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

Also available on standard DVD

Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky
NUTCRACKER
(Blu-ray Disc Version)

Uncle Drosselmeyer – Damian Smith
Clara – Elizabeth Powell
The Nutcracker Prince – Davit Karapetyan
King of the Mice – David Arce
Queen of Snow – Yuan-yuan Tan
King of Snow – Pierre-François Vilanoba
Sugar Plum Fairy – Vanessa Zahorian

San Francisco Ballet
San Francisco Ballet Orchestra
Martin West, conductor

Helgi Tomasson, choreographer

Recorded live at the War Memorial Opera House, San Francisco, California, on 19 and 20 December 2007.

Bonus:
- Illustrated synopsis and cast gallery
- Interviews with Helgi Tomasson, Michael Yeargan and Martin Pakledinaz
- Documentary: 1915 World's Fair

Picture format: 1080i High Definition
Sound format: 2.0 and 5.0 PCM
Region code: 0 (all regions)
Menu languages: English
Subtitles (extras only): German, French, Spanish, Italian
Running time: 133 mins
No. of Discs: 1 (BD 50)

R E V I E W:



TCHAIKOVSKY Nutcracker & • Martin West, cond; Damian Smith ( Drosselmeyer ); Elizabeth Powell ( Clara ); Davit Karapetyan ( Nutcracker ); David Arce ( Mouse King ); Yuan Yuan Tan ( Snow Queen ); Pierre-François Vilanoba ( Snow King ); Vanessa Zahorian ( Sugar Plum Fairy ); Maria Kochetkova ( Grand pas de deux ); San Francisco Ballet O • BBC/OPUS ARTE BD7044D (Blu-ray: 132: 00) Live: San Francisco 12/19–20/2007


& Illustrated synopsis, cast gallery, artist interviews, documentary on 1915 World’s Fair


David L. Kirk gave the DVD release of this production a thorough review in Fanfare 32:5, rightly declaring this to be “a first-class production with brilliant dancing, imaginative special effects, colorful costumes, and attractive scenery,” and numbering it among his three preferred video Nutcrackers . I second that notion.


In order for the San Francisco Ballet to take possession of this ubiquitous classic, choreographer Helgi Tomasson and his superb design team moved the action to San Francisco in 1915, the year the city hosted the World’s Fair. What this means in practical terms is that the women’s costumes in the first act are much slimmer and more dance-worthy than when the ballet is set in its original, earlier period, and that the action in the second act takes place in what seems to be a fairy-infested World’s Fair exhibition hall. As fine as the dancing is (from soloists and corps alike), it’s really the costumes of Martin Pakledinaz (including a Ballets Russes touch in the act II getups) and the scenic design of Michael Yeargan that make this production so vivid.


Now, it must be said that Tomasson’s choreography doesn’t entail much deep psychology (aside from establishing some motifs that really pull the developments in act I together). There’s nothing at all sinister about Drosselmeyer, who here is just an odd toymaker who likes to entertain kids with magic tricks (and serves as Clara’s chaperone through act II). There are no psychosexual shenanigans involving Clara and the Nutcracker, and despite the 1915 setting, the battle with the mice follows the conventions of 18th-century warfare, with nary a sniff of the trench or mustard gas.


Conductor Martin West’s work with the company orchestra is good, although the conducting and playing tend to lose focus in low-key numbers like the Arabian Dance. The best musical contribution to a video Nutcracker I know is Charles Mackerras’s account for the Pacific Northwest Ballet production, with its pointed rhythms and intense yearning. You can obtain the audio alone from Telarc.


The extra features here are truly interesting, not just filler. The audio is PCM only (choice of two or five channels), and the 16:9 picture is derived from a film transfer of multicamera video. There are a couple of sloppy little video edits that probably occurred when the show was being rushed onto PBS a couple of years ago, and should have been corrected before the home-video release, but they’ll slip by most viewers.


This endearing production deserves to be a basic Nutcracker for every household.


