This release features two Frederick Ashton ballets in one exquisite evening performance. Principals Natalia Osipova and Steven McRae dance Ashton’s Rhapsody, created for The Royal Ballet in 1980 by Mikhail Baryshnikov and Lesley Collier, with spectacular choreography to suite the dancers’ star reputations. Lauren Cuthbertson and Vadim Muntagirov lead a charismatic cast in Ashton’s poignant and heart-warming reflection on love, The Two Pigeons, based on an old French folk tale and first performed on Valentines Day 1961. These two ballets from the company’s founder choreographer capture The Royal Ballet’s famous skill and distinctive style. Barry Wordsworth conducts the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House in the rapturous Rachmaninoff and Messager scores. Financial Times gave this performance five stars, stating: “…Steven McRae… cutting tremendous shapes in the air, wrapping the score round himself…”

This Blu-ray Disc is only playable on Blu-ray Disc players and not compatible with standard DVD players.

Also available on standard DVD



This ravishing production from Covent Garden, recorded in May, 2015, certainly takes its cues from Freud... The score is a stunner, alternately sensual and sumptuous, with dissonant eruptions. It can sometimes overwhelm with its exotic, anointed quality, which makes it seem obvious, but it is certainly one of a kind. It requires, of course, a cast willing to learn Polish, and for that alone we should praise this production – it sometimes sounds as if it has no vowels. I suspect it would not have come to be were it not for Polish-born Mariusz Kwiecien, a remarkable singing actor in foreign languages and now even more remarkable in the comfort of his own. Roger is a veritable garden of uncertainties and hungers, and Kwiecien’s acting and singing give us each doubt, each fear, each unresolved bit of passion. His voice is in wonderful shape as well–a highly placed, bright baritone.


There are subtitles in English, French, German, Japanese, and Korean and bonus features including explanations by Pappano and Holten – as well as a blow-by-blow documentary. King Roger is not an oddity or a rarity–it’s a major part of the operatic canon and this is an ideal way to get to know it.

--ClassicsToday.com

Although Dmitri Kabalevsky’s concertos and sonatas hardly lack for good recordings, few pay attention to his prolific output of shorter solo piano pieces. That’s a shame, because this composer, if not a towering original, wrote imaginatively and effectively for the keyboard, as the works on this disc bear out.

Even at 21, Kabalevsky could dole out flashy goods in his third Op. 1 Prelude, while simple sophistication and canny register deployment define both of Op. 40’s short variation sets. The Six Preludes and Fugues Op. 61 wear their contrapuntal craftsmanship lightly; who else could write a tuneful, waltzing fugue, or a prelude based on clusters that evoke Burt Bacharach covered by The Carpenters? Written for the 1958 International Tchaikovsky Competition that made Van Cliburn a household name, the A minor Rondo wears well, from its opening downward arpeggios to the infectious “oom-pah” accompaniment.

Each of the three Op. 87 variation sets, respectively based on American, French, and Japanese folk songs, has a distinct personality and deserves wider recognition. While the booklet notes understandably liken the American theme to a tune played on a Native American wooden flute, some listeners will recognize it as the folk song “All the Pretty Little Horses”. Known for her steadfast advocacy of worthy keyboard rarities (including splendid recordings of the complete Amy Beach and Arthur Foote piano music), Kirsten Johnson’s astute attention to detail and her fluent, tonally rich pianism are a joy to behold. The resonant warmth of Nimbus’ engineering will please collectors who found the label’s 1970s/’80s “Ambisonic” productions to be uncomfortably diffuse.

-- Jed Distler, ClassicsToday.com

Includes work(s) by Joaquín Rodrigo. Soloist: Raquel Lojendio.

Gerald Finzi's choral music never has achieved popularity on the level of works by composers such as Stanford, Vaughan Williams, or Elgar, and in general this is because by comparison it's not as well-organized, the inner structural details aren't as carefully developed, and the balance of text with musical ideas isn't as facile. As a result, many of Finzi's choral pieces sound just a bit labored, a bit more difficult than they need to be, the structural edges a bit rough, the overall concept unpolished. Just listen to any of Finzi's partsongs against, say, Stanford's motet Beata quorum via or Elgar's As torrents in summer, or Finzi's Lo, the full, final sacrifice next to Vaughan Williams' Toward the unknown region, and you'll see what I mean.


