical music. From its birth in New Orleans to swing, the big bands, bebop, free jazz and beyond – all of it is explored with sensitivity and in unique depth.
Over 80 interviews were filmed in the making of the series. Featured artists come to life through these conversations, exciting rare performances, period footage and vintage photographs meticulously reproduced. Both the video and audio content has been restored and remastered in...
To celebrate his 80th birthday, Kurt Masur led "his" Gewandhaus Orchestra in a special gala concert in June 2007. For his birthday concert, Masur, currently principal conductor of the London Philharmonic Orchestra and the Orchestre National de France, chose a varied, celebratory programme with works by composers highlighting his conducting career in the United States, France and Germany. The night progressed with works by Bernstein, Bizet and Brahms and – as a special present - a song from Gershwin's Porgy and Bess , sung by entertainer Harald Schmidt. At Kurt Masur's wish, the popular German TV entertainer, a former church musician, hosted the show, demonstrating his quick-witted humour and general knowledge of all aspects of music. Abounding in energy, alert as ever, Masur has been untiringly lending new impulses to the entire orchestral repertoire. From 1970 until 1996 he did so as Gewandhaus Kapellmeister of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, a position that has almost come to be identified with his name. He is still Conductor Laureate of the ensemble; the fact that he chose the orchestra for his birthday celebration expresses his gratitude and respect for the orchestra that accompanied him during momentous and troubled times. Kurt Masur had an eventful life - he...
Maya Plisetskaya is in every sense an exceptional personality. Like almost no other dancer, the eternal prima ballerina assoluta of the Bolshoi Theatre understood how to combine outstanding dance skills with dramatic expression. There are also very few dancers who can look back on such a long and active career: even on her eightieth birthday in November 2005 she personally gave a stage performance. A homage to her inimitable creative work, this video features fascinating footage of her greatest successes as a ballerina together with an interview in which Maya Plisetskaya describes her life as a dancer - which is simultaneously a whole chapter of Russian history, from Stalin to perestroika.
Riccardo Chailly's inaugural concert as Kapellmeister of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra in September 2005 was a feast of music by Mendelssohn, the orchestra’s first conductor. Capturing the full atmosphere of this unique musical event, ths video includes an overwhelming performance of Mendelssohn's Second Symphony, "Lobgesang" with its celebratory choral last movement and the ever-popular overture A Midsummer Night's Dream – both from critically revised new editions. Anne Schwanewilms and Peter Seiffert are the outstanding vocal soloists. The Gewandhaus Orchestra can look back on its history with pride - it has evolved into one of the world's most renowned orchestras working with the best international conductors. The bonus film Chailly in Leipzig: The Gewandhaus Orchestra welcomes its new Kapellmeister allows a glimpse into this new and fruitful relationship.
The archival gems included here are taken from footage for the legendary 1948 Hollywood film "Concert Magic" (the first ever concert filmed for movie audiences). At nearly 25 minutes, Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto was too long for inclusion in the film, so although it is Menuhin's only filmed performance of the work it has only recently been discovered. To see one of the greatest ever violinists perform one of the greatest ever violin concertos is undoubtedly a compelling experience. The encore pieces that follow are superb documents of his seemingly effortless virtuosity. These performances by the 32-year-old Yehudi Menuhin show him at the height of his career. Yehudi Menuhin was one of the best-known violinists of the 20th century - he was universally popular and was frequently received as an ambassador of classical music. With "Concert Magic", which premiered in San Francisco in 1947, he made the first ever motion picture concert in film history. He also produced many short films for the cinema – used to fill the space between the traditional "double features". An especially valuable rarity was found among these - Felix Mendelssohn's Violin concerto . Pianist Adolph Baller and the Symphony Orchestra of Hollywood conducted by Antal Dorati joined Yehudi Menuhin at...
This concert features virtuoso violinist Yehudi Menuhin (1916–1999) at the Charlie Chaplin Studios in 1947. Together with various artists he performed classical and romantic works of famous composers such as Beethoven, Wieniawski, Bach, Paganini and others. Yehudi Menuhin in Concert Magic is the very first concert film produced by and for Hollywood. This concert was premiered at the Stage Door Cinema in San Francisco for movie audiences. Yehudi Menuhin was at the age of 32 and was at the pinnacle of his fame.
Bonus features:
- The Story behind "Concert Magic" - Yehudi Menuhin in conversation with Humphrey Burton
Bonus features:
- The Story behind "Concert Magic" - Yehudi Menuhin in conversation with Humphrey Burton
This film is a genuine premiere starring the greatest motion picture composer of the present day: Ennio Morricone. Morricone's music has been well known to moviegoers for decades and his name stands for warmly melodic soundtracks, superbly suited to the films they grace. Born in 1928 in Rome, he went to school with film director Sergio Leone, with whom he would later form one of the great director/composer partnerships. His sparse arrangements, unorthodox instrumentation and memorable tunes revolutionised the way music would be used in Westerns. He has written nearly 400 film scores and this programme contains a representative sample of his rich creative output including short clips from his most famous films. The Munich Philharmonic – one of the best German symphony orchestras - invited Morricone to conduct his own music.
As part of the Mozart celebrations for the composer's 250th birthday in 2006, the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, under the baton of Manfred Honeck, perform W.A. Mozart's most famous work related to or composed in Prague. The young clarinetist Sharon Kam, one of the most exciting players on the international scene and a frequent performer with many renowned orchestras all over the world – plays the popular Clarinet Concerto in its original version on the lower range basset clarinet. The Prague Estates Theatre, where the concert was recorded on Mozart's birthday on the 27th January 2006, is one of the most beautiful historical theatres in Europe. Part of its charm, magic and value lies in its historical significance, which stretches from the theatre's role in Mozart's career to modern times. In 1787 Mozart conducted the premiere of Don Giovanni here and, his friend and inspiration the clarinettist Anton Stadler, premiered the Clarinet Concerto in this theatre in 1791.