FANFARE: James Reel

Marianela Nunez and Vadim Muntagirov star as Cinderella and The Prince in Frederick Ashton’s timeless reworking of Charles Perrault’s famous rags-to-riches story, showcasing the choreographer’s deft musicality and the beauty of Prokofiev’s transcendent score. A creative team steeped in the magic of theatre, film, dance and opera brings new atmosphere to Cinderella’s ethereal world of fairy godmothers and pumpkin carriages, handsome princes and finding true love

HARMONICA AND ORGAN - AN UNUSUAL DUO. The world's smallest and the world's largest musical instrument; "David and Goliath" together in stunning baroque pieces and Norwegian folk music.

Sigmund Groven and Iver Kleive have collaborated for more than 30 years and have built a repertoire consisting mainly of baroque pieces and Norwegian music, most of which they have composed and arranged themselves. Even though they have chosen very different instruments, and are also quite different personalities in many ways, they have a fundamental musical rapport and understanding and also have many other things in common. They both originate from musical families; born and raised in Telemark, a region of Norway rich in folk-music, they have always had an open mind and taken keen interest in various contemporary and popular musical styles and idioms. They left Norway to study, and their mentors were the best possible role models: In Munich Iver came under the guidance of organist Franz Lehrndorfer and legendary choirmaster, conductor, and organist Karl Richter, whereas Sigmund had the great fortune to study in England with his boyhood idol, the equally legendary Tommy Reilly, one of the great pioneers of serious harmonica-playing.

Hybrid SACD + Pure Audio Blu-ray two-disc-box at the price of one ordinary Blu-ray
5.1 SURROUND + STEREO produced in DXD (Digital eXtreme Definition 352kHz/24bit)
The compact disc looks like a normal CD and plays on all standard players and computers

Jean-Joseph Cassanéa de Mondonville was greatly admired in his day. His opera Titon et l’Aurore was one of his most popular works, being held up as a triumph over the rival Italian style during the Parisian Querelle des Bouffons in the 1750s. The narrative of this spectacular opéra-ballet follows the tumultuous and seemingly unbreakable liaison between the goddess L’Aurore and her lover the shepherd Titon. Jealous gods and goddesses try to interfere through murderous intent and dramatic abduction, but true love ultimately conquers all in stage director Basil Twist’s acclaimed feast for the senses.

REVIEWS:

This is a remarkably interesting production on several fronts. The music is a rarity, the composer almost unknown, the staging as close to the original as can be achieved, the period performance very fine and the history of the piece of unusual cultural significance.

The superb orchestra and chorus of Les Arts Florissants play and sing as if unaware of the lack of any audience and the presence of COVID masks in the pit—not the stage! This was all done in the middle of our pandemic. What a treat this would have been for an audience…

…This disc has to be given a strong recommendation. The picture is appropriately bright and sparkling, the sound is absolutely clear and clean with enough ambience to give it the feeling of being there.

-- MusicWeb International (Dave Billinge)

Highly rewarding for both the staging and the musical accomplishments – it should be at the very top of one’s shopping list.

The cast that was selected for this first production in modern times is a knockout one in every respect. William Christie and Les Arts Florissants are in crisp energetic form. Whenever the camera focuses on Christie it is obvious that he is enjoying himself every bit as much as his singers. Perfect picture and sound engineering guarantee that every fleecy moment is preserved with distinction.

-- MusicWeb International (Mike Parr)

Recorded at the Opéra-Comique last year, although without an audience, this recording of Mondonville’s Titon et l’Aurore is another triumph from William Christie.

