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Lehár: The Operetta Edition / Bibl, Maurer, Mörbisch Festival Choir and Orchestra

Oehms Classics

$31.99 Jun 18, 2021

‘Arguably one of the strongest recordings in the whole Mörbisch operetta series, this is strongly recommended, and not just to die-hard operetta fans.’ (Fanfare on Der Graf von Luxemburg). This Operetta Edition presents popular works by Franz Lehár that were recorded at the Mörbisch Festival and feature the Mörbisch Festival Choir and Orchestra under the direction of Rudolf Bibl and Wolfdieter Maurer (Der Zarewitsch). The edition comprises Das Land des Lächelns, Giuditta, Die lustige Witwe, Der Graf von Luxemburg and Der Zarewitsch.

REVIEW:

At the helm of the Mörbisch Festival Orchestra is Austrian conductor and pianist Rudolf Bibl (1929-2017), except for Der Zarewitsch under Wolfdieter Maurer. The cast of artists in each of these delightful operettas is far too extensive to identify individually but be assured, each production is echt Lehár and, of course, unmistakably Viennese. The librettos are sung in German.

-- The Whole Note (CA)

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Lehár: The Operetta Edition / Bibl, Maurer, Mörbisch Festival Choir and Orchestra
Oehms Classics Jun 2021
CD
$31.99

Lehár: Der Rastelbinder / ORF Vienna Radio Orchestra

CPO

$36.99 Oct 19, 2004

REVIEW:

CPO continues to show admirable enthusiasm for issuing the works of Lehár. Der Sterngucker (The Stargazer) was issued in Spring 2003 and now along comes this performance of his first operetta. It is a recording of a large-scale radio broadcast made 25 years ago.

The work was staged as a Christmas piece at Vienna's Carl-Theater in December 1902. Despite poor initial reviews its strong cast managed to achieve a long run for the piece. Incidentally, the conductor of the première was the young composer, Zemlinsky. Der Rastelbinder travelled through Europe and reached America in 1909, but now is largely forgotten.

The plot concerns a Slovak child engagement, with children who find it difficult to get on together when grown up. A Prelude is set 12 years earlier than the main action to provide a vehicle for the audience to be given background information of the childhood betrothal. The Prelude and Acts shift the action from Slovakia to Vienna and then to a Viennese army barracks. The settings allow Lehár plenty of scope to introduce different flavours of music appropriate to the action. In this early operetta, we hear, for the first time, a slow waltz that indicates the distinctive viennese style that was to follow and become a Lehár hallmark, 'Wenn zwei sich lieben'.

Helga Papouschek and Elfie Hobarth sing confidently as Mizzi and Suza and the young tinker boy (uncredited) provides a purity of tone, naïvety and innocence. Both Heinz Zednik (the grown up tinker boy) and Adolph Dallapozza (corporal) are strong tenors, the latter having a particularly high register.

The booklet is provided in German, English and French and contains interesting background notes by Stefan Frey as well as a synopsis for the vocal numbers.

-- MusicWeb International

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Lehár: Der Rastelbinder / ORF Vienna Radio Orchestra
CPO Oct 2004
CD
$36.99

Lehár: Tatjana
CPO Sep 2002
CD
$18.99

Lehar: Die Juxheirat / Burkert

CPO

$36.99 Oct 06, 2017

Julius Bauer, a man known not only for his intelligent, original, and witty texts but also as Vienna’s most influential theater critic, wrote the libretto for Die Juxheirat in 1904. This wild, dizzying, surprising, and bold work was far ahead of its times as well as reminiscent of The Taming of the Shrew – only carried to the absolute extreme. The shrew is a frustrated widow and suffragette, and the male protagonist is just the opposite of a lady-tamer: overtaxed and irritated, he just wants to live out his love. Michael Lakner, then the director of the Lehár Festival, declared in an interview, "I am especially fond of this operetta with a story taking us to the United States around 1900. Franz Lehár’s name is above all associated with The Merry Widow, his great worldwide success; a year before he had already written Die Juxheirat. During his lifetime this work was performed only forty times. And we are presenting this conversation operetta in a semi-scenic performance." The conductor Markus Burkert elaborated and reconstructed this work note by note; the musicians pieced their parts together note by note. "They also take this commitment with them into the performance – and play with verve the interesting waltzes, marches, and ensemble pieces. The fact that the Franz Lehár Orchestra also produces a wonderful, transparent, and lively sound makes it the perfect ensemble for the operetta genre." (BR-Klassik Operetta Review). A bold and daring Lehár without his otherwise typical sentimentalities – and a discovery!

