In a competitive field — there are at least three other DVDs about Leonard Bernstein currently on the market — it is only modestly successful. To wit, we are still awaiting a documentary that provides a seriously critical appraisal of this iconic figure.

The best parts of Georg Wübbolt’s film are probably the interviews, especially those with Bernstein’s children; they emphasize their father’s endless curiosity and his love of teaching. Many of the other friends and colleagues interviewed talk about how they were moved to embrace classical music by watching Bernstein on his Omnibus television shows in the 1950s or by attending the Young People’s Concerts he did with the New York Philharmonic.

The Bernstein footage on this documentary has all been seen before in other documentaries. One of the most memorable sequences depicts Bernstein losing his patience with the Vienna Philharmonic in rehearsal.

– Musical Toronto (Paul E. Robinson)

Picture Format: NTSC 16:9
Sound Format: PCM Stereo
Subtitles: English (Original Language), German, French, Korean
Region Code: 0 (Worldwide)
Total Running Time: 76 mins

Also available on Blu-ray

A film by Claus Wischmann and Martin Baer

featuring:
Orchestre Symphonique Kimbanguiste
Armand Diangienda, conductor

Picture format: NTSC 16:9
Sound format: Dolby Digital 2.0 and 5.1
Region code: 0 (worldwide)
Subtitles: English, German, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Korean, Russian
Running time: 95 mins
No. of DVDs: 1 (DVD 9)

-----

An inspiring story, movingly told.

Kinshasa, the Congolese capital, is a sprawling city of ten million. It lies at the heart of a country blighted by civil strife, the latest of which - the so-called Second Congo War that began in 1998 - has killed more than five million people. And despite a fragile peace, the violence continues in the east of the country. Against this backdrop, the very existence of the Orchestre Symphonique Kimbanguiste (OSK) is nothing short of a miracle. Composed of largely self-taught musicians and singers it’s an extraordinary band of human beings who travel miles to get to rehearsals, buy their own sheet music and - when necessary - make their own instruments.

And that’s just for starters. Even more astonishing is the enthusiasm and good humour that infuses this project. There are problems aplenty, not least an intermittent supply of electricity, but then one of the orchestra’s viola players, Joseph Lutete, is also a skilled electrician and will down his instrument to fix the generator. As for the orchestra manager Albert Matubanza, whose supply of instruments was long since looted, he’s reduced to touring scrap yards for off-cuts to make a double bass. And from the outset the snippets of O fortuna, Va pensiero and the rehearsals for the finale of Beethoven’s Ninth are all played and sung in a way that’s uniquely African. There’s even an improvised Boléro-in-the-bush that had me laughing out loud at the ingenuity and persistence of these musicians.

Film-makers Claus Wischmann and Martin Baer have opted for a very simple, self-revealing narrative style, in which the orchestra members introduce themselves to camera in the most natural and disarming way. Flautist Nathalie Bahati speaks candidly of her unexpected pregnancy, absent boyfriend and unscrupulous landlord, all part of a daunting daily grind that’s borne with remarkable fortitude and grace. And then there’s the OSK’s founder, Armand Diangienda, a former pilot who lost his job and formed the orchestra in 1994. He and the ongoing rehearsals for that Beethoven finale - the words of which are especially poignant in this context - form the central thread of this fascinating drama.

Professional musicians are well-known for their gripes and grumbles, and I daresay they wouldn’t be too keen to rehearse in the cramped, run-down spaces their African counterparts have to endure. And if we have to work hard to persuade others of the pleasures of classical music spare a thought for the young man sent out into the city’s decaying suburbs - built for rich Belgians - to deliver leaflets for the upcoming concert. The local ‘pop’ that peppers the soundtrack and the incomprehension of the populace is countered by good humour and high spirits all round. This is intercut with shots of everyday life in the city and Diangienda cajoling his motley choir in the Ode to joy. The music is always recognisable, but rhythms are distinctly African, blessed with an age-old fluidity and cadence that’s very moving indeed.