Not that Finzi is a careless or inept craftsman. Rather, in his vocal music he is a wonderful miniaturist (just listen to his exquisitely wrought 10 children's songs or to his fine solo songs with piano, for example--not included here) whose more expansive efforts just tend to have an unfinished quality that's often allied to an excessively text-bound style that hinders the flow of such pieces as the Magnificat and the anthem Welcome sweet and sacred feast.


And that's too bad, because Finzi's works are packed with beautiful moments, lovely melodic snippets, and delightful quiet sections followed by thrilling climaxes. All of those things are present among these pieces, which provide an excellent introduction to this composer's choral oeuvre. In spite of its structural faults the Magnificat remains a powerful and interesting piece--and the cathedral anthem Lo, the full, final sacrifice is bound to rouse any congregation or audience with its grand singing and organ accompaniment. The seven partsongs are not particularly memorable, for all their effortful dramatic qualities.


Nevertheless, the singing on this disc is very fine--of course, this is a choir that you can count on to have such repertoire down cold--and it's always impressive to hear trebles sing with such solidity of tone and brilliant, never harsh, high notes, perfectly blended and balanced with the lower voices. While there are times that some choral sections stand out a bit too prominently, the organ is exceptionally well recorded. If you're interested in Finzi's choral music, you won't go wrong here--however, if you want the sound of an adult mixed choir in this same repertoire (with a few additional selections), very beautifully recorded, try the reference disc, with the Finzi Singers on Chandos.
--David Vernier, ClassicsToday.com

RODRIGO: Soleriana / Zarabanda lejana y Villancico (Complete

You might remember Polish composer Henryk Górecki's best-known work for voice and orchestra, 1976's Third Symphony ("Symphony of Sorrowful Songs"). After all, David Zinman's recording for Nonesuch with soprano Dawn Upshaw raced to the top of the classical and pop charts when it was first released in 1992. It might be tempting to understand Górecki by that singular success; in the case of the Second Symphony and Beatus vir, you wouldn't be too far off base. The Symphony No. 2 "Copernican" was written four years before the Third Symphony; Beatus vir was written in 1979. Both works call for voice and orchestra (as well as mixed choir). By the late 1960s, the composer already had settled into a signature aesthetic that many came to know in the Third Symphony: a lone voice floating over a murmuring pulse, thunderous blows of percussion, massive blocks of orchestral chords, and religiously oriented texts. (The Beatus vir text comes from the Psalms; the Second Symphony, following the work's subtitle, uses the astronomer's own words in praise of God, taken from De revolutionibus orbium coelestium.)


For better or worse (depending on your response to the Symphony No. 3), Górecki's compositional language in these two pieces will be quite familiar. If you find Górecki a compelling artistic voice--and I do--then these performances will be a worthy addition to your library, if not quite as emotionally harrowing an experience as Symphony No. 3. The ethnic connections on this Naxos release run deep: Copernicus was Polish, Beatus vir was commissioned by the Polish Pope, John Paul II (when he was still Cardinal of Cracow), and these artists, uniformly first-rate, are Polish as well. Baritone Andrzej Dobber turns between despondency and strength as the psalms call for, and soprano Zofia Kilanowicz has an appealingly warm tone. Antoni Wit has an admirable track record with Naxos, and this recording is another win for him. The sound is excellent: very focused and rich.
--Anastasia Tsioulcas, ClassicsToday.com

Selections recorded at the Toronto Centre for the Arts in June, 2001 and St. John Chrysostom Church, Newmarket in August, 2001.

