With his operas "Electra", "Antigone" and "Medea" about three ancient Greek female figures – which he himself defined as ''lyrical tragedies'' – Theodorakis fulfilled an artistic promise made on August 6th, 1988 following the premiere of his "Zorba" ballet at the Verona Arena, namely to compose three pieces dedicated to the great Italian opera composers Verdi, Puccini and Bellini. ''For the last five years, I have lived with the texts of Euripides and Sophocles and worked on them. Five years which have become the best of my life, because the whole day long – mostly opposite the Acropolis, giving me the feeling that my house was on the foundations of the house of Sophocles, for we know he lived here where I live, in Athens – I could delve deep into the universal harmony I seek,'' he wrote after finishing his ambitious project.

Classical Music

Classical Music

This highly dramatic album includes the most famous moments from Verdi' ever-popular operas, in which public splendour and private pathos, true love and tragedy, vie for supremacy at every turn.

TRISTAN & ISOLDE

Verdi: Falstaff (Recorded 1961) [Live]

I wish I could give this disc the highest rating for overall artistic quality, because the performance of Belshazzar's Feast is simply spectacular, but unfortunately other equally fine performances come with more interesting couplings, and even with the two marches this release still offers less than 50 minutes of music. Make no mistake, though, if you care about the major work, then you will want to hear what Paul Daniel and his combined forces do with it. In particular, it's terrific to hear the piece sung by a really large, enthusiastic English chorus of the "festival" variety--the sort of forces that Walton composed it for in the first place. The very opening invocation ("Thus spake Isaiah") has a very different, weightier sound than usual when sung by such a crowd--greater amplitude and richness--but the words remain remarkably clear throughout.


Here's the bottom line: after the comparatively quiet and mournful first 10 minutes, Daniel basically lines up this huge mass of voices and they proceed to scream their collective guts out--and let's face it, what more would you want in this loudest and most energetic of choral works? The enthusiasm and sense of occasion is palpable, and it extends to the work of the orchestra, which renders such moments as the "Praise ye" episode with incomparable vividness from the brass and percussion. Once the piece gets hopping ("In Babylon, Belshazzar the king made a great feast") there's simply no looking back. Granted, the "Joyful noise" at the very end might pass by in a bit of a blur at this tempo, but then it nearly always does, and the Naxos recording is pretty terrific in just about every respect, capturing both an unusual amount of orchestral detail while offering the palpable impression of vast choral forces in a large space.


Baritone Christopher Purves isn't the most smooth-voiced of soloists, but he gets the job done with aplomb, and the two marches (recorded way back in 1996) are effective but obviously are there for lack of anything better. Still, at budget price you won't find a snazzier Belshazzar, and for sheer "pedal to the metal" panache, this one has them all beat. If you want perfect choral discipline you may want to look elsewhere, but for a genuine musical hubbub in the best sense, look no further.
--David Hurwitz, ClassicsToday.com

Margaret Jane Wray has performed with some of the most important musical figures of our day, including Daniel Barenboim, Maris Janssons and Seiji Ozawa and enjoys a busy career as a concert artist in addition to her varied operatic performances. Included on this disc is the rarely recorded 1862 concert ending to the 'Love Duet' from 'Tristan und Isolde'.

Verdi: La battaglia di Legnano (Recorded 1959) [Live]

One of the prolific Gaetano Donizetti’s lesser-produced masterworks, Poliuto, originally banned from production in Italy in the late 1830s only to return a decade in a French translation, is a story of religious persecution, punishment and marital faithfulness. This live, Antonino Votti conducted 1960 La Scala, Milan performance’s eye-watering, jealousy-inducing cast features Maria Callas, Ettore Bastianini in the vocal prime of his foreshortened career, Franco Corelli and Nicola Zaccaria. Returning to the active catalog, this release is a direct transfer from the master tapes.

An admirable performance of a rare work.