And as anyone familiar with Africa will know, public transport is a fraught affair. Like everyone else Lutete and his fellow musicians have to squeeze on to a packed van or mini-bus to get to rehearsals. It’s frustrating, but it’s endured with none of the exasperation and hostility one might expect. This is a daily rhythm of its own, and everyone seems willing enough to sway with it. Even when Lutete practises amidst the crowds - one of several rather wistful vignettes in the film - his viola takes on a timbre all of its own, both songful and searching; and that pretty much sums up the sound of this orchestra as a whole, whose tuning-up at a rehearsal may be wayward but it still has that frisson we all know so well.

This is a well-crafted film, and there’s a palpable tension as all the strands are pulled together for the final concert. And speaking of strands, fiddlers will be aghast to hear that replacement strings are sometimes made from bicycle brake cables. Oh, you need a trumpet bell? Try this wheel rim from a mini-bus. This really is a scratch orchestra, and there’s a delightful sequence in which two singers struggle with Schiller’s texts, coming up with the strangest pronunciations. As always, there’s a passion, a fierce hunger, that conquers all. And it’s easy to understand the sentiments of one of the singers, for whom the music is a passport - albeit temporary - to somewhere ‘far away’.

But escaping the problems of daily life isn’t always that easy. Cello player Joséphine Nsemba - who makes and sells omelettes from a market stall - has to struggle with the price of eggs and, as a parent, wrestle with fears for her young son as he’s operated on in a terribly basic hospital. Even the doughty Diangienda comes close to despondency when rehearsing the choir, which is in deep disarray. This is the rough, unforgiving milieu in which these people find themselves, and for a few seconds the mask slips and desperation shows.

That said, the big night arrives - it takes place outside, under floodlights - with the Ode to joy and O fortuna. And how does it go? Well, I suggest you buy this disc and find out. The bonus track has four short items - Joséphine and Albert make music, Joseph at the market, Héritier teaches, and Chantal on her daily bread run. They afford a glimpse of private moments, all captured in a relaxed, non-intrusive way. As for the editing, it’s wonderfully poetic at times - a smile, a frown, a look of quiet contentment - the final frames especially so.

Any grumbles? Not really, although the narrative does falter a little towards the end. That said, the leisurely, unforced pace of this documentary is a pleasure from start to finish. And yes, many issues are left untouched but, to be fair, this isn’t a multi-part television series with plenty of time to tease and probe. As for Martin Baer’s cinematography, it’s always crisp and elegant, colours vibrant and images sharp; most welcome, though, is the refreshing lack of voice-overs or overt editorialising, so the film never becomes a political statement or polemic.

An inspiring story, movingly told.

– Dan Morgan, MusicWeb International

Also available on Blu-ray

Mats Ek
JULIET AND ROMEO
Ballet in Two Acts
with music by Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky

Juliet – Mariko Kida
Romeo – Anthony Lomuljo
Father – Arsen Mehrabyan
Mother – Marie Lindqvist
Duke – Niklas Ek
Nurse – Ana Laguna
Mercutio – Jérôme Marchand

Royal Swedish Ballet
Royal Swedish Orchestra
Alexander Polianichko, conductor

Recorded live at the Royal Swedish Opera, Stockholm, 2013

Picture format: NTSC 16:9
Sound format: PCM Stereo / DTS 5.1
Region code: 0 (worldwide)
Booklet notes: English, German, French
Running time: 107 mins
No. of DVDs: 1 (DVD 9)

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

Also available on standard DVD

Mats Ek
JULIET AND ROMEO
Ballet in Two Acts
with music by Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky

Juliet – Mariko Kida
Romeo – Anthony Lomuljo
Father – Arsen Mehrabyan
Mother – Marie Lindqvist
Duke – Niklas Ek
Nurse – Ana Laguna
Mercutio – Jérôme Marchand

Royal Swedish Ballet
Royal Swedish Orchestra
Alexander Polianichko, conductor

Recorded live at the Royal Swedish Opera, Stockholm, 2013

Picture format: 1080i High Definition
Sound format:PCM Stereo 2.0 / DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Region code: 0 (worldwide)
Booklet notes: English, German, French
Running time: 107 mins
No. of Discs: 1