SCRIABIN: Piano Sonatas, Vol. 2

Recorded in Mosca between 1958 and 1964, these rare interpretations by conductor Kirill Kondrashin include works by Rachmaninov and Khachaturian. With the exception of Khachaturian’s Masquerade, which is performed by the RCA Victor Symphony Orchestra, all of these works are performed by the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra. This two-disc set is presented with outstanding stereophonic quality.

BLISS: Oboe Quintet / Piano Quartet / Viola Sonata

I wish I could give this disc the highest rating for overall artistic quality, because the performance of Belshazzar's Feast is simply spectacular, but unfortunately other equally fine performances come with more interesting couplings, and even with the two marches this release still offers less than 50 minutes of music. Make no mistake, though, if you care about the major work, then you will want to hear what Paul Daniel and his combined forces do with it. In particular, it's terrific to hear the piece sung by a really large, enthusiastic English chorus of the "festival" variety--the sort of forces that Walton composed it for in the first place. The very opening invocation ("Thus spake Isaiah") has a very different, weightier sound than usual when sung by such a crowd--greater amplitude and richness--but the words remain remarkably clear throughout.


Here's the bottom line: after the comparatively quiet and mournful first 10 minutes, Daniel basically lines up this huge mass of voices and they proceed to scream their collective guts out--and let's face it, what more would you want in this loudest and most energetic of choral works? The enthusiasm and sense of occasion is palpable, and it extends to the work of the orchestra, which renders such moments as the "Praise ye" episode with incomparable vividness from the brass and percussion. Once the piece gets hopping ("In Babylon, Belshazzar the king made a great feast") there's simply no looking back. Granted, the "Joyful noise" at the very end might pass by in a bit of a blur at this tempo, but then it nearly always does, and the Naxos recording is pretty terrific in just about every respect, capturing both an unusual amount of orchestral detail while offering the palpable impression of vast choral forces in a large space.


Baritone Christopher Purves isn't the most smooth-voiced of soloists, but he gets the job done with aplomb, and the two marches (recorded way back in 1996) are effective but obviously are there for lack of anything better. Still, at budget price you won't find a snazzier Belshazzar, and for sheer "pedal to the metal" panache, this one has them all beat. If you want perfect choral discipline you may want to look elsewhere, but for a genuine musical hubbub in the best sense, look no further.
--David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

VAUGHAN WILLIAMS: Fantasias / Norfolk Rhapsody / In the Fen

Volume Five in Naxos' complete Sibelius piano music cycle is given over to miniatures, most of which fall within modest technical and registral parameters. Although they were intended for home consumption by amateur pianists, a sensitive and imaginative professional like Håvard Gimse can really make these pieces sound vital and characterful. He does marvelous things. For instance, his angular, push/pull rubato in the Impromptu (Op. 99 No. 4) and varied phrasing of No. 12's dotted rhythms underline the music's superficial resemblance to Schumann. The controlled vehemence he brings to the five Op. 101 pieces admirably downplays their sometimes-mawkish melodic invention. And Gimse is fully attuned to the quirky harmonic twists and turns permeating Op. 103 and 114 (these sets might be described as chips off the blocks that fashioned the composer's Sixth and Seventh Symphonies). In short, collectors who've acquired previous volumes of this excellent series need no further recommendation. --Jed Distler, ClassicsToday.com

Gian Francesco Malipiero (1882-1973) originally composed his Seven Inventions and Four Inventions as a score for the 1932 Italian film Acciaio (Steel). The music's intended function as an accompaniment to visual storytelling perhaps explains its consistent use of a basic melodic idea, which sounds deceptively like a novice at the piano playing up and down the white keys. That Malipiero creates interesting and beautiful musical moments from this raw and unadorned device is most impressive, as is the ever-captivating orchestration, which at times reminds us of the colorful works of Respighi (especially in the dramatic opening and concluding movements).


