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

Also available on standard DVD

Seventy years after its Glyndebourne world premiere, Benjamin Britten's first chamber opera is welcomed home with "a performance of enthralling emotional power and physical beauty" gifted with "piercingly intelligent, immaculately realized staging and superb singing, acting an playing" led by "Fiona Shaw's supremely nuanced direction" and underpinned by "febrile playing" from members of the London Philharmonic Orchestra (The Telegraph, five stars). The production eloquently and tastefully tackles the difficult subject, which is lent emotional weight by "Christine Rice's grandly sung Lucretia, noble in tone yet tragically vunerable", along with baritone Duncan Rock's "forthright" Tarquinius and the "smooth bass" of Matthew Rose as the caring Collantinus (The Guardian, five stars).

Video Format: 1080p HD
Sound Formats: LPCM 2.0, 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio
Subtitles: English, French, German, Japanese, Korean
Region Code: 0 (All Regions)
Running Time: 114 mins (Opera), 17 mins (Extras)

This release is a re-issue of a 1992 recording, when Richard Hickox was serving as Associate Guest Conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra. Elgar wrote his Caractacus in 1898 for the Leeds Festival. The work shows his invention and orchestration skills, foreshadowing his most famous work, the Enigma Variations. A review by Gramophone asserted that “There can be nothing but praise for Richard Hickox’s fluent, sensitive direction and enthusiastic, full-blooded backcloth provided by the LSO… A typically ripe, wide-ranging Chandos recording into the bargain.”

-----

REVIEW:

Although the work itself is uneven, this 1992 recording is yet another classic recording from the late maestro, and well worth hearing when done as brilliantly as this.

– MusicWeb International

This re-release is one of CAPRICCIO’s most famous recordings which has been remastered for optimal quality and offered at a special price. Henry Purcell is considered to be one of the finest English composers to have ever lived. He wrote a number of operas, and is heralded as composing the first English opera. Featured on this release are suites from four of his most popular operas, The Fairy Queen, Dioclesian, King Arthur, and The Indian Queen. Neville Marriner, who is featured as conductor on this recording, founded the Academy of St. Martin In the Fields along with John Churchill. The ensemble was a monumental part in the revival of Baroque performance in England.

Despite his immersion in the composition of sacred music, Purcell retained a lifelong interest in the theatre - an aspect of his ouvre that has been neglected. Among the authors of the five works on this recording were two of the most celebrated of the age - John Dryden and William Congreve - and for their ‘semi-operas’ Purcell produced incidental music and songs of vitality, wit, and imaginative text-setting that offer an intriguing look at the world of Restoration drama.

British conductor Sir John Barbirolli is remembered most for his relationship with the Halle Orchestra in Manchester, having saved the ensemble from dissolution in 1943. He spent the rest of his life with this ensemble. This two disc set features Barbirolli conducting the Halle Orchestra, as well as the Philharmonia Orchestra and the Sinfonia of London. The works on this release are all by English composer Ralph Vaughn Williams, and were recorded between 1957 and 1962.

The precursor to this album made a Critic’s Choice of the Year in Gramophone (2013). The program presented includes works by Benjamin Britten, William Mathias, Arnold Cooke, and Gerald Finzi. Michael Collins brilliantly walks the line between being a soloist and conductor, as he serves as both in this recording. The accompanying ensemble here is the BBC Symphony Orchestra.

This new release features renowned guitarist Georg Gulyas, and vocalist Ivonne Fuchs. The program presented includes works by Benjamin Britten, as well as John Dowland’s Come, Heavy Sleep. This album was produced by Torbjorn Samuelsson, who has received critical acclaim for his previous recordings of Gulyas.