Also available on Blu-ray

Also available on Blu-ray

Joni Mitchell’s work The Fiddle And The Drum delves into the artist’s long-held concerns about the human race’s blatant neglect of the environment and mankind’s war-hungry nature. The piece is a ballet which is performed to a soundtrack of her music. Joni has called this work “the best project of her career.” Combining three art forms- music, dance, and visual art- Joni creates an enthralling spectacle. Internationally recognized choreographer Jean Grand-Maitre of the Alberta Ballet Company has joined Joni for this production. The musical selections to which Jean Grand-Maitre has set his dance include works from Joni’s entire career such as For the Roses, Passion Play, Slouching Towards Bethlehem, The Beat of Black Wings, and of course The Fiddle and The Drum. Special bonus features on this release include behind the scenes, video installations form the set, image galleries, and interviews with the performers.

Picture Format: NTSC, 16:9
Sound Formats: PCM Stereo, DTS 5.1
Region Code: 0 (Worldwide)
Running Time: 55 mins (Ballet), 60 mins (Bonus)

Also available on Blu-ray

Premiered in 1926, Leoš Janácek’s absorbing masterpiece Vec Makropulos reflects all the dominant musical styles of the early 20th century, from Bohemian tunefulness to big Straussian phrases, Berg-like jaggedness and primeval rhythms. With the “breathtakingly grandiose” (Salzburger Nachrichten) Angela Denoke in the lead role, this emotionally powerful opera was given superior treatment at the hands of the Wiener Philharmoniker under Esa-Pekka Salonen. They and the entire cast joined forces to make this production one of the highlights of the 2011 Salzburg Festival. “Ms. Denoke is a compelling actress … Salonen ensures a brilliant reading of Janácek’s fascinating score.” – The New York Times

Leoš Janácek
VeC MAKROPULOS
(The Makropulos Affair)

Emilia Marty – Angela Denoke
Albert Gregor – Raymond Very
Vitek – Peter Hoare
Krista – Jurgita Adamonyte
Jaroslav Prus – Johan Reuter
Janek – Aleš Briscein
Dr. Kolenatý – Jochen Schmeckenbecher
A Scottish maid – Linda Ormiston
A conscientious objector – Peter Lobert
Hauk-Šendorf – Ryland Davies
Jin Ling – Sasha Rau
Mary Lang – Silvia Fenz
Anita Stadler – Anita Stadler

Vienna State Opera Chorus
(chorus master: Jörn H. Andresen)
Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra
Esa-Pekka Salonen, conductor

Christoph Marthaler, stage director
Anne Viebrock, set and costume designer
Olaf Winter, lighting designer

Recorded live from the Grosses Festspielhaus, Salzburg Festival, 2011

Picture format: NTSC 16:9
Sound format: PCM Stereo / DTS 5.1
Region code: 0 (worldwide)
Subtitles: English, German, French, Spanish, Chinese, Korean
Running time: 135 mins
No. of DVDs: 1

R E V I E W:


JANÁCEK The Makropoulos Case • Esa-Pekka Salonen, cond; Angela Denoke ( Emilia Marty ); Raymond Very (Albert Gregor ); Johan Reuter ( Jaroslav Prus ); Peter Hoare ( Vitek ); Jochen Schmeckenbecher ( Dr. Kolenatý ); Jurgita Adamonyte ( Krista ); Vienna St Op Ch; Angelika Prokopp Summer Acad Members; Vienna PO • C MAJOR 709508 (DVD: 118:00) Live: Salzburg 8/8–30/2010


This production is not strictly Eurotrash ( Regietheater ), but it has many elements thereof. Before the overture and between act II and act III come extended vignettes that have only vague, symbolic connections to the opera—a nursing home for aged women, a courtroom filled with judges and spectators. These vignettes may have been added just to pad this 95-minute opera into a full evening’s entertainment. We see the characters converse, but we do not hear them; their words appear in the subtitles throughout the first vignette—but not in the second. Several of the characters become spectators during scenes in the opera, wandering on and off stage. There is one basic set for all three acts; it is a courtroom, which must serve as an attorney’s office, backstage at the opera, and a hotel room. An additional set stands at each side: a small hospital-like anteroom, plus doors to private rooms, and an office waiting room, with a full-wall picture window into another waiting room. During the overture, a man and a young woman wait there; she turns out to be Krista, but we never see him again. The main characters often appear walking up an open corridor prior to their onstage entrance, which works only when Prus arrives and overhears Marty scheming with his son. Why do stage directors so often ignore an opera’s text? It just looks stupid when Krista, fending off Janek’s amorous attentions, cries “No, no, don’t kiss me,” and he is 20 feet away, behind a high counter. Or when Gregor enters, asking Marty “Why are your eyes closed?”—although he is standing behind her. Again and again, characters talk intimately at opposite sides of the stage.