-- Gramophone

Shortlisted for the Gramophone Awards! Rusalka returns to Madrid “on an overwhelming level that will leave its mark”. (El Español) Mesmerizing soprano Asmik Grigorian, “already one of the most outstanding sopranos of her generation“ (Online Merker) stars with a “voice, at its zenith of maturity“ (El Pais) in the title role of Christoph Loy’s timeless and evocative staging of Dvorak’s tragic take on the Little Mermaid fable. Especially „the direction of dancers and extras in the second act is a virtuoso performance by Loy and his choreographer.“ (El Pais) “Musically, this Rusalka is of immense quality, no doubt due to the spectacular work of Ivor Bolton.“ (El Español)

“The Souls of Black Folk and the Vexed Fate of Black Classical Music”
Written and produced by Joseph Horowitz
Visual presentation by Peter Bogdanoff
Film three in the six-film Naxos series:
“Dvorak’s Prophecy: A New Narrative for American Classical Music”

If George Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess – the highest creative achievement in American classical music – embodies a glorious (and controversial) fulfillment of Dvořák’s prophecy, there also exists a buried lineage of exceptional compositions by Black composers following in Dvořák’s wake. Coming first was his assistant Harry Burleigh, whose seminal settings of “Deep River” are – as our film illustrates – as much compositions as transcriptions. Burleigh’s initiative was sealed by singers like Paul Robeson and Marian Anderson. But William Levi Dawson’s oracular Negro Folk Symphony, though triumphantly premiered by Leopold Stokowski and his Philadelphia Orchestra in 1934, gathered dust – and Dawson was never to create the symphonic catalogue he seemed destined to undertake. Commentators include George Shirley, the most legendary name in present-day Black classical music, also Kevin Deas, music historians Gwynne Kuhner Brown and Michael Cooper, and conductor Michael Morgan. This film includes performances by pianist Benjamin Pasternack, The Fort Smith Symphony conducted by John Jeter, The Vienna Radio Symphony conducted by Arthur Fagen and Kevin Deas recorded in live performance.

“The disconnection between the rich history of Black American music and the classical music we typically hear has proved impoverishing. Because of our current conversation about race we now observe a seemingly desperate effort to make up for lost time, to present Black faces in the concert hall. I think that's only fair. But if it's going to become a permanent new way of thinking, there has to be new understanding. Dvořák's Prophecy is on time, it's a bull's-eye. We have been left unprepared for the current cultural moment. Joe Horowitz's book explains how we got there. . . . Dvořák's Prophecy proposes a bigger world of American classical music than what we have known before. It is more diverse and more equitable. And it is more truthful.” –from George Shirley's Foreword to Dvořák's Prophecy

Experience the wonder of New York City Ballet’s iconic holiday classic on the big screen. In George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker, Tchaikovsky’s beloved melodies transport the young and young at heart to a magical world where mischievous mice besiege a battalion of toy soldiers, and an onstage blizzard leads to an enchanted Land of Sweets. Balanchine’s stunning choreography shines amidst awe-inspiring set pieces, ornate costumes, and grand one-of-a-kind visual effects, like the one-ton Christmas tree that grows to an astonishing 40 feet. NYCB’s beloved production has been performed in New York City every year since its premiere on February 2, 1954, and is seen live by more than 100,000 people annually.

DETAILS:

Format: Classical, Color, NTSC, Widescreen
Language: English
Region: All Regions
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
Run Time: 110 minutes

REVIEWS:

This New York City Ballet production has been revived annually for more than 60 years and it’s easy to see its appeal. Balanchine’s inventive choreography, high production standards and expert performances from both principals and the corps de ballet make this a recorded performance to treasure—and not just at Christmas.

-- MusicWeb International

In 1954, George Balanchine and the New York City Opera were chief among the pioneering groups that made The Nutcracker a holiday favorite now danced by every company in the land during December. The film released this year by the C Major label is the 2011 production and it’s a beauty from beginning to end. The party in the first act is festive, the transformation scene, with its tree that grows from 12 to 40 feet, is magical, as is the rest of the production up to the end which finds Marie and her prince transported to the stars in a reindeer pulled sleigh. The dancing is first rate throughout and the orchestra plays admirably well, led by maestra Clotilde Otranto, who chooses fairly brisk tempos throughout. These never seem rushed nor do they seem to pose any problems for the dancers. Overall this is a five star production with state of the arts video and audio reproduction. Not to be missed.