Baritone Christian Gerhaher is currently setting new standards as a Lied interpreter, both on the operatic and concert stage. This release follows two choral-symphonic recordings on BR-KLASSIK. This release contains works recorded during Gerhaher’s time with the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks as Artist in Residence. The pieces investigate the contrast between the Kunstlied (art song) and Volkslied (folk song). Containing works by Britten, Beethoven, Haydn, and Shostakovich, the repertoire in this program is close to Christian Gerhaher’s heart. Other artists on this recording include cellist Sebastian Klinger, violinist Anton Barachovsky, and pianist Gerold Huber.

Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958) is a highly respected British composer. His operas, however, have received the least amount of recognition in comparison to his other musical forms. This opera, Sir John in Love, an opera in four acts, includes libretto by Vaughan Williams and is based on Shakespeare’s The Merry Wives of Windsor. This is a 1956 BBC studio recording featuring Roderick Jones as Falstaff.

English 20th century chamber opera Turn of the Screw is one of Benjamin Britten's most popular works. Premiered in 1954, the opera is based on a novella of the same name by Henry James. This recording of the opera is taken from the Polish premier at the 19th Ludwig van Beethoven Easter Festival. The album is endorsed by the Ludwig van Beethoven Association. Lukasz Borowicz, under who's baton this recording was performed, said of the opera, "In terms of dramatic precision, it is a masterpiece. The composer oozes the discreet charm of evil, which in this work is both attractive and terrifying."

William Byrd (circa 1543 - 1623) was considered by his contemporaries to be a musician without peer. The music he wrote for voices to sing is generally recognized as his chief glory. While there are no transcriptions of chansons or song in tabulations among his instrumental works, every moving line in one of his fantasies or pavans is in essence a wordless voice, having different registers and needing breath. Presented here by acclaimed harpsichordist Colin Tilney is a delectable assortment of keyboard works highlighting the vocal character of Byrd's writing including his exquisite setting of John Dowland's famed Pavan "Lachrymae."

Outstanding singers, conductors and directors come together in five diverse but compelling operas by Benjamin Britten. The turbulent, inward fishing community of Peter Grimes is transposed to a merciless 1980s society in Richard Jones' production. An 'outstanding' Sarah Connolly (Guardian) stars in The Rape of Lucretia, navigating the difficult tale with superb poise. Billy Budd is grippingly staged aboard the claustrophobic MS Indomitable, with Jacques Imbrailo portraying the troubled sailor in the 2010 Glyndebourne Festival Opera production by Michael Grandage. More light-hearted is the Royal Opera House staging of Gloriana, penned by Britten to celebrate the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II and featuring Susan Bullock as the monarch. Finally, Edward Gardner conducts the English National Opera in Deborah Warner's highly acclaimed production of Death in Venice, In which John Graham-Hall stars as the ageing Gustav von Aschenbach. These productions from some of the world's best opera houses offer five masterful performances that are an ideal way to experience Benjamin Britten's music. Filmed in High Definition and recorded in true Surround Sound.

A BRITTEN COLLECTION
(7-DVD Box Set)

PETER GRIMES

Peter Grimes - John Graham Hall

Boy - Francesco Malvuccio
Ellen Orford - Susan Gritton
Captain Balstrode - Christopher Purves
Auntie - Felicity Palmer
First Niece - Ida Falk Winland
Second Niece - Simona Mihai
Bob Boles - Peter Hoare
Swallow - Daniel Okulitch
Mrs. Sedley - Catherine Wyn-Rogers
Rev. Horace Adams - Christopher Gillett
Ned Keene - George von Bergen

Milan La Scala Chorus and Orchestra
Robin Ticciati, conductor
Richard Jones, stage director

Recorded live at the Teatro alla Scala, June 2012

THE RAPE OF LUCRETIA

Lucretia - Sarah Connolly
Tarquinius - Christopher Maltman
Bianca - Catherine Wyn-Rogers
Lucia - Mary Nelson
Junius - Leigh Melrose
Collatinus - Clive Bayley
Female Chorus - Orla Boylan
Male Chorus - John Mark Ainsley