The first act of this opera, and much of the second, depend on Marty being an irresistible femme fatale , and, in this age of video, we have come to expect visual as well as aural truth on stage. Angela Denoke, an attractive young woman, doesn’t project that aura—especially as I have just seen Karita Mattila play Marty at the Met, holding more than 2,000 men (of all persuasions) in her thrall. Denoke’s knee-length, Mondrian-based dress is chic rather than sexy. She is excellent portraying Marty’s other facets: the icy dominatrix who controls everybody in act II and the unfeeling, weary Elina Makropoulos of act III. Gregor, supposedly a reckless if distraught young fellow, is also visually miscast: Marty asks him how old he is, and a balding, corporate gentleman with a grey fringe and a week’s white stubble answers “34.” This video is an amalgam of two performances given three weeks apart; Gregor appears in an act II duet alternately with and without the stubble. Prus, on the other hand, is perfect: elegant, sophisticated, cunning, and blasé—until his disappointment and tragedy in act III. Ryland Davies is a fine Hauk-?endorf—it’s a role that can’t miss—although he looks a bit too dignified to be truly crazy. As the cleaning woman (doubling chambermaid), Linda Ormiston is wonderful, reeking with character. Stage director Christoph Marthaler obviously doesn’t like lawyers; he gives both Vitek and Dr. Kolenaty exaggerated personal tics that make them look ridiculous.


Fortunately, everybody can sing, all the way down to the stagehand, a giant of a man (bass Peter Lobert) who doubles as a nursing-home attendant. Denoke is among the better Martys on record, although I still prize Mackerras’s Elisabeth Soderström. Salonen’s Vienna Philharmonic is of course magnificent, although not given the aural definition it deserves, which is why it sounds more incisive under Mackerras in Decca’s superb studio recording. The chorus doesn’t have much to do in this opera, and—although the booklet is mum on the subject—I gather that the additional group in the headnote plays the people in the interludes.


But this is an endlessly fascinating opera, and it survives—perhaps even prospers from—this semi-weird production. The final act is, as always, pure dynamite; Elina’s death scene is unscathed by a window-washer at work behind her or by a live rat running across the stage in front of her. (How did they do that?) The opera is sung in Czech; overly simplified English subtitles, which miss important details of the lawsuit in act I and of Elina Makropoulos’s life history in act III, also appear in German, French, Spanish, Chinese, and Korean. This DVD may be heard in PCM stereo, which works best for headphones, or in DTS 5.1; the video (“filmed in High Definition and mastered from an HD source”) is in 16:9 format; both are fine, although the sound in Salzburg’s Grosse Festspielhaus is a bit too reverberant. The extras consist of half a dozen trailers for other Unitel Classics DVDs. There is also a Blu-ray version, which I have not seen.


Anna Silja was a noted Emilia Marty, but when she finally recorded the role (a 1995 Glyndebourne DVD), she was too old for the part, visually and vocally. There was a surprisingly fine Makropoulos Case by the Canadian Opera Company on a 1989 VHS tape. A natural, realistic production, it featured superb direction and acting, and was quite well sung. Stephanie Sundine, getting better from act to act, was a spellbinding Marty; David Graham played Gregor as an impetuous, overgrown boy; and Gary Rideout was magnificent as a crazy-as-a-loon Hauk-?endorf, hysterically funny yet deeply moving. Even the orchestra, led by Berislav Kolobucar, was first-rate. That tape remains my favorite video Makropoulos , but this one is recommended as the best on DVD.


