GAETANO DONIZETTI
Donizetti: Lucia di Lammermoor (complete opera recorded in 1992) Theatro La Scala / Renato Bruson / Mariella Devia / Vincenzo La Scola / conducted by Stefano Ranzani [ Opus Arte DVD / DVD - released 23/Jul/2004 ] "A powerfully dramatic and memorable La Scala production. Recommended." (MusicWeb) |
PROKOFIEV / TCHAIKOVSKY / DELIBES / ADAM / STRAVINSKY / etc
An Evening With The Royal Ballet Carlos Acosta, Tamara Rojo, Lauren Cuthbertson, Alina Cojocaru, Marianela Nunez, Darcey Bussell, etc [ Opus Arte Royal Opera House Collection DVD / DVD - released 20/Feb/2013 ] "This compilation taster of the great classics offers knockout performances, leaving one hankering to see the complete work. Don't miss Alina Cojocaru and Johan Kobborg in Giselle." (BBC Music) |
GIUSEPPE VERDI
Verdi: Falstaff (complete opera recorded in 2009) Glyndebourne Opera / Christopher Purves / Tassis Christoyannis / Dina Kuznetsova / Jennifer Holloway / Vladmir Jurowski (cond) [ Opus Arte DVD / DVD - released 1/Apr/2010 ] "This Falstaff is immensely enjoyable and amongst the best that I have watched. I strongly recommend it whether you admire Verdi's last work or not..an amiable, pleasing production with an exceptionally fine cast" Recording of the Month MusicWeb Nov... |
KIRI te KANAWA
Opera in the Outback Kiri Te Kanawa (soprano) / Adelaide Symphony Orchestra with the Adnyamathanha Women's Choir [ Kultur / Opus Arte DVD / DVD - released 29/Jul/2008 ] G : - Opera in the Outback features internationally renowned diva, Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, singing a superb selection of songs from opera favourites to the popular classics. |
W. A. MOZART
Mozart: Le Nozze di Figaro [The Marriage of Figaro] (the complete opera, recorded in 2006) Paris Opera / Peter Mattei, Lorenzo Regazzo, Christiane Oelze, Christine Schäfer / Sylvain Cambreling (conductor) [ Opus Arte Essential Opera Collection DVD / 2 DVD - released 20/Oct/2013 ] "Update is the imperfect noun we use. Christoph Marthaler's production has transposed 18th-century upstairs-downstairs to bridal retail in 2001." (New York Times) De Telegraaf |
VERDI
Les vêpres siciliennes (complete opera recorded in 2013) Royal Opera House / Lianna Haroutounian, Bryan Hymel, Erwin Schrott, Michael Volle / Antonio Pappano (cond) [ Warner Classics / Opus Arte DVD / 2 DVD - released 25/Mar/2015 ] "Pappano gets huge power and tension from the ensemble, and paces the long evening to perfection...sound and balance are good, and the filming has a real sense of the style of the show." (Gramophone) |
CIMAROSA
Il Matrimonio Segreto (Complete Opera) Enrico Fissore / Valeria Baiano / Carmen Gonzalez / Orchestra Della Svizzera Italiana / Francis Travis [ OPUS ARTE / FAVEO DVD / DVD ] G :- 'The greatest compliment for this production, both musically and visually, is that three hours was too short…' Neue Zürcher Zeitung, Switzerland |
ROSSINI
La Scala di Seta (complete opera) Ernesto Palacio / Robert Coviello / Tiziana Tramonti / Orchestra della Svizzera Italiana / Marc Andreae (cond) [ Opus Arte DVD / DVD - released 10/May/2007 ] G :- All Regions - Regular 1.33:1 / 4:3 - PCM Stereo - Colour - NTSC - 103 minutes |
PERGOLESI
Pergolesi: Lo frate 'nnamorato (Complete opera recorded in 1989) La Scala Opera / Alessandro Corbelli / Nuccia Focile / Amelia Felle / Riccardo Muti (conductor) [ Opus Arte La Scala Collection DVD / DVD - released 23/Jul/2004 ] G :- "…delivered with a polish that makes almost every moment a delight." (BBC Music) |
W. A. MOZART
Mitridate, re di Ponto (recorded live Covent Garden in 1993) Royal Opera House / Bruce Ford, Jochen Kowalski, Ann Murray, Luba Orgonasova / Paul Daniel (cond) [ Opus Arte DVD / DVD - released 10/Feb/2012 ] |
FRANCESCO CILEA
Cilea: Adriana Lecouvreur (complete opera) Teatro alla Scala / Giandrea Gavazzeni / Mirella Freni / Peter Dvorsky / Ivo Vinco [ Opus Arte / Rai Trade La Scala Collection DVD / DVD - released 16/Dec/2004 ] G - Cilea's four-act opera of jealousy and tangled love, first performed in Milan in 1902, is based on the true-life story of Adriana Lecouvreur, an 18th-Century actress at the Comédie Française |