The Four Inventions, though slightly more tuneful, follow the same melodic principle as the Seven, which can lead to an impression of sameness if played in succession. Malipiero's 1925 opera Il finto Arlecchino evoked the world of 18th-century Venice, and the music ranges from neo-classical to near parody of the period. For some of today's "authenic performance"-trained ears this will seem quite anachronistic, as will Malipiero's Vivaldiana (1952), a loving tribute that is true to the text of Vivaldi's concerto movements while imbuing them with newly vivid and vibrant orchestral colors. Peter Maag's insightful and committed conducting makes the most of these elements, which are wonderfully realized in brilliant performances by the Veneto Philharmonic Orchestra, recorded in clear, full sound by Naxos. Do give this a try.
--Victor Carr Jr, ClassicsToday.com

In this celebrated Glyndebourne Festival production, David Hockney’s designs for director John Cox reinterpret the Hogarth etchings that inspired the opera’s libretto, written for Stravinsky by W.H. Auden and Chester Kallman. In 2010, this revival under Glyndebourne’s Music Director, Vladimir Jurowski, captured the opera’s neo-classical spirit and its juxtaposition of whimsy, cynicism and compassion, prompting the Financial Times to call it,‘‘as enjoyable a performance of Stravinsky’s opera as any that has come along".

Recorded live at the Glyndebourne Opera House 18–19 December 2010

Bonus:
- Documentary includes an interview with David Hockney
- Introduction to the Rake’s Progress

• Picture format: NTSC 16:9
• Sound format: LPCM 2.0 / DTS 5.1
• Region code: 0 (worldwide)
• Subtitles: English, French, German, Dutch, Japanese, Korean
• Running time: 140 mins
• No. of DVDs: 1
  

REVIEW:

Nick Shadow speaks directly to the audience in Act 2, which justifies his winking and gurning at them at various points throughout, usually to show what a dupe his master is, and always to delicious comic effect. His costume, and in particular his hairdo, is ridiculous, yet strangely disquieting. Matthew Rose plays the part to the hilt, making clear from his very first scene that Tom is a pushover and that Anne is where the danger lies. He manages adeptly the comic aspects of the role, at least as far as the graveyard scene, when everything changes. It’s possible to imagine a darker voice for Shadow, but I find his assumption totally convincing. Topi Lehtipuu as Tom is very fine too. He captures very well indeed Tom’s love for Anne, which is genuine and will be his salvation, but which he abandons by weakness of will. Miah Persson is adorable as Anne. She brings out beautifully the vulnerability of the character, but crucially she has brilliantly understood the steely determination present in Anne’s music, and acts it out, both physically and vocally, to perfection. The smaller roles are beautifully taken, and the chorus sings and acts splendidly. Time and again I was struck, as never before, by the sheer beauty of the sound of this work, and the orchestra plays magnificently under the inspiring direction of Vladimir Jurowski.

There are other performances of The Rake’s Progress on DVD, including an earlier incarnation of this same production, finely sung but now superseded technically. Then there is the production from La Monnaie in Brussels, garishly updated to 1950s America. Rapturously received in many quarters, you are likely to love it or hate it. Either way, there is no question, this life-enhancing DVD from Glyndebourne is truly special and not to be missed.

-- MusicWeb International

"...Great things were hoped for in Donohoe's new series, the first volume of which features the first five of the composer's nine sonatas. I am comprehensively blown away by the results. There is not a crash-bang-wallop in sight: bags of power, yes, but power focused and targeted at strategic points. What you will hear is a stream of light, pellucid lyricism, from the Romanticism of the early one-movement First Sonata to the delicious classical turn in the opening phrase of the Fifth, along with all the character and acrobatics that begin to emerge through this group. This is Prokofiev as you have not heard him. A major re-evaluation from a towering pianist is under way." - Michael Tumelty, The Herald, Scotland

Sergey Prokofiev
CINDERELLA

Cinderella – Agnès Letestu
The Movie Star – José Martinez
The Sisters – Laëtitia Pujol, Stéphanie Romberg
The Mother – Stéphane Phavorin
The Producer – Wilfried Romoli

Paris National Opera Ballet
Paris National Opera Orchestra
Koen Kessels, conductor

Rudolf Nureyev, choreographer

Recorded live at the Palais Garnier, Paris, on 24, 26,and 28 April 2008.

