Featuring: Marc Clear; Gideon Singer; Evelyn Schorkhuber; Anton Steingruber; Mirjana Irosch; Wilhelm Gartner; Ingrid Habermann; Christian Baumgartel; Markus Heinrich; Christine Bath; Chor und Statisterie der Seefestspiele Morbisch; Ballett der Seefestspiele Morbisch

Live performance from 1999
Language: German
Subtitles: English
Run Time: 126 minutes

2014 marks the 150th anniversary of Richard Strauss’ birth; this CD highlights two key genres in his oeuvre: the "Alpine Symphony" (1915), his last tone poem, and the four symphonic interludes from the opera "Intermezzo", first performed in Dresden in 1924. +The Austrian conductor Franz Welser-Moest, currently Musical Director of the Vienna State Opera and Principal Conductor of the Cleveland Orchestra, is also a popular guest conductor of the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra.

This new release is the first recording of the NHK Symphony Orchestra, Tokyo and its current chief conductor, Paavo Järvi. Starting with Ein Heldenleben and Don Juan, two of the most popular tones poems by Richard Strauss, as Volume 1, Paavo Järvi and the NHK SO embark on a three-volume Richard Strauss Cycle. These are the first-ever recordings of these tone poems conducted by Paavo Järvi.

Celebrating its 90th season, NHK SO has one of the longest histories among Japanese orchestras, with a rich and long tradition of performing the music of Richard Strauss under such illustrious conductors as Herbert von Karajan, Wolfgang Sawallisch, Othmar Suitner, Lovro von Matacic, Horst Stein, Charles Dutoit, and Vladimir Ashkenazy among others.

These works were recorded live in Suntory Hall, Tokyo, one of the world's most renowned concert halls, with optimum DSD technology.

In these live recordings from 2011 and 2014 respectively, the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and its longtime chief conductor Mariss Jansons present, in their second release of works by Richard Strauss, two of the composer’s "heroic" tone poems. With "Don Juan", the young and aspiring Strauss proved to be a prematurely consummate master of the symphonic poem genre. "Ein Heldenleben" ("A Hero's Life"), written at the turn of the 20th c., ranks as one of the great touchstones for a symphony orchestra – and with its extensive solo violin part, for a concertmaster too.

Richard Strauss: Die schweigsame Frau, Op. 80, TrV 265 (Reco

"The Woman without a Shadow" by Richard Strauss was just the ticket for Music Director Sebastian Weigle at the Frankfurt Opera, so it is quite appropriate to make available this opera on CD. Strauss specialist Weigle has brought together excellent singers and musicians for the stage debut, including Terje Stensvold in this 2014 Frankfurt Opera series. - Oehmas, (Translated from German text.)

Classical Music

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

Also available on standard DVD

Strauss's musically ravishing comic masterpiece is given a visual updating in director Richard Jones's stylish and 'gently subversive' Glyndebourne staging, one which offers 'a dreamlike distortion not just of Vienna's 18th-century past, but also of everything we know about reality' (Financial Times). Created to mark the 150th centenary of the composer's birth, the production is packed with energy and wit, its impeccable stagecraft by no means detracting from the first-class singing which underpins, among others, Tara Erraught's 'touching' (Guardian) performance as Octavian, Kate Royal's 'most graceful of Marschallins' and Lars Woldt's 'pitch-perfect' Baron Ochs (Sunday Telegraph). Conductor Robin Ticciati brings clarity and detail to the score, infusing the music with spirit and humanity.

R E V I E W:

"Lars Woldt’s Baron Ochs is rich in tone and dialect, a deliciously crude idiot, yet surprising in his muted final line and some sarcastic inflections opposite Octavian. Comic interest never flags, thanks to Jones’s deft blocking and inventive gags. Conductor Robin Ticciati, chief at Glyndebourne, keeps the London Philharmonic at a keen pitch, spreading glitter over all. It’s the standard menu in major companies today — visual provocation, musical reassurance."

-- David J. Baker, Opera News [11/2015]

Richard Strauss
DER ROSENKAVALIER
(Blu-ray Disc Version)

Octavian - Tara Erraught
The Marschallin - Kate Royal
Baron Ochs auf Lerchenau - Lars Woldt
Sophie - Teodora Gheorghiu
Herr von Faninal - Michael Kraus
Marianne Leitmetzerin - Miranda Keys
Valzacchi - Christopher Gillett
Annina - Helene Schneiderman
Italian Tenor - Andrej Dunaev
Notary - Gwynne Howell
Innkeeper - Robert Wörle
Police Inspector - Scott Conner

Glyndebourne Chorus
(chorus master: Jeremy Bines)
London Philharmonic Orchestra
Robin Ticciati, conductor

Richard Jones, stage director
Paul Steinberg, set designer
Nicky Gillibrand, costume designer
Mimi Jordan Sherin, lighting designer