-- Rad's Reference Reviews

R E V I E W:



VERDI La Traviata • Antonio Pappano, cond; Renée Fleming ( Violetta ); Joseph Calleja ( Alfredo ); Thomas Hampson ( Germont ); Royal Op House Ch & O • OPUS ARTE OA 1040 D (DVD); OA BD7076 D (Blu-ray: 154:00) Live: Covent Garden 6/27 & 30/2009


Back in Fanfare 34:1 I reviewed the recent DVD of La traviata with Angela Gheorghiu, Ramón Vargas, Roberto Frontali, and Lorin Maazel at La Scala. To summarize that briefly, my verdict was: excellent staging, superlative Gheorghiu, good Vargas and Maazel, hapless Frontali and comprimario singers. I also provided an extensive overview of other versions of the opera on DVD; all are flawed, but the best alternatives are the 1968 film version on VAI with Anna Moffo, Franco Bonisolli, Gino Bechi, and Giuseppe Patané; a 1972 Tokyo staging starring Renata Scotto, José Carreras, Sesto Bruscantini, and Nino Verchi, also on VAI; and the 2006 Los Angeles Opera production on Decca with Renée Fleming, Rolando Villazón, Renato Bruson, and James Conlon. Opus Arte now brings us a new version with Renée Fleming, and while it too is not without its flaws, it joins the aforementioned entries in the top rank of La traviata performances on video.


At the risk of seeming like a gaggle of geese nibbling this DVD to death, I will state up front that this version of the opera is carried by a few great strengths over multiple secondary weaknesses. The strengths are easy to state: All the principal roles are securely sung, a top-notch conductor is on the podium, and the staging is sensible. In particular, Joseph Calleja is one of the greatest Alfredos ever to record the role. While not ideally handsome and dashing in physical appearance, he has the ringing tenor voice, secure technique, heartbreaking plangency of timbre, and interpretive imagination for the ideal Alfredo. Every time he opens his mouth, you simply don’t want him to close it again. He is also an effective actor whose facial expressions, postures, and gestures harmonize with his singing.


After Calleja, however, the “yes, but” element of this review enters in for everyone and everything else, beginning with the Violetta of Renée Fleming. Doubtless she is a very good Violetta, and superior to many rivals, but I do not think she is a truly great one. Compared to her Los Angeles performance from three years earlier, her interpretation is considerably deeper but her vocal technique (particularly in “Sempre libera”) is more labored and the sound less creamy. Thankfully, she does far less of the distracting grimacing and bizarre grinning than before, though sometimes it still intrudes (someone needs to tell her to rehearse in front of a mirror). However, my greater concern is that her acting is too calculated and external to the character rather than indwelling it; she expends too much energy portraying, rather than being, Violetta. The gestures and movements all seem too self-conscious; instead of just picking up a champagne bottle, or flitting a handkerchief, or sitting down in a chair, one can almost see her thinking, “Now I’m supposed to pick up the champagne bottle,” “Now I should flit my handkerchief,” “Now I should sit down in this chair.” Again, I would prefer to emphasize the real improvement in her characterization in just three years, but this dimension is present and it does matter.


Next there is the Germont of Thomas Hampson. The good news is that he is in steady and secure voice here—not always the case recently—which is more than can be said for much of his painfully superannuated competition. The less than ideal news is that, in order to keep the voice steady, he constantly forces it so that every syllable is pushed out at a forte with a hard, unyielding tone that limits him to a single mode of expression, one of preemptive sternness. His acting and facial gestures are similarly limited and wooden; when Violetta pleads for his fatherly embrace he remains stock-still and ignores her, and displays equal unconcern for his son at “Di Provenza il mar.” In an unintentionally comic sartorial aspect, the light green piping on his brown suit unavoidably conjures up a chocolate sundae with mint drizzle icing, while his stiff posture and lumbering gait in an over-padded full-length fur coat keep bringing to mind actor Fred Gwynne (aka Herman Munster). Again, I don’t want these smaller details to override the fact that Hampson’s Germont trumps that of many lesser singers, but again they are present and do matter.