Bonus:
- Documentary: Cinderella goes to Hollywood
- Cast gallery and illustrated synopsis

Picture format: NTSC 16:9 anamorphic
Sound format: LPCM Stereo 2.0 / DTS 5.1
Region code: 0 (All Regions)
Menu languages: English, German, French, Spanish, Italian
Subtitles: English, German, French, Spanish, Italian
Running time: 185 mins
No. of DVDs.: 2

Also available on Blu-ray

Glyndebourne has a proud association with the operas of Benjamin Britten, however until 2010 had never staged Billy Budd. The all-male opera with a libretto co-written by EM Forster, is based on the battle between pure good and blind evil, and is set on a British man-‘o-war ship. Michael Grandage, Artistic Director of the Donmar Warehouse, chose this work to make his long-awaited operatic debut. Sir Mark Elder returned to conduct the production, marking the 100th opera production in his illustrious career.



Benjamin Britten
BILLY BUDD

Captain Vere – John Mark Ainsley
Billy Budd – Jacques Imbrailo
Claggart – Phillip Ens
Mr. Redburn – Iain Paterson
Mr. Flint – Matthew Rose
Lieutenant Ratcliffe – Darren Jeffery
Red Whiskers – Alasdair Elliott
Donald – John Moore
Dansker – Jeremy White
Novice – Ben Johnson
Squeak – Colin Judson
Bosun – Richard Mosley-Evans

The Glyndebourne Chorus
London Philharmonic Orchestra
Mark Elder, conductor
Michael Grandage, stage director
Bonus:
- Introducing Billy Budd
- Designs on Billy Budd

Picture format: NTSC 16:9 Anamorphic
Sound format: LPCM Stereo 2.0 / DTS 5.1
Region code: 0 (worldwide)
Menu language: English
Subtitles: English, French, German, Spanish
Running time: 200 mins
No. of DVDs: 1

Classical Music

Originally issued on Marco Polo, these performances make a welcome reappearance on the Naxos label. Villa-Lobos used the "Chôro", a popular type of urban street music found in Rio de Janeiro, as the basis for a new and vibrant type of orchestral composition. Chôros No. 8 evokes a primeval Amazonian jungle with its wonderfully vivid sound-imagery. By making extensive use of Brazilian rhythms and percussion, particularly the caracaxa, which sounds like a huge set of maracas, Villa-Lobos gives the music an impetuous, even sinister feel. This powerful rhythmic thrust pervades throughout, taking a strangely Coplandesque turn for a brief mid-point sequence that brings to mind El salon Mexico.


Chôros No. 9 opens in a brightly festive atmosphere, punctuated by kinetic bass drum thuds. In its colorful character, varied moods, and scenes that segue one into another, the piece is reminiscent of Respighi's Feste Romane (though there's nothing Italianate about Villa-Lobos' language). This is fun stuff--mysterious, exciting, and sensuous--and it's all done with astonishingly authentic flair by the Hong Kong Philharmonic (they really whack the percussion!) under conductor Kenneth Schermerhorn. The 1985 recordings retain their clarity, but also their tendency to brightness. At the Naxos price, this is an irresistible invitation to sample the music of this Brazilian master.
--Victor Carr Jr., ClassicsToday.com

This third and final volume dedicated to Enescu's piano works shows the unique blend of influences he acquired during his teenage years in Vienna and Paris. These start with his Brahms-like treatment of the piano as a symphonic instrument in the Scherzo and Ballade to the infusion of French late-Romanticism and Faure in the Impromptus. The crowning achievement of these early compositions is the Suite dans le style ancien, Enescu's first public solo piano opus, a stylised evocation of Bach seen through the prism of turn-of-the-century Paris.

A very special dance occasion in honour of a celestial alignment of events, the Gala des Étoiles celebrates the Ballet Corp’s time-honoured tradition of a Grand Gala at La Scala as it coincides with Milan’s tenure as host city of EXPO 2015. Symbolically espousing the spirit of the Universal Exposition by bringing together outstanding international talent, La Scala’s étoiles – Svetlana Zakharova, Roberto Bolle and Massimo Murru – extend Milan’s red carpet to a veritable constellation of guest dancers from around the world, including rising stars and luminaries of the ballet universe.

