The musical tour starts in the Bernese Alps, which offer some of the finest scenery in Switzerland, with glaciers and snow-covered expanses, waterfalls, mountain lakes, and the towering Matterhorn. The Nymphenburg Palace and Park, in Munich, present a contrast, in their baroque elegance. The tour ends with glimpses of the Chiemsee, the largest of the Bavarian lakes, with it's three wooded islands, on one of which Wagner's patron, King Ludwig II, built his folly, the Schloss Herrenchiemsee. Music for the tour is taken from Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1 in B flat minor, one of the best known of all romantic concertos. This is followed by his 'Souvenir d'un lieu Cher,' three pieces originally for violin and piano, but here orchestrated by the composer Glazunov.

Our tour of the interlinked islands of Savonlinna in south-east Finland begins with the medieval castle of Ovanlinna, the venue nowadays for an international opera festival, and the town of Savonlinna that has developed round it over the last four hundred years. The music is by Sibelius, the greatest of Finnish composers, who single-handedly created a national music evoking the traditional epics of Finnish history and legend. We hear the first of his seven surviving symphonies and the symphonic poem en Saga ('A Story').

Also available on Blu-ray

These live performances from Snape Maltings Concert Hall present some of the most popular classical works for younger audiences. Their perennial appeal is a result of vivid melodies, witty instrumental characterisation, and in three works, the use of spoken texts to illuminate the narrative. Whether composed to amuse, entertain or educate, each possesses marvellous vitality, lyricism and bravura. The performances are conducted and narrated by Marin Alsop, one of the world’s most inspirational musical communicators.

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REVIEWS:

The chamber orchestra used for Saint-Saens's Carnival of the Animals, with two solo pianists, is of excellent quality. By far the most frequently played section, The Swan, is beautifully performed by the principal cello of this student ensemble.

The video was made in 2017 and 2018, the young people having had the good fortune of working with the conductor, Marin Alsop. The resulting concerts were filmed with Alsop acting as narrator, that narration becoming more serious as she takes us through The Young Persons Guide to the Orchestra, a searching test for the young players who give a very creditable performance. As one would expect from the Snape Malting's venue, the sound quality is excellent, the result being a highly desirable gift for the children in your life.

– David's Review Corner (David Denton)

The strongest aspect of these performances is the narration of conductor Marin Alsop. She is natural and very dramatic, delivering the various texts in a manner that would be especially effective with children. She doesn’t adopt a condescending or supercilious manner as some narrators have, nor does she overdo the dramatics. In short, I haven’t heard a better narrator in any of these works. As one might expect, Alsop’s conducting also divulges her total sympathies with the music as she shapes the scores effectively and, as suggested, draws fine playing from these talented youthful musicians in these live performances.

– MusicWeb International

A Musical Journey - Crimea / Russia / Uzbekistan

Also available on Blu-ray

The plot of Gounod’s opera La Nonne sanglante (‘The Bleeding Nun’) is drawn from Matthew Lewis’s once famous 1796 novel The Monk. The subject is a Gothic melodrama featuring warring families, two lovers, and the vengeful spectre of the Nun, to which Gounod responds with music that fuses Romanticism with the supernatural on the grandest scale. This ground-breaking production features memorable set pieces enhanced by the stark drama of the stage setting and brilliant cinematic lighting effects. This production was staged by David Bobee and the video director was Francois Roussillon. The recording took place in June 2018 at the Opera Comique in Paris, France.

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

Also available on standard DVD

Sarah Lamb and Vadim Muntagirov star as tragic lovers Manon and Des Grieux in this performance of Kenneth MacMillan’s Manon, a classic of the Royal Ballet repertory. Nicholas Gerogiadis’s period designs set the ballet in the contrasting worlds of Paris Luxury and Louisiana swampland, while the intense emotion of MacMillan’s choreography is complemented by a score drawn from Massenet’s music. The impassioned pas de deux from Manon and Des Grieux drive this tragic story, and make Manon one of MacMillan’s most powerful dramas. “Kenneth MacMillan’s retelling of Abbe Prevost’s cautionary tale of a young man brought low by an amoral young beauty has been a mainstay of the Royal Ballet repertoire since 1974. The current revival is vividly played and danced by some first-rate casts.” (The Financial Times)

Also available on Blu-ray

Swan Lake is perhaps the best-loved of all the classical ballets and has a special place in The Royal Ballet’s repertory. This new production by Artist in Residence Liam Scarlett features additional choreography while remaining faithful to Petipa and Ivanov’s classic. John Mcfarlane’s opulent designs provide an atmospheric, period setting for this enthralling love story, illuminated by Tchaikovsky’s sublime score. Marianela Nuñez brings both poignancy and glitter to the dual role of Odette / Odile, with Vadim Muntagirov as the yearning Prince Seigfried, while the corps de ballet are showcased at their spellbinding best as the enchanted swans and cygnets. “What a magnificent achievement this is. The young choreographer Liam Scarlett has given Covent Garden its first new Swan Lake in 30 years, and it’s a winner. Big, bold, and beautiful, it’s completely distinctive- Scarlett has put his stamp all over this production- yet it honors the traditions of the Royal Ballet.” (The Times)