As their personal tribute to Mozart in his anniversary year 2006, Gil and Orli Shaham performed a selection of violin sonatas by the Austrian master in the Palais Daun-Kinsky in Vienna. Brimming with energy and bravery, tempered only by a deep understanding of the music, the siblings paid their respect to the composer on his 250th birthday. Violinist Gil Shaham is internationally recognized as a virtuosic and engaging classical artists by both audiences and critics alike. He is sought after throughout the world for concerto appearances with celebrated orchestras and conductors, as well as for recital and ensemble appearances on the great concert stages and at the most prestigious festivals. His sister Orli has established an impressive international reputation as a gifted pianist. Although they were born less than five years apart, the siblings seldom appear together in public. Apparently, their parents discouraged them from doing so, since Orli, as she explains, was "just ready to come out of the sandbox" when Gil was already having a big career.
Die Entfuhrung aus dem Serail (The Abduction from the Seraglio) is one of Mozart's five great repertoire operas alongside Le nozze di Figaro , Don Giovanni , Cosi fan tutte and Die Zauberflote . A typical "Singspiel", a form in which all the dialogue is spoken rather than sung, it was a great success during Mozart's lifetime and to this day has not lost any of its magic. Mozart was twenty-six when he wrote this opera, which was commissioned by a Viennese Theatre and premiered in 1782. The production for the Schwetzingen Festival in May 1991, which was amusingly staged by Michael Hampe, was recorded in the small, jewel-like Rococo Palace Theatre. Gianluigi Gelmetti led his excellent soloists, including international stars Ruth Ann Swenson and Kurt Rydl to an ensemble performance of great unity. The combination of colourful and imaginative sets and costumes and musical excellence brings the story about Westeners in a Turkish harem convincingly home to the viewers.
In celebration of the Mozart Year – the anniversary of the composers 250th birthday would have been on 27 January 2006 – EuroArts releases a video with Mozart's most famous works for string quartet and the serenade Eine kleine Nachtmusik for string quintet. Recorded at the beautiful baroque palace Rammenau, Saxony in May 2005, this video features the longest established string quartet in the world, the Gewandhaus Quartet. Founded in 1808, the Quartet can be seen as a remarkable part of the history of Western Music, having continued its concert activity uninterrupted from generation to generation with great success for almost 200 years. The current line-up has been playing together since 1993 and was formed, as the tradition goes, from the concertmasters, solo violist and solo cellist of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra.
Mozart is the most pervasively dramatic composer in history. The spirit of opera informs very nearly his every work. Themes are characters; characters interact; they change. András Schiff's alertness to the dialogue in Mozart is reflected both in his acute sense of characterisation and his immensely sophisticated use of articulation. Every line breathes. Not only that, every tone tells. Just as the voice in conversation subtly reflects the speaker's state of mind, so Schiff's deployment of sonority derives from an acute perception of the notes' psychological as well as their purely musical character. This recording from the historical and stunningly beautiful Teatro Olimpico affords us numerous insights into Schiff's approach to music and music-making, and more besides. Schiff's joy in performance is as evident to the eye as to the ear.
In anticipation of the Mozart Year 2006, Hartmut Haenchen conducted his Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach Chamber Orchestra in an all-Mozart Programme recorded live at the 19th century Konzerthaus Berlin in November 2005. The ensemble succeeded in bringing to life the music's manifold characteristics through the translucency achieved by a small chamber orchestra. Whether light-heartedness, song-like lyricism, drama or inspired polyphonic writing: every element of their performance breathes the spirit of Mozart. Critics have praised the orchestra's stylistic assurance, transparent textures and technical precision. Conductor Hartmut Haenchen is a highly dedicated artist, who can draw on broad experience. He exudes warmth and charm and Stefan Vladar's extraordinarily sensitive touch and stylistic assurance make the prize-winning pianist an ideal partner for Haenchen and his orchestra.
Uwe Scholz, ballet director in Leipzig, was hailed as one of the most brilliant choreographic minds of his generation when he died in November 2004 at the early age of 45. His ballet The Great Mass is one of the most impressive works of this important neoclassical Choreographer - a requiem, a choreographic revelation and certainly his grand legacy to the Leipzig ballet. The full length Choreography, here recorded at the Leipzig Opera in a performance in June 2005, takes its name from Mozart's famous unfinished Mass in C minor . It absorbs the structure of the liturgy of the mass and adds other works by Mozart as well as passages of Gregorian chant, and sequences from contemporary music by Gyorgy Kurtag, Thomas Jahn and Arvo Part and readings of poems by Paul Celan. Internationally famous soloists from the Leipzig Ballet, among them Kiyoko Kimura, Christoph Bohm and Oksana Kulchytska, take on the leading roles and the staging proves the ensemble to be one of the best ballet companies worldwide.
The Berlin Philharmonic, under the baton of Sir Simon Rattle and with the Grammy Award-winning jazz vocalist Dianne Reeves, usher in the New Year in style. In this gala concert, they present a programme of music by three of the twentieth century's most famous composers: Maurice Ravel, Gabriel Fauré and George Gershwin.
Each year Nobel Media organises a classical concert as a tribute to the Nobel Laureates. This 2009 concert features the charismatic virtuoso Martha Argerich playing Ravel's mercurial Piano Concerto in G major , supported with vivacity and polish by the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra and Russian conductor Yuri Temirkanov. Bringing the first half of the concert to a close, Argerich plays Chopin's tiny, gem-like Mazurka, Op. 24 No. 2 in C major . Under Temirkanov's baton, the orchestra then gives rich and insightful performances of music by Shostakovich and Prokofiev.
