[ Erato Warner Classics Home of Opera / 3 CD ]
Release Date: Friday 20 May 2016
This item is only available to us via Special Order. We should be able to get it to you in 3 - 6 weeks from when you order it.
Roberto Alagna, superbly stylish in French, embodies the poet Hoffmann, whose dreams of love are repeatedly shattered by José van Dam, inimitable as the four villains of the piece. Natalie Dessay conquered the world as the mechanical doll Olympia, while Sumi Jo seduces as Giulietta and Leontina Vaduva wrings the heart as Antonia. Conducting Michael Kaye's comprehensive edition of the episodic score (left incomplete at Offenbach's death), Kent Nagano brilliantly fuses the diverse elements of Les Contes d'Hoffmann.
"Kent Nagano uses Kaye's complete edition preserving the recitatives. He balances this by taking quite a brisk view of the tempi and the pacing of the piece." MusicWeb