Falstaff: Stefano Posda, Ruggero Raimondi, Luca Salsi, Virginia Tola, Sabina Puertolas, Cinzia de Mola, Liliana Mattei, and Tiberius Simu star in this production of the Verdi opera with Paolo Arrivabeni conducting the Orchestra and Chorus of the Opera.

Modest Mussorgsky’s music drama Boris Godunov was premiered in front of St. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral in Sofia, the same location where this 2014 performance takes place. Conceived by Plamen Kartaloff, director of the Sofia Opera, this production took place 90 years after the building’s consecreation, and was dedicated to the centennial anniversary of the birth of Boris Christoff and the 85th anniversary of the birth of Nicolai Ghiaurov, two vocalists who became famous for their performances as Boris. For this performance, the role of Boris is sung by Martin Tsonev.

Picture Format: 16:9
Sound Format: PCM 2.0
Region Code: 0 (Worldwide)

Donizetti: Don Gregorio, L'elisir D'amore / Bordogna, Trucco, Valerio, Benetta, Hernandez, Donizetti / Valerio, Composer: Gaetano Donizetti, Performer: Giorgio Valerio, Livio Scarpellini, Elizaveta Martirosyan, Paolo Bordogna, Conductor: Stefano Montanari, Alessandro de Marchi, Orchestra/Ensemble: Bergamo Musica Festival Orchestra, Bergamo Musica Festival Chorus, Number of Discs: 4. A double-bill of Donizetti operas recorded at the Bergamo Music Festival in 2007. Director Roberto Recchia sets 'Don Gregorio' in the 1920s, a time which mirrors in many ways the political and social conditions prevailing when the piece was originally written. Spoken dialogues in the Neapolitan dialect are used in place of the recitatives, but Donizetti's music remains unchanged. The characters in this comic opera are inspired by the Italian Commedia dell'Arte. In 'L'elisir d'amore', conductor Alessandro de Marchi allows the comedic aspects of the work to be exploited fully by the cast, which includes Silvia Dalla Benetta, Raul Hernandez and Alex Esposito.

SHOSTAKOVICH: Works for 2 Pianos and Piano 4-Hands (Complete

VERDI: String Quartet in E minor / PUCCINI: Crisantemi / ZAN

3 VIOLA SUITES VIOLIN SONATAS

The so-called Rossini Renaissance (post-WWII) was an outright revolution, as it led to the rediscovery and staging of a great number of Rossini operas, especially of the serious genre. Otello, one of the finest of Rossini's serious works, marked one of the first encounters in the history of Italian opera between a composer and Shakespeare's theatre. Although Rossini later revised the ending away from it's fateful, tragic outcome, this production, recorded live in 2014 at Antwerp's Vlaanderen Opera, is based on the Rossini Foundation's critical edition and has the first, tragic finale.

Vieuxtemps: Violin Concertos Nos. 4 & 5

LE SUITES MEDICEE

Paganini Played On Paganini's Violin, Vol. 1

Filmed in HD at a live 2012 performance in the Teatro Carlo Felice, one of the best known and the last of Puccini’s operas “Turandot” is directed and filmed by Giuliano Montaldo in a cast led by Daniela Dessì in the titular role and Mario Malagnini as the Calaf . Based on a 12th century Persian tale, the story of Turandot has long entranced audiences worldwide with its lyrical pageantry and pentatonic laden score containing an astonishing amount of now beloved arias such as “Nessun Dorma” and “In Questa Reggia”. With the Franco Alfano score to the final act and with the Orchestra and Choir of the Teatro Carlo Felice conducted by Donato Renzetti, this production features the acclaimed stage design of Giuliano Montaldo’s. With generous subtitle availability in Italian, English, German, Spanish, French, Japanese and Korean.

The importance of Giovanni Battista Viotti in the history of violin music has long been acknowledged. One of the most original characteristics of these works is the fact that their movements are often linked, thematically, by a certain affinity in their first few bars which makes each work distinctly coherent. Viotti was a very polished composer, gifted with a rich melodic vein and an inborn sense of formal balance.

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

Also available on standard DVD

Enrico di Borgogna is a melodramma per musica that was premiered in Venice in 1818, marking Donizetti’s stage debut. The plot of this rare opera follows a rather traditional scheme: Enrico wants to defeat the son of the villain who usurped his father’s throne and is about to marry his beloved Elisa. Fortunately, he succeeds in stopping the marriage and regaining his inheritance. This release is a world premiere video recording of the 2018 Donizetti Opera festival performance, which received great reviews for its brilliant staging. Director Silvia Paoli uses a “theatre within the theatre” approach which gives way to moments of sheer humor and amusement: as the curtain opens, the public is brought back to the time of the opera premiere. Played on period instruments by Academia Montis Regalis and conducted by repertoire specialist Alessandro De Marchi, this opera features two prima donnas like Sonia Ganassi and Anna Bonitatibus in the main roles. Extra content: interviews with Conductor Alessandro De Marchi, Sonia Ganassi and Anna Bonitatibus. “This was…a genuinely funny presentation, which had the audience laughing out loud. Everything was treated as a source of fun, from the narrative, and its mix of characters through the theatrical conventions of the time, even poking fun at the singers themselves. It was all staged in a blaze of color, fast-moving action, fabulous costumes and cleverly managed extraneous silliness.” (Operawire) [Anna Bonitatibus] displayed a burnished, deep timbre, sparkling coloratura and wonderful phrasing, confirming her status as the most interesting mezzo of her generation.” (Bachtrack.com) “Sonia Ganassi…has a strong, dynamically versatile and flexible voice which she is able to manage intelligently and with skill. . “(Operawire)

-----

REVIEW:

A love story with the usual intrigues is at center of the plot of Donizetti’s rediscovered opera Enrico di Borgogna. A lively staging, tight tempi as well as glowing colors from the orchestra, a very good choir and good soloists make this a valuable production.

– Pizzicato

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

Also available on standard DVD

Recorded during the 2018 Donizetti Festival, Il Castello di Kenilworth was first staged at Naples’ San Carlo in 1829. Drawn from a novel by Sir Walter Scott and adapted by librettist Leone Tottola, this rare opera was unjustly long neglected. This recording features the original version, with the role of Warney entrusted to a tenor (which the composer changed into a baritone in the 1836 revision of the score).Il Castello di Kenilworth is the first of the several successful works to follow that Donizetti based on British history, introducing the character of Queen Elizabeth I, torn by the inner struggle between a monarch’s duty and a woman’s feelings. The fundamental pivot of the drama is the antagonism between the two female characters who both dwell and suffer in their loneliness, in a male-dominated world. The performance received excellent reviews, praising the richness of the costumes, the sobriety of the stage setting, and, mostly, the vocal and acting skills of the whole cast, which features first-rate singers like opera stars Jessica Pratt and Carmela Remigio, who share the stage with talented tenors Stefan Pop and emerging talent Xabier Anduaga “A first-class cast, with an imaginative production team, under the musical direction of Riccardo Frizza, have been assembled, and it is not an exaggeration to say that together they have produced a compelling case for “Il Castello di Kenilworth” to be given further consideration. […] It was musically engaging, full of bel canto charm, with some wonderful melodies, and notwithstanding its formulaic format, was dramatically convincingly. (Alan Neilson – Operawire)

MEYERBEER: Huguenots (Les)