The rest can be summarized more briefly. One always expects fine Verdi conducting when Antonio Pappano is in the pit, and so it proves here; but this time he seems a bit too deferential to his singers and the performance lacks the extra frisson found in his very best interpretations, and I actually find myself preferring Maazel overall despite his occasional eccentricities. The comprimario singers are uniformly excellent to a rare degree—every one of them could easily be singing a principal role in a major opera instead—and the deft stage direction makes their momentary interactions contribute far more to the cogency of the plot that I have ever experienced before. The recorded sound and film quality are quite good, with the quality of the Blu-ray disc only marginally superior to that of the regular DVD; the camerawork is sensible if not exceptional; the costumes are of the period and (Hampson’s suit and coat excepted) attractive and elegant; the ballet sequence at Flora’s party is nicely staged.


My one other major reservation concerns the production’s sets, which are quite pedestrian. Act I is set in a round room with brown wood paneling and a single large window with blinds in the back, with a small round settee and semicircular padded backless benches around it—no banquet table, chandelier, or anything else to indicate either elegance or the intended significance of Violetta in the round. While not the awful Willy Decker sofa and clock, it’s a major disappointment. The villa interior for act II, scene 1 is painted a drab eggshell blue and has no furniture other than a long work table and a few chairs. Several paintings—whether waiting to be hung or sold is not clear—are stacked on the floor to one side, and several little squares painted with stripes—color swatches, perhaps?—rest in a row on the wall molding halfway off the floor. It’s not very attractive, and simply leaves one baffled regarding the desired effect. By contrast, Flora’s party in act II scene 2 is appropriately elegant, marred only by garish red stage lighting, a huge modern dome light fixture hanging from the ceiling like an oversized cafeteria heat lamp hovering over sandwiches. Act III has an appropriately simple setting of a bare room outfitted with a bed, a dresser, and a couple of chairs, but again is marred by two enormous windows with blinds, against which inexplicably tall shadows (up to 30 feet) of carnival revelers are cast after Violetta finishes “Addio del passato.” Compared to the high-class La Scala staging for Gheorghiu, this is an impoverished country cousin.


So, once again, we still await the ideal La traviata . In the best of all possible worlds, I would be able to take the La Scala production, replace its wretched comprimario singers with their Covent Garden counterparts, swap out Vargas for Calleja, and replace Frontali with almost any other baritone from another DVD. (Leonard Warren, where are you when we need you?) Barring such a pleasing impossibility, however, this production is as good as any other and better than most, and is recommended accordingly.


FANFARE: James A. Altena

John Williams is one of the greatest film composers of all time by any objective standard; his 49 Academy Award nominations are second only to Walt Disney himself. Williams and Walt Disney Concert Hall have gone together since the beginning. He opened the third inaugural gala, Soundstage L.A., in 2003 with the world premiere of his Soundings, a piece that has also provided the carillon lobby chimes that announce the end of intermission.

For the 2014-15 Opening Night Concert and Gala, the Los Angeles Philharmonic paid loving tribute to the composer, long a champion and close friend of the LA Phil. Gustavo Dudamel, an awestruck fan of the musical icon, led the orchestra in a cross-section of Maestro Williams’s matchless canon.