GEORGES BIZET
Bizet: Carmen (Complete opera recorded in 2002) Glyndebourne Opera / Anne Sofie von Otter, Marcus Haddock, Laurent Naouri, Lisa Milne / Philippe Jordan (cond) [ Opus Arte Essential Opera Collection DVD / 2 DVD - released 20/Oct/2013 ] G: "(Von Otter's) Carmen has loads of overt sexuality - she languidly glides through the Habanera while sucking on a piece of fruit and then a cigar - and she shows plenty of temperament and fatalism tinged with fear later." (Los Angeles Times) |
OFFENBACH
Les Contes d'Hoffmann [The Tales of Hoffmann] (Recorded live in 2006) Opera de Bilbao / Aquiles Machado, Milagros Poblador, Maria Bayo, Valentina Kutzarova, Konstantin Gorny, Katharine Goeldner / Alain Guingal (Conductor [ Opus Arte Essential Opera Collection DVD / 2 DVD - released 1/Oct/2013 ] 'Excellent work by Giancarlo del Monaco… extremely careful definition of the characters and efficient directing of the actors which brings out the best in them. … An absolute triumph for the women.' El Pais |
GEORGES BIZET
Bizet: Carmen (Complete opera recorded in 2002) Glyndebourne Opera / Anne Sofie von otter, Marcus Haddock, Laurent Naouri, Lisa Milne / Philippe Jordan (cond) [ Opus Arte DVD / 2 DVD - released 20/Oct/2013 ] SUPER SPECIAL PRICE - LIMITED OFFER "Violent, passionate, superbly played… Glyndebourne's Carmen is simply gripping." -THE SUNDAY TIMES CULTURE 220 Minutes An exhilarating new Carmen from Glyndebourne. Director David McVicar describes... |
GIUSEPPE VERDI
Verdi: I vespri Siciliani (complete opera recorded in 1990) La Scala Opera / Giorgio Zancanaro, Enzo Capuano, Chris Merritt, Cheryl Studer / Riccardo Muti (cond) [ Opus Arte / Rai Trade / La Scala Collection DVD / DVD - released 25/Dec/2015 ] Verdi's 1855 Paris opera which followed Rigoletto, Il trovatore and La Traviata is treated to a performance of blazing energy and intimate refinement with a superb cast which includes Cheryl Studer and Chris Merritt. |
ROSSINI
La donna del lago (complete opera recorded in 1992) La Scala Opera / Rockwell Blake / Giorgio Surjan / Chris Merritt / June Anderson / Riccardo Muti (cond) [ Opus Arte / Rai Trade / La Scala Collection DVD / DVD - released 16/Dec/2004 ] G :- "Mature Rossini at his best and most demanding. I recommend it to enthusiasts of the opera seria now slowly gaining a foothold in the repertoire" - MusicWeb Feb 2005 |
GIACOMO PUCCINI
Puccini: Tosca (complete opera recorded in 2003) Madrid Teatro Real / Daniela Dessi, Fabio Armiliato, Ruggero Raimondi / Maurizio Benini (cond) [ Opus Arte Essential Opera Collection DVD / DVD - released 20/Oct/2013 ] "...An absolutely magnificent cast of voices." EL MUNDO, Madrid |
GIUSEPPE VERDI
Verdi: Rigoletto (Complete Opera recorded in 1996) Royal Opera House, Covent Garden / Marcelo Alvarez, Peter Auty, Graeme Broadbent, Christine Schafer / Edward Downes (cond) [ Opus Arte Essential Opera Collection DVD / DVD - released 1/Jun/2014 ] "A thrilling performance, with Gavanelli the best acted Rigoletto since Gobbi." - Gramophone Magazine (June 2002) |
RICHARD WAGNER
Wagner: Die Walkure (complete opera recorded in 1999) Netherlands Opera / John Keyes, Nadine Secunde, John Brocheler, Jeannine Altmeyer, Kurt Rydi, Reinhild Runkel / Harmut Haenchen (cond) [ Opus Arte Essential Opera Collection DVD / 2 DVD - released 20/Oct/2013 ] "The visual impact of this Spartan production is such that it will not be easily forgotten. It is recorded in surround sound...All in all this a quality product." (MusicWeb May 2006) |
TCHAIKOVSKY
Opera & Ballet favourites (winter gala concert from the Royal Opera House 1993) Placido Domingo / Kiri te Kanawa / Dmitri Hvorostovsky / Darcey Bussell / various conductors [ Opus Arte Royal Opera House DVD / DVD - released 1/Jan/2012 ] '…a dazzling evening in the company of a galaxy of stars from The Royal Ballet and the Royal Opera. …an unsurpassable celebration of opera and ballet.' Daily Telegraph |