A joyful celebration welcoming the New Year, this Gala from Berlin presents the world-renowned Berlin Philharmonic, conducted by Sir Simon Rattle, in Carl Orff's famous Carmina Burana , an intensely dramatic cantata that remains one of the most widely performed works from the twentieth century. With an exceptional vocal line-up – soprano Sally Matthews, tenor Lawrence Brownlee and baritone Christian Gerhaher – this is an energetic and thrilling performance. Beethoven's Leonore No. 3 overture and Handel's supreme Hallelujah Chorus are also included.
The music documentary Play Your Own Thing provides a comprehensive history of European Jazz. It explores the origins of the US-influenced Jazz clubs after the Second World War, the first steps independent of American jazz and the various changes of direction that have repeatedly occurred in European jazz in the search for that "own voice" that European jazz musicians have helped to form. Featuring the great masters of European jazz such as Chris Barber, Jan Garbarek, Juliette Greco, Stefano Bollani and Till Bronner, to name but a few, the film provides a wealth of styles in Jazz. For his third documentary on jazz, film-maker Julian Benedikt travelled to a wide variety of European countries in search of an all-embracing documentation of European jazz music. His story telling is neither too sophisticated nor does he simply reproduce the known cliches, rather the movie engages its audience with very personal impressions of European jazz, past and present. Accompanied by rarely seen archival footage featuring such influencing American jazz legends as Miles Davis, Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington, this unique document offers a collection of sparkling musical gems from both sides of the Atlantic.
Who would have thought it? An American orchestra performing in North Korea! Hundreds of millions watched this historic New York Philharmonic concert on television in February 2008 and for a few hours the cold war hostilities seemed to be forgotten. Music became diplomacy when conductor Lorin Maazel and the New York Philharmonic, the USA's most eminent orchestra, opened the concert in East Pyongyang's Grand Theatre with both the American and the North Korean national anthems. The programme included music by Wagner, Dvořák, Gershwin, Bizet and Bernstein and prompted the North Korean audience to standing ovations. This courageous musical project also united Korean and American musicians, who, together, produced a technically brilliant performance. The musicians barely spoke to one another, communicating in exchanged glances and body language, and when Lorin Maazel raised his baton at the end of the concert and the orchestra embarked on Arirang , a lilting folk song emblematic of the North and South Korean people, the audience was obviously touched.
A previously unreleased documentary with 53 min of exclusive material shows members of the New York Philharmonic on their historic trip to North Korea's capital. Many concerns and doubts arose before departing to the most...
A previously unreleased documentary with 53 min of exclusive material shows members of the New York Philharmonic on their historic trip to North Korea's capital. Many concerns and doubts arose before departing to the most...
Max Raabe and his Palast Orchester give dance and film music from the 1920s and 1930s a rousing revival. They specialise in recreating the sound of the 1920s and 1930s, performing songs by the Comedian Harmonists, Robert Stolz, Friedrich Hollaender, Franz Lehar, Theo Mackeben and Irving Berlin and evoke the nostalgic atmosphere that has captured the imaginations for generations and still charms audiences from all over the world performing music from the golden age of song-writing in pre-war Germany. They also feature highlights of the excellent music entertainment tradition of the Americas in the same period. Max Raabe and his Palast Orchester are exquisite interpreters of these tunes, and play them with such precision, jovial vitality and utter perfection that the 80 year old songs sound as fresh and lively as they did when first performed. Max Raabe himself has a distinct and exceptional voice which, added to his looks, makes him seem like the reincarnation of a singer from the Golden Twenties. The songs and the show aren't simply remakes, but wonderful new interpretations, which reveal the timeless modernity of these brilliant works. Recorded live at the Waldbuhne Berlin in August 2006, the tours in which they performed for excited audiences all over the world included...
A drummer-turned-composer, Steve Reich has produced some of the most vibrant, original and interesting music of our time, with influences as varied as Bach, Stravinsky, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, and Balinese and Ghanaian percussion. His technique of phasing (short, repeating patterns moving in and out of phase with each other), used first in It's Gonna Rain of 1965, formed the springboard for his complex and colourful style, with its intoxicating melodic lines and rhythmic patterns. In Phase to Face , we follow Steve Reich as he travels from the Autumn in Normandy festival to Rome (with the Italian musicians of Ars Ludi, the Ready-Made Ensemble, Coro Ha-Kol and Quartetto Prometeo), to Tokyo, to New York, and to Manchester – for the world premiere of 2X5 .
The press enthusiastically declared this Barber of Seville a "firework display of exhilarating comedy" and praised the "unforced liveliness" of the cast. EuroArts releases this highly acclaimed staging of one of the most popular operas ever written. Vesselina Kasarova is the undisputed star of this production - she shines musically and dramatically in the part of Rosina, one of her signature roles, which she has since been invited to sing in many major opera houses from Vienna to New York. Recorded live at the Zurich Opera in April 2001, the cast was led by Manuel Lanza as Figaro, Reinaldo Macias as the Count, Carlos Chausson as Bartolo and Nicolai Ghiaurov as Basilio and Nello Santi, a "singer-conductor" in the best Italian tradition, roused his orchestra to precise, vivacious performance.