Also available on Blu-ray

Royal Ballet Principal Marianela Nuñez delights as Princess Aurora, with Vadim Muntagirov as her Prince Florimund, in this performance of a timeless classic. Marius Petipa’s The Sleeping Beauty holds a special place in The Royal Ballet’s repertory, with its vibrant sets and glittering costumes and featuring such iconic moments as the Rose Adage, the Vision pas de deux, the exuberant wedding celebration and the charming fairy-tale guests, all danced to Tchaikovsky’s richly layered music – one of the most beloved ballet scores of all time. This Sleeping Beauty captures all the magic and virtuosity that ballet has to offer. Extra features include: Introduction to The Sleeping Beauty; History of The Sleeping Beauty; The role of the Lilac Fairy with Monica Mason, Darcey Bussell and Claire Calvert. What the press said: ‘‘If you want spectacle at the ballet then this Sleeping Beauty is for you.’’ (The Times) ‘‘Tchaikovsky's most majestic ballet gets the royal treatment’’ (The Stage)

"Once upon a time there was a young woman who was more courageous than all the men in her mountain village".
Given the era, what sounds like a fictitious story really happened. Anna Stainer-Knittel's (b. 1841) life was novelized and serialized with filtered in motifs from Tyrolean legend in a Milan paper by Wilhelmine von Hillern, where the Italian composer Alfredo Catalani became aware of it.
It's first staging at La Scala in Milan, 1892 met with great approval.

Alfredo Catalani
LA WALLY

Stromminger – Marc Kugel
Wally – Susanna von der Burg
Giuseppe Hagenbach – Paulo Ferreira
Vincenzo Gellner – Bernd Valentin
Walter – Susanne Langbein
Afra – Kristina Cosumano
Il Pedone – Johannes Wimmer

Tiroler Landestheater Chorus
(chorus master: Michel Roberge)
Innsbruck Symphony Orchestra
Alexander Rumpf, conductor

Johannes Reitmeier, stage director
Thomas Dörfler, set designer
Michael D. Zimmermann, costume designer
Johann Kleinhein, lighting designer

Recorded live from the Tiroler Landestheater, Innsbruck, 2012

Picture format: NTSC 16:9
Sound format: Stereo 2.0 / Surround 5.1
Region code: 0 (worldwide)
Subtitles: Italian, German, English
Running time: 119 mins
No. of DVDs: 1 (DVD 9)

'I want to move and be moved. Everything about music is moving'; these are the words in which Wolfgang Rihm once stated his musical credo. His chamber opera Jakob Lenz has in the meantime become one of the most frequently performed works in the 20thcentury German opera repertoire. Based on Georg B�chner's novella about the poet Jakob Lenz's unavoidable decline into madness, Wolfgang Rihm builds a highly charged atmosphere that leads us compellingly to a dramatic denouement. As a result of the wealth of musical styles - ranging from spoken text through Sprechgesang and recitative to fully elaborated coloratura - and of harmonic techniques - atonality, widened tonality and pure tonality - this work is sometimes compared to Berg's Wozzeck. After K�t'a Kabanov� and La Traviata, Andrea Breth is returning to La Monnaie for a radical interpretation of this deeply moving work. After a first recording published by Alpha, dedicated to the Bach family, Georg Nigl is amazing in the main role.

Kit Harington (Game of Thrones) plays the title role in Shakespeare’s thrilling study of nationalism, war and the psychology of power. Captured live from the Donmar Warehouse in London. Fresh to the throne, King Henry V launches England into a bloody war with France. When his campaign encounters resistance, this inexperienced new ruler must prove he is fit to guide a country into war. Directed by Max Webster (Life of Pi), this exciting modern production explores what it means to be English and our relationship to Europe, asking: do we ever get the leaders we deserve?

Aleksis Kivi, who died in 1872 at the age of only 38, is Finland's national writer, the first notable author of plays, poetry and novels in the Finnihs language.

One of the most internationally well-known of Finnish composers, Aulis Sallinen (b. 1935) will celebrate his 80th birthday in 2015. In tribute, Ondine is releasing on DVD the 2002 production of his latest opera, King Lear, with the same cast that premiered the work at the Finnish National Opera in 2000. Under the direction of Okko Kamu and featuring a strong cast of singers, the work’s premiere was a great success. Legendary Finnish bass Matti Salminen sings the title role of King Lear; other singers include Lilli Paasikivi, Taina Piira, Satu Vihavainen, Petri Lindroos, Kai Pitkänen, Jorma Hynninen, Sauli Tiilikainen and Jorma Silvasti. The libretto, based on the world-famous Shakespearian tragedy, tells the tragic story of the English king Lear and his struggles with members of his own family, his enemies, and his developing madness.

Estranged Passengers--In Search of Viktor Ullmann. "Estranged Passengers" was the ironic title Ullmann gave his diary. An 80-minute documentary on the composer's harrowing life, the DVD includes interviews with Conlon and rehearsals of Ullmann's Symphony No. 2

Having been granted unprecedented authority by Louis XIV, the Sun King, no one could stage operas in France without Jean-Baptiste Lully's permission. By 1686, however, Lully's authority was waning and his long-standing librettist deserted him to write sacred works. Despite these setbacks, Lully wrote Acis et Galat�e, a pastorale h�ro�que, and one of his final masterpieces. It's plot - the cyclops Poliph�me's love for the nymph Galat�e - drew from Lully an astonishing alternation of effects, a profound monologue for the nymph in Act III and a magnificent concluding Passacaille, all framed by a succession of dances and vividly conceived choruses.