FANFARE: James H. North

Also available on Blu-ray

Franz Joseph Haydn
IL MONDO DELLA LUNA

First Haydn Il Mondo della Luna (which has blissfull Mozartian spirit) on DVD and Blu-ray! Nikolaus Harnoncourt created an interpretation in which Haydn’s work can become a veritable gem of opera literature. Renowned actor and director Tobias Moretti relates the story as a light-footed, magical fairy tale infused with slapstick, witty details and fantasy costumes.

‘Harnoncourt on top form’ (4 star rating, Financial Times)

‘Haydn's work can become a veritable gem of opera literature.’ (Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung)

‘An electrifying birthday gift for – and above all from – Nikolaus Harnoncourt’ (Der Standard)

‘The ensemble of singers acts in a way that is seen much too rarely in the opera: acrobatically, credibly and always wittily.’ (Kurier)

Ecclitico – Bernard Richter
Ernesto – Vivica Genaux
Buonafede – Dietrich Henschel
Clarice – Christina Landshamer
Flaminia – Anja-Nina Bahrmann
Lisetta – Maite Beaumont
Cecco – Markus Schäfer

Concentus Musicus Wien
Nikolaus Harnoncourt, conductor

Tobias Moretti, stage director
Heidi Hackl, costume design
Renate Martin and Andreas Donhause, set design
Olaf Winter, lighting design

Recorded live from the Theater and der Wien, 2009.

Bonus:
- Interviews with Nikolaus Harnoncourt and Tobias Moretti

Picture format: NTSC 16:9
Sound format: PCM Stereo / DTS 5.1
Region code: 0 (worldwide)
Subtitles: Italian, English, German, French, Spanish
Booklet notes: English, German, French
Running time: 167 mins (opera) + 26 mins (bonus)
No. of DVDs: 2 (x1 DVD 9 + x1 DVD 5)

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

Also available on standard DVD

George Frideric Handel's oratorio Theodora, in it's first-ever staged version at Slazburg Festival, was among the highlights of Handel Year 2009. Acclaimed director Christoph Loy presented Theodora as the profoundly moving tale of a woman who prefers death to denying her faith, an interpretation captivated with bravura by world-renowned video director Hannes Rossacher. A luminous Christine Schaefer and countertenor Bejun Mehta formed a perfect leading couple altoghether suited to conductor Ivor Bolton's vigorous reading. “With Christine Schaefer, Salzburg has found an ideal singer for the title role.” (Süddeutsche Zeitung)

Theodora – Christine Schäfer
Didymus – Bejun Mehta
Septimius – Joseph Kaiser
Valens – Johannes Martin Kränzle
Irene – Bernarda Fink
Messenger – Ryland Davies

Salzburger Bachchor
(chorus master: Alois Glaßner)
Freiburger Barockorchester
Ivor Bolton, conductor
Christof Loy, stage director

Recorded live at the Salzburg Festival 2009

Picture format: 1080p High-Definition
Sound format: PCM Stereo / DTS 5.1
Region code: 0 (worldwide)
Subtitles: English, German, French, Spanish
Booklet notes: English, German, French
Running time: 189 mins
No. of Discs: 1 (BD 50)

Serse is one of Handel's latest and most frequently performed operas, famous for it's marvelous opening aria "Ombra mai fu." At the center of the confusing tragicomedy, very loosely based upon the life of Xerxes I of Persia, is a powerful and lovesick royal eccentric, King Serse. Rising opera star Gaelle Arquez in the title role of Serse "scintillates with her nimble, luminous mezzo-soprano", singing "irresistibly beautiful, impassioned, furious - but never mean" (Frankfurter Rundschau). Frankfurt's excellent Opern- and Museumsorchester contributes "all sorts of refinements" to this "musical smash hit" (Deutschlandfunk) and "In Frankfurt Tilman Kohler ensures a three-hour short abundant and furious banquett... a great evening of opera." (Deutschlandfunk).