Rossini's first staged opera already contains all the elements that would take the music world by storm in Il barbiere di Siviglia , L'italiana in Algeri and La Cenerentola in the years to come: melodic inventiveness, ingenious connections between sung lines and orchestral accompaniment in the exuberant finale, musical humour and ensembles using breathtakingly fast parlando singing. This sparkling production continues the Rossini one-act opera series emerging from the Schwetzingen Festival with excellent direction, acting and stagecraft. Director Michael Hampe created a perfect realization of the opera in the small, jewel-like Rococo Theatre of Schwetzingen Palace in May 1989. The staging is perfectly suited to the screen and the cast of principals, led by John Del Carlo; Janice Hall and David Kuebler provide musical excellence together with the flexible Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra. The lively performance is led by Gianluigi Gelmetti, who was awarded the Rossini d'Oro Prize in 1999.
L'occasione fa il ladro is one of the five one-act operas - farsa giocosa - in which the teenage Rossini first demonstrated his operatic genius. This farce about arranged marriages, role reversals and other amorous confusions is, in musical terms, by far the most riotous of these five operatic jewels – all performed in the intricately decorated Rococo Theatre at Schwetzingen Palace. Renowned opera director Michael Hampe's sparkling production is perfectly suited to the small stage of the historic theatre. Recorded live in 1992 with an excellent cast of principals led by Susan Patterson, Robert Gambill and Natale de Carolis, and Gianluigi Gelmetti's refreshingly fast-paced leadership of the Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra maintains the light musical touch of this "joyous farce" while at the same time setting a benchmark for the reading of these tiny gems among Rossini's operas.
This beautiful production by renowned opera director Michael Hampe was recorded at the exquisite Rococo Theatre in Schwetzingen Palace in May 1990. La scala di seta is one of the five one-act operas - farsa giocosa - in which the young Rossini first demonstrated his operatic genius. This sparkling production continues the Rossini one-act opera series emerging from the Schwetzingen Festival. The staging is perfectly suited to the screen and the cast of principals, led by David Griffith and Luciana Serra provide musical excellence together with the flexible Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra. Simone Young, who has since become one of the foremost opera conductors of the younger generation, appears on harpsichord and fortepiano. She was chief conductor of the Sydney Opera and has recently been appointed as the new musical director of the Hamburg Opera. Here she can be seen at the start of her career establishing a speciality for which she is now famous: she frequently conducts early operas from the harpsichord.
Il signor Bruschino is the last of the five one-act operas - farsa giocosa - in which the young Rossini first demonstrated his operatic genius. Among the 'peculiarities', which caused a sensation at its premiere 1813, was the daring experiment in search of new tonal effects in the overture, during which the second violins are required to tap their bows on their music stands. The opera is a mixture of saucy elegance, sizzling wittiness, cheeky orchestration and also some touching lyricism. It was realised to perfection in the small, jewel-like Rococo Theatre in Schwetzingen Palace, which was built in 1752. The stage is small and the beautifully elegant and this shining production by Michael Hampe, recorded in May 1989, provides one and a half hours of the entertaining story about "the son won in a game" as it is subtitled. The staging transfers to the screen perfectly and the cast of principals, led by Alessandro Corbelli, Alberto Rinaldi and Amelia Felle provide musical excellence together with the flexible Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra under Gianluigi Gelmetti.
Almost exactly twenty years ago two of the most impressive figures from the world of classical music appeared with one of its most famous orchestras at the Philharmonie in Berlin: Kurt Sanderling, the grand old man of the German Romantic school, conducted the Berlin Philharmonic in performances of Saint-Saens' Second Piano Concerto in G minor and Tchaikovsky's Fourth Symphony in F minor . The soloist was the gifted pianist Yefim Bronfman. It was a unique encounter on the highest musical level, and thanks to the brilliance, expressive power and sheer musical delight of both artists it revealed a degree of timeless perfection that turned this concert into a precious jewel among performances for connoisseurs and music lovers alike.
Christoph Prégardien is one of the most established singers of our time and has especially excelled in his interpretations of German Romantic Lieder. He has won Orphée d'Or of Académie du Disque Lyrique - Prix Georg Solti, Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik, Edison Award, Cannes Classical Award and Diapason d'Or. This is easy to understand when one hears his controlled, beautifully phrased yet emotional and tender singing.
Bonus feature:
- Christoph Pregardien on Schubert and Die Schone Mullerin
Bonus feature:
- Christoph Pregardien on Schubert and Die Schone Mullerin
In summer 2006, the incomparable Martha Argerich presented an all Schumann programme in honour of the great romantic composer's anniversary year. Recorded live at the beginning of June 2006 at the Gewandhaus in Leipzig, the programme comprised favourite works for piano and orchestra including the Piano Concerto in A minor , the Symphony No. 4 , excerpts from Kinderszenen along with works by Schumann in orchestrations by famous composers such as Tchaikovsky and Ravel. The legendary Argentinean pianist was accompanied by the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig under its new "Kapellmeister" Riccardo Chailly. Martha Argerich has long been hailed as a uniquely imaginative pianist and she is definitely the right person to honour Schumann on the anniversary of his death 150 years ago, as she is especially well known for her interpretations of the 19th century repertoire. She has been surrounded by an impermeable, almost mystical aura since the start of her career in the fifties – she is uncompromising in her music making, and yet she is generous and beautiful – and this recording bears witness to the deep musicality of this incredible artist.
Mariss Jansons returns to direct the Berliner Philharmoniker, rekindling their long-standing relationship that began in 1976. Tokyo's Suntory Hall is alive to a programme of particular musical energy - sometimes overt and joyous, sometimes suppressed and intense. Jansons' fidelity to music composed during the Soviet era remains heartfelt: Shostakovich's Violin Concerto No. 1, featuring soloist Hilary Hahn, is rendered with poise, elegance and demoniac vigour. This piece is framed by two sprightly works: Weber's charming, zesty Overture to Oberon and Dvorak's Eighth Symphony, executed with Bohemian-esque lyricism and verve.