A JOHN WILLIAMS CELEBRATION featuring works from:
Olympic Fanfare and Theme
Schindler’s List
Fiddler on the Roof
Soundings
Catch Me If You Can
Star Wars
Amistad
Jaws
The Empire Strikes Back

Itzhak Perlman, violin
Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra
Gustavo Dudamel, conductor
Recorded at Walt Disney Concert Hall, USA, 2014

Bonus: Interviews with John Williams, Gustavo Dudamel, and Itzhak Perlman

Running time: 85 mins (concert) + 18 mins (bonus)

Subtitles: German, French, Spanish, Korean
Booklet: English, German, French
Picture: NTSC, 16:9
Audio: PCM Stereo, PCM 5.1
Region Code: 0 (worldwide)

The Kiss by Gustav Klimt is one of the most recognised and reproduced paintings in the world. It is perhaps the most popular poster on student dorm walls from Beijing to Boston. Painted in Vienna around 1908, the evocative image of an unknown embracing couple has captivated viewers with it's mystery, sensuality and dazzling materials ever since it was created. But just what lies behind the appeal of the painting - and just who was the artist that created it? Delving into the details of real gold, decorative designs, symbolism and simmering erotica, a close study of the painting takes us to the remarkable turn of the century Vienna when a new world was battling with the old. Klimt was a titan of the Art Nouveau movement, creating decadent new worlds which merged tender sensuality, ancient mythology and radical modernity. Discover the scandalous life and the rich tapestry of extraordinary influences behind one of the world's favourite paintings. From the director of Frida Kahlo and Mary Cassatt - Painting the Modern Woman comes a powerful, gripping and passionate new film.

John M. Feierabend, renowned lecturer and researcher in the field of music education, and Peggy Lyman, acclaimed dancer and dance educator, join forces to create Move It!-a vibrant and innovative approach to teaching young children and students of all ages the joy of moving to classical music! This package combines a DVD, guidebook, and audio CD to present 20 imaginative dances set to Classical works from Brahms's "Waltz in A-flat" to Prokofiev's "Romeo and Juliet." The adaptable choreography is perfect for early childhood specialists, elementary music teachers, and dance educators for use with children of all ages, as well as senior citizens and the physically challenged. The movements reflect both the form and the expressive quality of the music, embodying Feierabend's theories of music and movement development and Lyman's belief in the emotional power of gesture. Understanding the organization of movement sequences, exploring personal and general space relating to others, and discovering inner feelings connected to beautifully expressive musical selections and movements-all of this can be achieved with Move It!-an approach as fun and expressive as it is educational!

Monika Steiner, Michael Weber, Friedemann Kalppert, Andreas Tuschi, Daniel Aigner, Oliver Sturm, Wolfgang Konnyu, Martin Lukesch, Doris Engl, Peter Koefler, Herbert Kienast, and Christine Burkhardt star.

“Music? You can’t destroy that…” Anita Lasker-Wallfisch – Why was classical music so important to Hitler and Goebbels? The film centers around two people who represent musical culture during the Third Reich – albeit in very different ways. Wilhelm Furtwängler was a star conductor; Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, the cellist of the infamous Women’s Orchestra of Auschwitz. Both shared a love for the classical German music. The world-famous conductor made a pact with Hitler and his henchmen. The young woman, brought to Auschwitz for being Jewish, was spared death for her musical talent. German music was used to justify the powerful position the Third Reich claimed in the world, and to distract listeners from Nazi crimes. This music documentary by Christian Berger features interviews with musicians like Daniel Barenboim and Christian Thielemann; the children of Wilhelm Furtwängler; and of course 97-year-old survivor Anita Lasker-Wallfisch. Her memories are chilling. Archive film footage, restored and colorized, brings the story to life, and bears witness to an agonizing chapter in history.

A modern Mexican classic provides the basis for a theatrical tale of love, jealousy, repression, and revolution. The Royal Ballet’s 2022 production reunited Artistic Associate Christopher Wheeldon with the stellar creative team who transformed Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and The Winter’s Tale into dance, composer Joby Talbot and designer Bob Crowley. Inspired by Laura Esquivel’s novel, the central character’s emotions spill out through cooking to influence everyone around her in startling and dramatic ways. The full Company, led by Francesca Hayward as Tita and Marcelino Sambé as Pedro, reshape this captivating family saga into a richly layered and engrossing new ballet where passion, mystery and magic combine.