Also available on Blu-ray

George Frideric Handel
MESSIAH
Staged Version by Claus Guth, Konrad Kuhn and Christian Schmidt

Susan Gritton, soprano
Cornelia Horak, soprano
Martin Pöllmann, boy soprano
Bejun Mehta, altus
Richard Croft, tenor
Florian Boesch, bass

Arnold Schoenberg Choir
(chorus master: Erwin Ortner)
Ensemble Matheus
Jean-Christophe Spinosi, conductor

Claus Guth, stage director
Christian Schmidt, stage and costume design
Jürgen Hoffmann, lighting design
Ramses Sigl, choreographer

Recorded live at the Theater an der Wien, 2009

To mark the 250th anniversary of Handel´s death, Vienna´s Theater an der Wien realized a truly extraordinary project: the staging of Messiah, the composer´s most popular oratorio.Collaborating with an exquisite cast of singers, Claus Guth, one of today´s highly renowned stage directors, delivered “an emotionally and psychologically charged sequence of images … “The audience was thrilled” (Süddeutsche Zeitung)

Picture format: NTSC 16:9
Sound format: PCM 2.0 / Dolby Digital 5.1
Region code: 0 (worldwide)
Subtitles: English, German, French, Spanish
Running time: 154 mins
No. of DVDs: 1 (DVD 9)

Max Emanuel Cencic excels with his celebrated and award-winning production of George Frideric Handel's masterpiece Arminio at the International Handel Festival Karlsruhe. The remarkable counter-tenor Cencic, who dedicates himself to the revival and performance of the music of the 18th century, demonstrates once more that Baroque singing can be both technically brilliant and at the same time modern and emotionally engaging. His enchanting staging of Arminio is the fulminant revival of the heroic story. When premiered in 1737 at London's Covent Garden, Arminio strangely received only six performances, despite being praised as "a miracle" and "in every respect excellent and vastly pleasing" by contemporaries. Handel's opera fell into oblivion - until Cencic put it into the limelight, resulting in the "rehabilitation of the piece" (FAZ). Cencic's production of Arminio, which created a furor when performed at the Theater an der Wien, features the ensemble Armonia Atenea under the baton of George Petrou and stars the stage director in the leading role: "Cencic is not only as counter-tenor but also as stage director at the peak of his success" (S�ddeutsche Zeitung).

George Frideric Handel’s opera Admeto was composed for the Royal Academy of Music. The work, with Italian libretto by Nicola Hyam, premiered in 1727. The work is partly based on Euripides’ Alcestis. For this production, Oscar nominated film director Doris Dorrie creates vivid scenery and brilliant sets to immerse the viewer in the ritualized world of the samurai. “Handel would have enjoyed this enchanting shadow theater.” (Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung) “It’s brilliantly played by the period-instrument FestspielOrchester Gottingen, conducted with fine sensibility and sensuality by Nicolas McGegan.” (The Times)

Also available on Blu-ray

The Elbphilharmonie, the ''hall of wonders'' (The Guardian), is undoubtedly the new landmark of Hamburg, a monumental synthesis of breath-taking architecture, a unique location and a world-class concert hall. In varying instrumentation of the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra under the baton of Principal Conductor Thomas Hengelbrock and several top-class soloists explores in the opening concert the possibilities of the Elbphilharmonie's Grand Hall and its acoustics with an exciting programme, created especially for this occasion by the most important living German composer, Wolfgang Rihm. ''A striking building, a scintillating concert!'' (The New York Times).

-----

REVIEW:

An unequivocal success is the way the drama of the leaps between the centuries remains absolutely undiluted. As a concert recording this may not represent absolute as-it-was perfection but as a package with the documentary, and as a record of an extraordinary musical event, it comes highly recommended.

– Gramophone

Also available on Blu-ray

After its premiere in 1859, Gounod’s Faust was an instant hit, and is still one of France’s most popular operas. Based on the play Faust et Marguerite, the work features libretto by Michel Carre. This staging is by director Stefano Poda. “A triumph that will long remain in the annals as one of the most brilliant stagings not only in this theater, but in any of today’s opera houses…” - ResMusica

Picture Format: NTSC, 16:9
Sound Format: PCM Stereo, PCM 5.1
Subtitles: E, G, F, IT, SP, CH, KO, JP
Booklet: E, G, F
Region Code: 0