Vladimir Ashkenazy directs the highly acclaimed Chamber Orchestra of Europe and virtuoso violinist Valeriy Sokolov in this remarkable programme of Finnish works combined with Schumann's uplifting Symphony No. 2 . Ashkenazy has particularly been praised for his performances of works by Sibelius and is renowned for his interpretations of Romantic repertoire; his creativity fused with Sokolov's vitality and the prowess of this multi-national orchestra creates an altogether spellbinding concert. A film by Bruno Monsaingeon.
This unusual Christmas video presents the musical encounter between soprano Angelika Kirchschlager and jazz trumpeter Tomasz Stanko. Recorded live in the picturesque gothic Cistercian monastery Schulpforte in Saxony-Anhalt, the concert footage is combined with charming motifs of snowy mountain landscapes and cities decorated for Christmas. Favourite Christmas compositions from the classical repertoire are combined with popular carols and jazzy improvisations – and it all sounds like christmas! Angelika Kirchschlager currently ranks among the most sought-after sopranos worldwide for both opera and concert-hall performance and Tomasz Stanko enjoys a reputation as one of the most creative jazz trumpeters alive. The soloists are accompanied by the outstanding Freiburg Baroque Orchestra. The Leipzig a cappella ensemble Amarcord, former members of St. Thomas's Boys Choir, sing popular Christmas tunes.
Recorded live in the Museum Quarter in Vienna in January 2006, this concert was inspired by the music of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, whose 250th birthday made this year a celebratory Mozart Anniversary all over the world. With artists like singer Dee Dee Bridgewater, rock flutist Ian Anderson (formerly of "Jethro Tull"), the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra and conductor Andrey Boreyko, this musical event proved to be a true crossover experience. All outstanding musical personalities in their field, the performers interpret Mozart's compositions in their personal musical languages thus preserving the fascinating original "Spirits of Mozart". They produce a rousing, electrifying melange of classical, jazz and pop culture that shows that the impact of Mozart's music reaches far beyond the boundaries of classical music and can still reach the broad public of the 21st century – a Must for Crossover Enthusiasts in the Mozart Year!
This entertaining video comprises the enjoyable dance performance A Night in Vienna a one-hour celebration of the music of the Johann Strausses – father and son. This recording recreates the beauty and atmosphere of the ballroom performances of 19th century Vienna charting the rise of the waltz craze. In the wonderful setting of the Hofburg in Vienna, the former residence of the Habsburg rulers, the period instrument orchestra Wiener Akademie plays favourites by the Strauss Family and Joseph Lanner and dance performances in historical costumes recreate the atmosphere of the first half of the 19th century.
The Waltz King is an informative docudrama celebrating the music of the Johann Strausses – father and son. In this documentary, Lesley Garrett, Britain's most popular soprano, leads viewers through the programme and explores the Viennese waltz - the music, the dance steps, the ballrooms, the costumes and at the same time narrates the drama of the two great Waltz composers, the bitter conflict between father and son Johann Strauss.
The Semperoper caused a sensation in November 2007 when it visited Japan for the first time in twenty-six years. The demand for tickets and the audience's enthusiasm were unprecedented, not least because the company was staging a piece that is performed more authentically in Dresden than anywhere else in the world: Richard Strauss's Der Rosenkavalier, which received its first performance in Dresden in 1911. Leading the ensemble was the radiant-voiced and profoundly thoughtful Marschallin of Anne Schwanenwilms, a singer described by The Independent as "one of the greatest singers on the operatic stage today."
Composer and conductor Pierre Boulez is renowned for his interpretations of twentieth century music, and especially the work of Igor Stravinsky. His inspired performance in December 2008 of The Firebird and Fireworks , with the dynamic Orchestre de Paris, proved to be no exception to this rule. Held inside the spectacular Louvre Pyramid before a rapt audience of two thousand people, it was a truly extraordinary musical event.
Uwe Scholz, former ballet director in Leipzig, was hailed as one of the most brilliant choreographic minds of his generation and he was certainly one of the most important German choreographers when he died in November 2004 at the early age of 45. The fragile-looking man, who had enjoyed a full dance and musical education from childhood, took up his first position as a choreographer with Marcia Haydée in Stuttgart when he was 22. He saw himself as a mixture between his teacher John Cranko and the influential George Balanchine, and the well over one hundred magically beautiful and extraordinarily musical choreographies that he created for houses such as the Opera in Vienna, La Scala, Zurich and Leipzig owe much to neoclassicism. This recording focuses on the two interpretations of Le Sacre du Printemps that he created for "his" Leipzig Ballet, the company that he led to international fame from 1991 to his untimely death. The evening opens with a legendary solo interpretation, danced by Giovanni di Palma to Stravinsky's own adaptation for two pianos of his impressive The Rite of Spring . Often seen as Scholz's autobiographical legacy, this choreography shows a dancer's loneliness and despair in heartbreaking images. An emotive ensemble interpretation to the original...
Bach meets Jazz! International musicians from the world of jazz and classical music assembled in the market place in Leipzig to celebrate the great master. The line up of performers could hardly be surpassed - it includes world-famous musicians from both genres, including Bobby McFerrin, the Jacques Loussier Trio, the King's Singers, Gil Shaham, the Turtle Island String Quartet and the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig all of whom joined forces on this memorable day – exactly 250 years after the death of Johann Sebastian Bach in the city where he lived and composed some of his major works as St. Thomas Cantor. Bach's music is presented in the two-hour recording as extravagant arrangements of the composer's hits and the concert took place under the motto that the music of Bach "is still vital, is still contemporary, and is still very much universal". It proves its point resoundingly in one of the most enjoyable crossover programmes ever recorded.