Recorded live at Glyndebourne Opera House, May 2014

Bonus:
- Robin Ticciati, Taking the Baton
- The Trio
- Sights and smells of a production
- Cast gallery

Picture format: 1080i High Definition
Sound format: LPCM 2.0 / DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Region code: 0 (worldwide)
Subtitles: English, French, German, Japanese, Korean
Running time: 191 mins (opera) + 22 mins (bonus)
No. of Discs: 1 (BD 50)

Also available on Blu-ray

Strauss's musically ravishing comic masterpiece is given a visual updating in director Richard Jones's stylish and 'gently subversive' Glyndebourne staging, one which offers 'a dreamlike distortion not just of Vienna's 18th-century past, but also of everything we know about reality' (Financial Times). Created to mark the 150th centenary of the composer's birth, the production is packed with energy and wit, its impeccable stagecraft by no means detracting from the first-class singing which underpins, among others, Tara Erraught's 'touching' (Guardian) performance as Octavian, Kate Royal's 'most graceful of Marschallins' and Lars Woldt's 'pitch-perfect' Baron Ochs (Sunday Telegraph). Conductor Robin Ticciati brings clarity and detail to the score, infusing the music with spirit and humanity.

R E V I E W:

"Lars Woldt’s Baron Ochs is rich in tone and dialect, a deliciously crude idiot, yet surprising in his muted final line and some sarcastic inflections opposite Octavian. Comic interest never flags, thanks to Jones’s deft blocking and inventive gags. Conductor Robin Ticciati, chief at Glyndebourne, keeps the London Philharmonic at a keen pitch, spreading glitter over all. It’s the standard menu in major companies today — visual provocation, musical reassurance."

-- David J. Baker, Opera News [11/2015]

Richard Strauss
DER ROSENKAVALIER

Octavian - Tara Erraught
The Marschallin - Kate Royal
Baron Ochs auf Lerchenau - Lars Woldt
Sophie - Teodora Gheorghiu
Herr von Faninal - Michael Kraus
Marianne Leitmetzerin - Miranda Keys
Valzacchi - Christopher Gillett
Annina - Helene Schneiderman
Italian Tenor - Andrej Dunaev
Notary - Gwynne Howell
Innkeeper - Robert Wörle
Police Inspector - Scott Conner

Glyndebourne Chorus
(chorus master: Jeremy Bines)
London Philharmonic Orchestra
Robin Ticciati, conductor

Richard Jones, stage director
Paul Steinberg, set designer
Nicky Gillibrand, costume designer
Mimi Jordan Sherin, lighting designer

Recorded live at Glyndebourne Opera House, May 2014

Bonus:
- Robin Ticciati, Taking the Baton
- The Trio
- Sights and smells of a production
- Cast gallery

Picture format: NTSC 16:9 anamorphic
Sound format: LPCM 2.0 / DTS 5.1
Region code: 0 (worldwide)
Subtitles: English, French, German, Japanese, Korean
Running time: 191 mins (opera) + 22 mins (bonus)
No. of DVDs: 2 (DVD 9)

Also available on Blu-ray

Richard Strauss
DER ROSENKAVALIER

Feldmarschallin - Krassimira Stoyanova Baron Ochs - Günther Groissböck
Octavian - Sophie Koch
Faninal - Adrian Eröd
Sophie - Mojca Erdmann
Leitmetzerin - Silvana Dussmann
Valzacchi - Rudolf Schasching
Annina - Wiebke Lehmkuhl
Sänger - Stefan Pop

Salzburg Festival Children’s Chorus
(chorus master: Wolfgang Götz)
Vienna State Opera Chorus
(chorus master: Ernst Raffelsberger)
Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra
Franz Welser-Möst, conductor

Harry Kupfer, stage director
Hans Schavernoch, set designer
Yan Tax, costume designer
Jürgen Hoffmann, lighting designer

Recorded live at the Großes Festspielhaus, Salzburg, 08–14 August 2014

Picture format: NTSC 16:9
Sound format: PCM Stereo / DTS 5.0
Region code: 0 (worldwide)
Subtitles: English, German, French, Spanish, Chinese, Korean, Japanese Running time: 146 mins
No. of DVDs: 2 (DVD 9)

Classical Music

RICHARD STRAUSS: June Anderson; Roberta Sacca; Scott Mac Allister; Daniel Lewis Williams; Birgit Remmer; Orchestra e Coro del Teatro La Fenice di Venezia/Stefan Anton Reck; Paul Curran, director; NTSC All Region; DTS 5.1; PCM Stereo 2.0; Color; 16:9; 114 mins; Subtitled in Ita RICHARD STRAUSS: Daphne.