English National Opera Orchestra
Paul Daniel, conductor

David McVicar, stage director

Recorded live at the Aldeburgh Festival, The Maltings, Snape, 2001

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

Glyndebourne Chorus
London Philharmonic Orchestra
Mark Elder, conductor
Michael Grandage, stage director

Recorded live at the Glyndebourne Opera House, 8 and 11 June 2010

GLORIANA

Queen Elizabeth I - Susan Bullock
Earl of Essex - Toby Spence
Countess of Essex - Patricia Bardon
Lord Mountjoy - Mark Stone
Lady Rich - Kate Royal
Sir Robert Cecil - Jeremy Carpenter
Sir Walter Raleigh - Clive Bayley
Ballad Singer - Brindley Sherratt

Royal Opera Chorus
Royal Opera House Orchestra
Paul Daniel, conductor
Richard Jones, stage director

Recorded live at the Royal Opera House, June 2013

DEATH IN VENICE

Gustav von Aschenbach - John Graham Hall
Traveller / Elderly Fop / Gondolier / Barber / Hotel Manger / Player / Dionysus - Andrew Shore
Apollo - Tim Mead
Tadzio - Sam Zaldivar
The Polish Mother - Laura Caldow
Two Daughters - Mia Angelina Mather / Xhuliana Shehu
The Governess - Joyce Henderson
Jaschiu - Marcio Teixeira

English National Opera Chorus and Orchestra
Edward Gardner, conductor
Deborah Warner, stage director

Recorded live at the London Coliseum, June 2013

---

Bonus:
- Cast gallery (all)
- Introduction to the opera (Billy Budd, Gloriana)
- Introduction to the designs (Billy Budd)
- Interviews with the cast and crew (Peter Grimes)
- Comments from the director (The Rape of Lucretia)
- Britten’s Aldeburgh (Gloriana)

Picture format: NTSC 16:9 anamorphic
Sound format: DTS 5.1 (all) / + LPCM 2.0 (The Rape of Lucretia, Billy Budd, Gloriana) / + Dolby Digital 2.0 (Peter Grimes, Death in Venice)
Region code: 0 (worldwide)
Audio Language: English
Menu Language: English
Subtitles: English, French, German (all) + Japanese (Peter Grimes, The Rape of Lucretia, Gloriana) + Korean (Death in Venice) / + Spanish (Billy Budd)
Running time: 13 hrs 10 mins (opera) + 27 mins (bonus)
No. of DVDs: 7 (DVD 9)

Performance of works from the age of Henry Purcell have changed considerably since this 1960 live recording from Aix en Provence given the exponential growth in all things historically-informed, but there is still enormous pleasure to be gotten from listening to great singers sing the great stage works of any age, even if they fall on today's ears as at least somewhat dated in style. Conductor Pierre Dervaux leads a cast featuring Teresa Berganza as Dido, Hanny Steffek and the great Gerard Souzay as Aeneas in Purcell's Dido & Aeneas, in good sound, 24bit/96kHz remastered.

Following the success of The Dream of Gerontius in 1900 and The Apostles in 1903, Edward Elgar was commissioned to produce another large oratorio for a 1906 music festival. + The Kingdom continues the narrative of the lives of Jesus’ disciples, depicting the community of the early church, Pentecost, and the events of the next few days. + The Kingdom is considered one of his greatest choral works, fully deserving its ranking alongside Gerontius. + Recorded in 1989, and also featuring Sursum Corda and Sospiri, this Chandos re-release honors the legacy of the late English conductor Sir Richard Hickox.

Alternating between long-breathed lyricism and moments of obvious pain, Ralph Vaughan Williams’ Flos Campi has never really found itself in the mainstream concert repertoire, maybe because its title misleadingly suggests jolly music. + Household Music has equally suffered; its title rather an off-hand one for pieces that at their best show the composer’s brilliance as an arranger. + Riders to the Sea is a masterpiece, the finest as well as the most concentrated of his stage works. + Recorded in 1995, this Chandos re-release honors the legacy of the late English conductor Sir Richard Hickox.