EuroArts presents a veritable fireworks display of ambitious pieces for brass orchestra recently performed by a colourful and fascinating young ensemble in Berlin's prestigious Konzerthaus at the Gendarmenmarkt in the heart of the city. The Venezuelan Brass Ensemble is a highly-acclaimed group with nearly 50 young brass and percussion players drawn from the extraordinary Simon Bolivar Youth Orchestra of Venezuela. The South American country has one of the most admired and amazingly effective music school systems in the world. Almost all children from the age of 2 get free music lessons in their neighbourhood. They learn to play in ensembles as soon as they can master their instruments. This so-called "sistema" enables most of the poor children in Venezuela to have a focus in life apart from being clothed and fed - thus fighting poverty-related problems at the roots. The results are astonishing, the ensemble playing is near perfect and the "sistema" has brought forth internationally successful musicians like the conductor Gustavo Dudamel. The repertoire of the Venezuelan Brass Ensemble is impressively varied and testifies to the high standard of this young ensemble. With their blend of classical and South American repertoire, these 50 youngsters not only bring audiences to...
The Verbier Festival, created in 1994, has rapidly acquired a reputation for artistic excellence and is now considered one of the major European music festivals. For a fortnight each summer, the greatest stars of the classical music world come together against the magical backdrop of the Swiss Alps. The Verbier Festival gives musicians the opportunity to perform original programmes with fellow musicians they admire, but with whom they may never have performed before. These world premiere performances produce innovative and exciting results, for artists and audiences. The 2007 Edition gathered classical celebrities such as Martha Argerich, Helene Grimaud, Gabriela Montero, Renaud Capucon, Nelson Freire, Mischa Maisky, Thomas Quasthoff and Lars Vogt. For the first time all 46 concerts were recorded and viewers can now relive the 14th edition of the Verbier Festival in 2007. The state-of-art recordings featured two cameras on stage that were remote-controlled so as to not disturb the audiences and artists and one camera in the midst of the audience to recreate the viewer's perspective. This video assembles excerpts of the most remarkable of the concerts with exciting programmes including works by Bartok, Debussy, Lutoslawski, Schubert and Schumann. Lovers of classical music will...
The Verbier Festival is one of the most prestigious classical music events, thanks to an outstanding programming in the gorgeous Swiss Alps framework. For the 15th edition of the Verbier Festival, which took place from 18 July to 3 August 2008, majority of the concerts which were proposed during the 17 days of the festival in the Salle Medran (2000 seats) and the Verbier Church (500 seats) were filmed. Some of the best performers in the world of classical music came together – Martha Argerich, Nikolai Lugansky, the rising star Yuja Wang, the violinists Joshua Bell, Julian Rachlin, or the cellist Mischa Maisky - this "best of" Verbier Festival offers the most amazing performances of the 2008 edition of the festival.
The Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra's New Year's Eve Concert in 2000 set the mood for the centenary of Giuseppe Verdi's (1813-1901) death with a selection of the composer's most popular tunes. The orchestra presented excerpts from Rigoletto , La Traviata , Un ballo in maschera and Falstaff . The programme also included the ball scene from act III of Don Carlo – a scene that is seldom staged. With singers Andrea Rost, Ramon Vargas, Alan Titus and Lucio Gallo, a cast of internationally celebrated Verdi singers gathered for this Gala Evening led by maestro Claudio Abbado. The outstanding Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra and the virtuoso Prague Radio Choir provided music of the highest order on this very special evening.
This exciting open-air staging of Aida was one of the classical highlights in summer 2004. The vast production of the Verdi masterpiece at St. Margarethen took place amidst the intoxicating scenery of a rustically romantic Roman quarry, which provided a unique backdrop for this live recording. The Opera Festival St. Margarethen in Austria counts as one of Europe's most important open-air festivals and nearly 150,000 opera lovers from all over the world visit it annually. The story of the forbidden love between the Egyptian leader Radames and the beautiful Ethiopian princess Aida was originally commissioned for the opening of the Cairo opera house, which formed part of the celebrations surrounding the opening of the Suez Canal in 1871. This is an opera of epic proportions and the staging presented on this video truly conforms to this spirit: horses, elephants, pyrotechnical special effects and more than 400 participants take to the stage. The magnificent event, with its towering musical performances is captured by the famous music video duo of directors Dolezal/Rossacher.
Filmed live at the Leipzig Opera in November 2005, this recording of Verdi's famous Un Ballo in Maschera , brings a lively musical evening. Riccardo Chailly, who made a critically acclaimed start in his position as General Music Director of the Leipzig Opera with this staging, directs the Gewandhausorchestra and a cast of experienced Verdi singers in a collaboration between the Zurich and Leipzig Operas. Un ballo in maschera - a story of love, power and political murder in 19th century United States of America - is as exciting as a thriller, but with a passion that can only be experienced in a Verdi opera. The Italian film director Ermanno Olmi ( The Legend of the Holy Drinker, The Tree of Wooden Clogs ) staged it accordingly. The amazing visual effects in this production were created by the sculptor Arnaldo Pomodore who designed the fantastic colourful set and costumes.
This exciting open-air staging of Nabucco was one of the classical highlights in summer 2007. The vast production of the Verdi masterpiece at St. Margarethen took place amidst the intoxicating scenery of a rustically romantic Roman quarry, which provided a unique backdrop for this live recording. The Opera Festival St. Margarethen in Austria counts as one of Europe's most important open-air festivals and nearly 220,000 opera lovers from all over the world visit it annually. Nabucco tells the story of Nebuchadnezzar, ancient King of Babylon, who went mad after proclaiming himself God. It is one of the most popular works in the history of opera and was Giuseppe Verdi's (1813–1901) break-through in 1842. It features the most famous of all opera choruses, "Va, pensiero...", which is a tune known to more than just opera lovers. This is an opera of epic proportions and the staging presented on this video truly conforms to this spirit: horses, pyrotechnical special effects and more than 400 participants take to the stage.