Also available on Blu-ray

Richard Strauss’s last stage work is an opera about opera as an art form, depicting the creation of a music drama in a wise and witty way. Which came first – words or music? That is the question that Strauss and his librettist Clemens Krauss address through the story of a Countess torn between a composer and a poet. “Renée Fleming is a world-class Countess, moving and intense … All around her there is luxury casting: Bo Skovhus as the Count, Michael Schade as Flamand, Markus Eiche as Olivier, Kurt Rydl as the theatre director La Roche, the wonderful Angelika Kirchschlager as Clairon – all strike exactly the right note, as do the singers in the smaller roles, turning this Capriccio into an event of the first importance.” (Der Kurier, Vienna)

Subtitles: G, E, F, Sp, Kor, Jap, Chin
Booklet: E, G, F
No. of Discs: 2
Run time: 166 MINS
Picture: NTSC, 16:9
Audio: PCM Stereo, PCM 5.1

-----

REVIEW:

The greatest pleasure of the performance undoubtedly comes in the wonderful playing of the Staatsoper orchestra, the sweet, tender strings and the mellifluous horns in particular; and Christoph Eschenbach conducts a leisurely and loving account of Strauss's gorgeous score.

– MusicWeb International

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

Also available on standard DVD

Director Katharina Thoma sets Richard Strauss’ comedy in a country house in the South Downs (a surrogate for Glyndebourne), immediately before and during the Second World War. Hofmannsthals’ conceit—that a hapless young composer has to accept the simultaneous performance of his new tragic opera with a burlesque from a commedia dell’arte troupe—is turned into a touching wartime drama of nurses, invalids and airmen, and of painful delusions and soul searching, before final happiness.

ACCLAIM
“Everything fits superbly and the production captures the fragility of happiness and the undertow of melancholy better than any I can remember. The mellow glow of the LPO under Vladimir Jurowski’s sensitive baton complements the vision perfectly, while a fine cast enhances the pleasure. Soile Isokoski is superb as Ariadne…” – The Evening Standard

“Conductor Vladimir Jurowski ends his 13-year reign as music director by drawing sumptuous Straussian playing from the London Philharmonic Orchestra. In 40 years of watching Ariadne, the opera has never moved me more.” – The Daily Mail

Richard Strauss
ARIADNE AUF NAXOS

Ariadne / Prima Donna - Soile Isokoski
Zerbinetta - Laura Claycomb
Bacchus / Tenor - Sergey Skorokhodov
Music Master - Thomas Allen
Composer - Kate Lindsey
London Philharmonic Orchestra
Vladimir Jurowski, conductor
Katharina Thoma, stage director
Julia Müer, set designer
Irina Bartels, costume designer
Olaf Winter, lighting designer

Recorded live at the Glyndebourne Festival Opera, Lewes, March 2013

Bonus:
- When Two Worlds Collide
- Thomas Allen at Glyndebourne
- Vladimir Jurowski on his final production as Music Director
- Cast gallery

Picture format: 1080i High Definition
Sound format: LPCM 2. 0 / DTS 5.1
Region code: 0 (worldwide)
Subtitles: English, French, German, Korean
Running time: 121 mins (opera) + 21 mins (bonus)
No. of Discs: 1 (blu-ray)

Also available on Blu-ray

Director Katharina Thoma sets Richard Strauss’ comedy in a country house in the South Downs (a surrogate for Glyndebourne), immediately before and during the Second World War. Hofmannsthals’ conceit—that a hapless young composer has to accept the simultaneous performance of his new tragic opera with a burlesque from a commedia dell’arte troupe—is turned into a touching wartime drama of nurses, invalids and airmen, and of painful delusions and soul searching, before final happiness.

ACCLAIM
“Everything fits superbly and the production captures the fragility of happiness and the undertow of melancholy better than any I can remember. The mellow glow of the LPO under Vladimir Jurowski’s sensitive baton complements the vision perfectly, while a fine cast enhances the pleasure. Soile Isokoski is superb as Ariadne…” – The Evening Standard

“Conductor Vladimir Jurowski ends his 13-year reign as music director by drawing sumptuous Straussian playing from the London Philharmonic Orchestra. In 40 years of watching Ariadne, the opera has never moved me more.” – The Daily Mail

Richard Strauss
ARIADNE AUF NAXOS

Ariadne / Prima Donna - Soile Isokoski
Zerbinetta - Laura Claycomb
Bacchus / Tenor - Sergey Skorokhodov
Music Master - Thomas Allen
Composer - Kate Lindsey
London Philharmonic Orchestra
Vladimir Jurowski, conductor
Katharina Thoma, stage director
Julia Müer, set designer
Irina Bartels, costume designer
Olaf Winter, lighting designer

Recorded live at the Glyndebourne Festival Opera, Lewes, March 2013

Bonus:
- When Two Worlds Collide
- Thomas Allen at Glyndebourne
- Vladimir Jurowski on his final production as Music Director
- Cast gallery

Picture format: NTSC 16:9
Sound format: LPCM 2. 0 / DTS 5.1
Region code: 0 (worldwide)
Subtitles: English, French, German, Korean
Running time: 121 mins (opera) + 21 mins (bonus)
No. of DVDs: 1 (DVD 9)