Note: This Blu-ray Disc is only playable on Blu-ray Disc players and not compatible with standard DVD players.

Also available on standard DVD

Peter and the Wolf, Prokofiev’s musical fairy tale, has been delighting children since 1936. Nearly 60 years later, in 1995, the young choreographer Matthew Hart created a witty choreographed version for the Royal Ballet School with designs by Ian Spurling. Described as ‘an utterly delightful ballet and a perfect showcase for the younger students,’ by the Royal Ballet’s Director, Monica Mason, it was staged again and recorded for this DVD.

"...Matthew Hart’s Peter and the Wolf is one of the most beguiling children’s ballets around.” - The Telegraph

Matthew Hart, choreographer
The Wolf – Sergei Polunin
Grandfather – Will Kemp
Peter – Kilian Smith
Duck – Charlotte Edmonds
Bird – Laurine Muccioli
Cat – Chisato Katsura

The Royal Ballet School
Royal Ballet Sinfonia
Paul Murphy, conductor

Recorded live at the Royal Opera House, 16 and 18 December 2010.

Bonus:
- Cast gallery
- Documentary feature on rehearsing Peter and the Wolf

Picture format: 1080i High Definition
Sound format: LPCM 2.0 / DTS 5.0
Region code: 0 (worldwide)
Menu language: English
Subtitles: English, French, German, Spanish
Running time: 38 mins
No. of Discs: 1 (Blu-ray)

Note: This Blu-ray Disc is playable only on Blu-ray Disc players, and not compatible with standard DVD players.

Also available on standard DVD

La Valse

Hikaru Kobayashi
Ryoichi Hirano
Samantha Raine
Bennet Gartside
Helen Crawford
Brian Maloney

Music:
Maurice Ravel: La Valse


Meditation from Thaïs

Leanne Benjamin
Valeri Hristov

Music:
Jules Massenet: Thaïs, Act II: Meditation


Voices of Spring

Yuhui Choe
Alexander Campbell

Music:
Johann Strauss: Fruhlingsstimmen (Voices of Spring), Op. 410


Monotones I and II

Emma Maguire
Akane Takada
Dawid Trzensimiech
Marianela Nuñez
Federico Bonelli
Edward Watson

Music:
Erik Satie: Gnoissienes and Gymnopedies


Marguerite and Armand

Tamara Rojo
Christopher Saunders
Sergei Polunin
Gary Avis

Music: Franz Liszt: Piano Sonata in B Minor, S178/R21

The Royal Ballet
Royal Opera House Orchestra
Emmanuel Plasson, conductor

Frederick Ashton, choreographer

Recorded live at the Royal Opera House, February 2013


Bonus:
- Introduction to Voices of Spring, Meditation, Monotones and The Ashton Foundation

---

Picture format: NTSC 16:9
Sound format: LPCM 2.0 / DTS 5.1
Region code: 0 (worldwide)
Subtitles: English
Running time: 97 mins
No. of DVDs: 1

Note: This Blu-ray Disc is only playable on Blu-ray Disc players, and not compatible with standard DVD players.

Harrison Birtwistle
THE MINOTAUR
(Blu-ray Disc Version)

The Minotaur – John Tomlinson
Theseus – Johan Reuter
Ariadne – Christine Rice
Snake Priestess – Andrew Watts
Hiereus – Philip Langridge
Ker – Amanda Echalaz

The Royal Opera Chorus
The Orchestra of the Royal Opera House
Antonio Pappano, conductor

Stephen Langridge, stage director

Recorded live at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden on 25, 30 April and 3 May 2008.