A fascinating production of La Traviata formed this year's opera highlight at one of Europe's most important open-air festivals: the Opera Festival St. Margarethen. The dazzling production, set in a rustically romantic Roman quarry, already boasts 100,000 visitors this season. Recorded live in July 2008, this video captures the beauty of the open-air production. Stage designer Manfred Waba sets the tragic story about the demi-mondaine Violetta Valéry and her admirer Alfredo Germont in an evocative replica of the Parisian Opéra Garnier. His and Robert Herzl's unique interpretation is intelligent and effective. In the lead roles, Austria's promising opera talent Kristiane Kaiser and Jean-François Borras, a young French tenor, provide for a musically and visually attractive viewing.
This recording captures the Vienna Boys' Choir's fitting celebration of Mozart's 250th birthday in January 2006. Together with well known Mozart interpreters like Sandrine Piau, they sing Mozart's finest sacred works, including the Coronation Mass . The Choir is one of the best-known musical institutions in Vienna. Since its founding over 500 years ago, it has been a significant fixture in musical life worldwide. Many famous composers and musicians had close ties to the Vienna Boys' Choir - Joseph Haydn and Franz Schubert were even members of the choir as children and Mozart, while not a choirboy himself, did perform with the choir. The venue is St. Stephen's Cathedral, where Mozart and his wife were married, where one of their sons was christened and where the funeral ceremony after Mozart's death took place.
Bonus features:
- Mozart in Vienna - Mozart's most critical years in Vienna. Examining the authentic Mozart sites in Vienna such as the Mozart House at Domgasse 5 (Figaro-Haus), the Theater an der Wien and the Stephansdom helps put into focus Mozart's special connection to the city and the Viennese relationship to Mozart.
Bonus features:
- Mozart in Vienna - Mozart's most critical years in Vienna. Examining the authentic Mozart sites in Vienna such as the Mozart House at Domgasse 5 (Figaro-Haus), the Theater an der Wien and the Stephansdom helps put into focus Mozart's special connection to the city and the Viennese relationship to Mozart.
This recording of Gotterdammerung forms the fourth and final part of Wagner's masterpiece, his epic Ring Cycle. The Stuttgart Opera gave it revolutionary treatment in a staging by Peter Konwitschny, a celebrated interpreter of Wagner, whose opera stagings have always been regarded as trendsetters within the Wagner community. He chooses to ignore the wider myth-bound associations of the work and concentrates on the immediate motivations, emotions and obsessions of the characters. Gone are the gods awaiting nightfall in their imposing hall; the action instead is set on a simple wooden stage of a touring theatre company. The performances of Richard Wagner's Ring cycle in Stuttgart created a sensation unheard of since the monumental "century" Ring in Bayreuth in the late seventies. "Four operas – four stage directors" was the artistic idea behind the 1999/2000 cycle under the musical direction of Lothar Zagrosek. Appreciating the individual operas of Der Ring des Nibelungen without having to relate to previous or subsequent storylines enabled the stage directors – handpicked among the successful Stuttgart Opera team surrounding Artistic Director Klaus Zehelein – to express their individual insights into the well-known drama of Siegfried and Wotan. In...
Not since the so-called "100-Year Ring" (Bayreuth, 1976-1980) has a performance of Richard Wagner's monumental cycle created such a sensation as the Stuttgart productions. "Four operas – four stage directors" was the artistic idea behind the 1999/2000 cycle. Appreciating the individual operas of Der Ring des Nibelungen without having to relate to previous or subsequent storylines enabled the stage directors – handpicked by the successful Stuttgart Opera team surrounding Artistic Director Klaus Zehelein – to express their individual insights into the well-known drama of Siegfried and Wotan. In 2002 German critics voted Stuttgart's Staatsoper "Opera House of the Year" for the fourth time in five years. This recording pays tribute to the artistic and musical achievement of the Stuttgart Opera House and a cast of wonderful singers. Recorded live at the Stuttgart Staatsoper in 2002, it was directed by Joachim Schlomer.
In this live recording of the third part of the tetralogy, Jon Fredric West's Siegfried is joined by Lisa Gasteen as Brunnhilde. Jossi Wieler's direction of the opera is set among designs by Anna Viebrock. The production is marked by the unprecedented power of suggestion in the gloomiest of all comedies; one which makes laughter die in the throat, and yet the only truly negative figure to emerge from the opera is the Wanderer, Wotan. The performances of Richard Wagner's Ring cycle in Stuttgart created a sensation unheard of since the monumental "century" Ring in Bayreuth in the late seventies. "Four operas – four stage directors" was the artistic idea behind the 1999/2000 cycle under the musical direction of Lothar Zagrosek. Appreciating the individual operas of "Der Ring des Nibelungen" without having to relate to previous or subsequent storylines enabled the stage directors – handpicked among the successful Stuttgart Opera team surrounding Artistic Director Klaus Zehelein – to express their individual insights into the well-known drama of Siegfried and Wotan. In 2002 German critics voted Stuttgart's Staatsoper "Opera House of the Year" for the fourth time in five years. This series was recorded live at revival performances in 2002 and 2003, and it pays...