‘The worst libretto Handel ever set … the construction is clumsy, the characterisation incredible,’ wrote Winton Dean, with his typical panache, in his and Merrill Knapp’s classic book on the earlier Handel operas. Never mind: if one is prepared to accept that Handel’s dramatic muse sometimes nodded, and just enjoy the music for what it is, Silla is amply worth a hearing. It had its first English revival in spring 2000, in the Handel series that Denys Darlow directs at the Royal College of Music, and the present recording is a by-product of those performances.

The opera, probably Handel’s shortest, dates from 1713 and seems, oddly, to have been written for a private performance at the main London opera house in honour of a new French Ambassador – although there is no certainty that the performance actually took place. The plot, an absurd farrago about the Roman dictator Sulla (‘Silla’ is the Italianised form), here a ruthless murderer who makes unsuccessful grabs at two of the three women in the cast (the third is his wife) and then suddenly repents, seems decidedly inappropriate for a festive occasion, or indeed any occasion at all. It’s the kind of libretto that has got baroque opera a bad name. Its sole merit – and this is quite important – is that it does allow opportunities for a considerable range of musical expression.

Curiously, however, Handel doesn’t seem to have been fully alert to those opportunities. Sulla himself, for example, gets music more amiable than so odious a character seems to deserve (including a truly lovely ‘sleep song’, with recorders), and the music for his wife Metella is often absurdly at odds with the text and her situation. But there are many attractive numbers, notably some telling music for the two pairs of lovers who find themselves threatened by Sulla’s importunities – Lepido and Flavia have two duets, the second a miniature but intensely poignant F minor Adagio, while Celia grieves the (supposed) death of her Claudio in a heartfelt G minor sarabande.

The mainly youthful cast here – these performances traditionally give opportunities to promising young singers – are very successful and I am sure we will hear a lot more of some of them. Rachel Nicholls sings Metella’s music in a pleasant, natural and very even voice, strong and resolute in the big aria that ends Act 2. As Celia, Elizabeth Cragg shows a lighter voice with a hint of an attractively grainy quality; Natasha Marsh’s full and rounded voice rings out to excellent effect in Flavia’s arias.

Except for the brief appearance of ‘Il Dio’, an odd kind of god who encourages Sulla’s ferocity in his dream vision (ably taken by Christopher Dixon), there are no true male voices. Lepido is sung by Joanne Lunn in a fresh, bright voice, accurate and rhythmic; Claudio is taken by Simon Brown, a capable and fluent countertenor with a strong and clear top register and much subtlety in handling details of stress and timing. He has a fine aria with trumpet to end Act 1. Sulla himself is sung by a Handelian of considerable and obvious experience – a fine model for the young members of the cast: James Bowman shows his knowledge of how to shape and colour Handel’s lines and (as in the fiery Act 2 aria) to sing forcefully and still musically. The voice rings well even if the lower register now has a little less character.

All the singers add a little, generally discreet ornamentation in the da capo sections. Denys Darlow, as always, conducts in a direct and unaffected fashion, showing consideration for the singers and understanding of Handel, with a good range of tempos and with spruce, lively rhythms. Handelians will not want to miss this chance of hearing a rare work admirably performed.'

-- Stanley Sadie, Gramophone [3/2001]

1947 recording transferred from 78 RPM masters and digitally remastered using 24 bit technology.

HANDEL: Nabal

FLYING DUTCHMAN

HANSEL & GRETEL

UN BALLO IN MASCHERA: NELLI-PE

Verdi: Aida

PUCCINI: Messa di Gloria / Preludio Sinfonico

Classical Music

Puccini' fascination with exotic locations, doomed heroines, high drama and tragic romance are brought to centre stage in this immensely moving selection from his greatest operas.

A beautiful selection of the best-known operetta arias, duets & orchestral music from Vienna' golden age of operetta, including Die Fledermaus, the Merry Widow, the Land of Smiles, the Gypsy Princess, the Gypsy Baron and Countess Maritza.

Classical Music

MANON: JURINAC-DERMOTA-OLAH-NE

FAUST: ROSVAENGE-BOHNEN-SINGEN

Classical Music