Bonus:
- Documentary: Myth is Universal
- Illustrated synopsis and cast gallery

Picture format: 1080i High Definition
Sound format: PCM Stereo 2.0 and 5.0
Region code: 0 (All Regions)
Menu languages: English
Subtitles: English, German, French, Spanish, Italian
Running time: 175 mins
No. of Discs: 1 (BD 50)

Classical Music

FORMAT: All Formats
REGIONS: All Regions
PICTURE FORMAT: 16:9
LENGTH: Approx 154 Mins
SOUND: DTS 5.1 SURROUND / LPCM STEREO
SUBTITLES: English/French/German/Spanish/Italian/Dutch

"***** Under evocative Midwestern skies, Robert LePage radically reimagines Stravinsky's Hogarth-inspired classic for Belgium's premier opera house in 1950s Las Vegas, complete with neon-lit fairgrounds and film-set bar-room brawls. The setting is revelatory, the vision spectacular. Kazushi Ono draws vibrancy and insight from his Belgian band, cranking the American twangs and classical borrowings of Stravinsky's punchy score. The indolent Rake, an effortlessly Hogarthian Andrew Kennedy in cowboy boots and excellent voice, is vocally and dramatically matched by Willian Shimmell's dark, full-bodied Nick Shadow. A must-see." -- Sarah Urwin Jones, The Times, January 19, 2008 [reviewing the standard DVD version]

Schubert did of course write a great deal of music for two pianists to play together, and Goldstone & Clemmow, Britain's top duo, have recorded all of it (on 7 CDs for Olympia Records - no longer available). Almost unknown and certainly neglected are the brilliant transcriptions made by other composers of some of Schubert's masterpieces. These have been unearthed from various places and recorded for the first time. This is a groundbreaking performance which will be required by all lovers of Schubert and of piano music alike. (ALL WORLD PREMIERE RECORDINGS except Polonaise)

The tale of a quick witted fox and her escape from confinement for a life in the forest that is by turns joyful and violent, The Cunning Little Vixen is an unsentimental parable of death and rebirth that lives through the instinctive and immediate world of nature, animal and human, which Janacek loved so much. Melly Stil's production for Glyndebourne find the "delicate balance between whimsy and mysticism" (Daily Telegraph) at the heart of the opera, which Vladimir Jurowski conducts "with lustrous style: you can hear the birds in the score, feel the sunshine and thrill to the starlit night sky in the final scene." (Opera Today)

Melly Still, stage director

Recorded live at Glyndebourne Festival Opera, June 2012

Bonus:
- Creating Janácek’s The Cunning Little Vixen

• Picture format: NTSC 16:9
• Sound format: LPCM 2.0 / DTS 5.1
• Region code: 0 (worldwide)
• Subtitles: English, French, German, Dutch, Japanese, Korean
• Running time: 119 mins
• No. of DVDs: 1
  

REVIEW:

The leading roles in this performance are sung by Lucy Crowe as the vixen (whose name is Sharp Ears), Sergei Leiferkus as the forester who tries to domesticate her, and Emma Bell as the fox that Sharp Ears meets after escaping back to her forest, marries (at a ceremony conducted by a grasshopper), and bears more children than she can count (only eight of which we see on stage). It is also important to observe that costume designer Dinah Collin chose to capture animals by a combination of suggestion and connotation. Both vixen and fox are identified primarily by their tails (which is also how we in the audience learn of Sharp Ears’ ultimate fate); but the rest of the costume tends to portray them as Gypsies, which is to say characters not quite at home in their own land.

The instrumental side of the score is provided by the London Philharmonic Orchestra (LPO) conducted by Vladimir Jurowski, Music Director at Glyndebourne and Principal Conductor of the LPO. He conducts with a keen sense of how Janáček tends to direct the flow of his music through the modulation of energy levels. While Jurowski is Russian, he also seems to have informed himself of the extent to which Janáček evokes Czech folk idioms, allowing the score to establish its unique position between symphonic music and indigenous source material.

Most importantly, however, this is an opera that takes a fairy-tale-like narrative and serves it up as a visual and auditory feast; and this Glyndebourne production delivers exquisitely on both visual and auditory levels.

-- SF Examiner