The performances of Richard Wagner's Ring cycle in Stuttgart created a sensation unheard of since the monumental century Ring in Bayreuth in the late seventies. "Four operas – four stage directors" was the artistic idea behind the 1999/2000 cycle under the musical direction of Lothar Zagrosek. Appreciating the individual operas of Der Ring des Nibelungen without having to relate to previous or subsequent storylines enabled the stage directors – handpicked among the successful Stuttgart Opera team surrounding Artistic Director Klaus Zehelein – to express their individual insights into the well-known drama of Siegfried and Wotan. In 2002 German critics voted Stuttgart's Staatsoper "Opera House of the Year" for the fourth time in five years. This series was recorded live at revival performances in 2002 and 2003, and it pays tribute to the artistic and musical achievement of the Stuttgart Opera House and a wonderful cast of singers. The production was directed by the "psychoanalyst" Christoph Nel, who chose to reveal Wagner's characters, their ambivalences and their conflicts, using contemporary settings, situations and gestures – excellently supported by the some of the best Wagner singer-actors of our time, including Angela Denoke in her role debut...
The Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra's annual summer concert at the Waldbühne in Berlin is legendary. Recorded live on 25 June 2000, the Millenium concert gathered more than 22,000 people in one of the most appealing outdoor amphitheatres in Europe for one of the most popular classical music concerts in the world. Kent Nagano named his programme of popular and rather unusual music from the 20th century "Rhythm and Dance". It turned out to be an inspiring combination of classical pieces, show tunes, pops, and Far Eastern music, all brought together in a tasty musical stew and rightly labelled as one of the most exciting programmes ever performed at the Waldbühne. It featured Gershwin classics with an outstanding performance by the American mezzo soprano Susan Graham, music by Ravel and the soundtrack to the successful Chinese film "Farewell My Concubine". Nagano injected the performance with so much sensuality and pulsing life that the audience rose to beat time with their feet and to gave him standing ovations.
This release forms part of the celebrations for the 125th anniversary of the Berlin Philharmonic. It captures an evening of Spanish music and Spanish themes recorded live in 2001. World-famous tenor Placido Domingo conducts the Berlin Philharmonic in works, which have always been particularly close to his heart. The concert features fabulous violinist Sarah Chang performing virtuosic show-pieces such as Sarasate's Carmen Fantasy and Gypsy Airs . The programme also included a collection of delightful "zarzuela" arias, sung by Ana Maria Martinez, winner of the Placido Domingo Vocal Competition in Barcelona. This recording captures the unique atmosphere of the Berlin Philharmonic's annual summer concert at the Waldbühne, Berlin. This very successful open-air concert has become a regular event in Berlin's social calendar.
As the cameras reveal the scale of this open-air event, held at Berlin's Waldbuhne in 2002, it is not only the music that is transmitted but the extraordinary atmosphere. This is a full programme of musical bon-bons – pieces regularly given as encores: it’s as if the joyous moment following a successful performance has blossomed into a whole evening. Vadim Repin is clearly happy to indulge, performing here with all the appropriate showmanship and artistry alongside the first-class Berliner Philharmoniker and Mariss Jansons. There is a palpable satisfaction from all involved, musicians and crowd alike.
Recorded at the annual summer concert of the Berlin Philharmonic at the Waldbuhne in Berlin 2003, this video captures the atmosphere of an open-air Gershwin night in full while also allowing a closer look at the musicians and the conductor. With an audience of over 20,000 one of the world's best orchestras played the popular music of George Gershwin, including the famous Rhapsody in Blue and the popular film music suite An American in Paris . Conducted by Seiji Ozawa – one of the longstanding stars in the classical world - the Berlin Philharmonic was joined by jazz pianist Marcus Roberts and his Trio, whose album "Gershwin For Lovers" stayed in the Top 10 on Billboard's jazz chart for half a year. Together they created a magical fusion of classical music and jazz bringing an imaginative mix of styles into the swing of Gershwin's music. In the bonus film Seiji Ozawa and Marcus Roberts talk about Gershwin and their music making.
Bonus feature:
Documentary - They Got Rhythm
Bonus feature:
Documentary - They Got Rhythm
The Waldbühne in Berlin, one of the most appealing outdoor amphitheatres in Europe, is the home of the Berlin Philharmonic's annual summer concert. With over 22,000 in attendance, these are some of the most popular classical music concerts in the world.
On this recording, Estonian conductor Neeme Järvi takes the audience on a trip through an "Oriental Night". Works by Grieg, Rimsky-Korsakov, Nielsen, Saint-Saëns and Massenet explore oriental images in music. High-ranking soloists like rising star Dutch violinist Janine Jansen join the outstanding orchestra. Neeme Järvi can be counted as one of the world's leading musical personalities having conducted more than 350 CD productions. Recorded live at the Waldbühne Berlin in 2006, Sheherazade offers a sensational concert to all those who want to relive the atmosphere of a the relaxed and high quality open-air event.
On this recording, Estonian conductor Neeme Järvi takes the audience on a trip through an "Oriental Night". Works by Grieg, Rimsky-Korsakov, Nielsen, Saint-Saëns and Massenet explore oriental images in music. High-ranking soloists like rising star Dutch violinist Janine Jansen join the outstanding orchestra. Neeme Järvi can be counted as one of the world's leading musical personalities having conducted more than 350 CD productions. Recorded live at the Waldbühne Berlin in 2006, Sheherazade offers a sensational concert to all those who want to relive the atmosphere of a the relaxed and high quality open-air event.
Every year, the Berliner Philharmoniker hold a kind of classical-music fete with a bright, cheerful concert to end the season. In 2009 about 22,000 people had come together at the Berlin Waldbuhne to enjoy the traditional summer picnic concert. The theme of the evening was "Russian rhythms", and star conductor Sir Simon Rattle, the Berliner Philharmoniker and Yefim Bronfman, one of the most famous pianists in the world today, presented a superb selection of Russian music.