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Lehar: Die Juxheirat / Burkert
CPO Oct 2017
CD
$36.99

Lehar: Schon ist die Welt

CPO

$36.99 Aug 16, 2024

In his later stage works, Franz Lehar replaced the happy ending usual for the genre with a bittersweet conclusion filled with painful doubts. In contrast, the ending of the operetta Schon ist die Welt, premiered in 1930, is unsurpassed in it's clarity. Crown Prince Georg and Princess Elisabeth, who were arranged to be married by his father and her aunt respectively, do not want to go through with the arrangement, but end up together in a mountain hut without having met before. They fall in love and realise in the end that the world is quite beautiful after all. Lehar pulls out all the stops of his artistry in this piece. The modern dances and inextinguishable melodies are surprising and he again proves himself to be a master of skilful recycling by bringing the second act of a once dismal story to a new, brilliant life. A highlight of the 2023 Bad Ischl Lehar Festival!

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Lehar: Schon ist die Welt
CPO Aug 2024
CD
$36.99

Lehar: Der Zarewitsch / Seefestspiele Morbisch

Videoland

DVD

$32.99 Apr 14, 2015

2010's Mörbisch Lake Festival has brought an operetta classic to the stage. It has an unusually tragic plot for this genre but became a hit, largely though Richard Tauber’s association with the work. Here the Romanian tenor Tiberius Simu sings the role of the Zarewitsch.

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Lehar: Der Zarewitsch / Seefestspiele Morbisch
Videoland Apr 2015
DVD
$32.99

Lehar: Die lustige Witwe / Schramm, Schock, Stolz
Sony Masterworks Aug 2015
CD
$13.98

Lehar: Cloclo / Burkert, Franz Lehar Orchestra

CPO

$36.99 Sep 04, 2020

No buffo couple, no choruses, no dance scenes, and, most of all, no psychological conflict: the action of Cloclo is not at all typical of Franz Lehár. It is a chamber operetta but more than a mirthful intermezzo for the lyrical opera Paganini: it is its comedic counterpart. The foxtrot “Ich habe La Garçonne gelesen” became the operetta’s hit at the premiere on 8 March 1924. It referred to Victor Margueritte’s novel of the same name about a prototypical young woman of the 1920s who leads an independent existence, wears short dresses and sports a bobbed hairdo, and, to top it all, is a sexual libertine. Unanimously enthusiastic reviews followed last year after the semi-scenic performance on which our recording is based, and the Lehár Festival in Bad Ischl won the coveted “Operettenfrosch July 2019” for this rewarding rediscovery. The Bavarian Radio, full of praise, raved: “Marius Burkhard in the meantime has reached an astonishing level with his Lehár Orchestra. His feel for the right tempos but especially his sense of the tonal values of Lehár’s score attest to his status as one of today’s best operetta conductors. And the most marvelous thing: every member of the orchestra has obvious fun and a smile on her or his face. Don’t be a frog, kiss him. The Operetta Editorial Staff is convinced and offers its congratulations for great operetta courageousness.”

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Lehar: Cloclo / Burkert, Franz Lehar Orchestra
CPO Sep 2020
CD
$36.99

Lehar: Das Furstenkind / Schirmer, Muenchner Rundfunkorchester

CPO

$36.99 Jun 25, 2013

Das Fuerstenkind (The Prince’s Child) has always been an “insider’s tip” in Lehár’s oeuvre, and the composer himself regarded this robbers’ tale from Greece premiered in 1909 as one of his best works. It was also his problem child because it never became a sensational success. The reason may have been due to the works blurring of boundaries between opera and operetta.

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Lehar: Das Furstenkind / Schirmer, Muenchner Rundfunkorchester
CPO Jun 2013
CD
$36.99

Lehár: Das Land De Lächelns / Schirmer, Et Al

CPO

$36.99 Sep 25, 2007

A brand new recording in excellent sound and a Sou-Chong to challenge even the great tenors on other sets … well worth consideration.

After Franz Lehár’s initial success with Die lustige Witwe in 1905 – an operetta that harked back to the jolly 19th century works of Johann Strauss II, Millöcker and Suppé – he gradually changed direction. For him there were to be new dramaturgical models including the “lyric operetta” where the focus is on the ‘inner world of the figures’ as Doris Sennefelder puts it in her perspective building notes to this issue. Paganini, Der Zarewitsch and Friederike are all in this mould and in Das Land des Lächelns a further aspect comes to the fore, the cultural clash between East and West. The Viennese Lisa falls in love with the Chinese Prince Sou-Chong but she can’t accept the demands of Chinese values. As in every operetta of the traditional kind act 2 ends in bitter conflict. So does Die lustige Witwe but there everything is sorted out in the third act as Hanna and Danilo dance away to eternal happiness – or so we believe. In Das Land des Lächelns the conflict is resolved insofar as Sou-Chong allows Lisa to leave China and return to Vienna. He displays some humanity after all but this does not really lead to increased understanding.

The Chinese or ‘Oriental’ setting was by no means unique to opera and operetta of the late 19th and the early 20th century. Massenet’s Le roi de Lahore and Delibes’ Lakmé are well-known examples. Mascagni’s Iris and Puccini’s Madama Butterfly are others and even Gilbert and Sullivan went Asian in The Mikado. Later Lehár and Puccini actually worked in parallel on Chinese projects, Puccini with Turandot and Lehár with Die gelbe Jacke which was premiered in 1923. It was later revised and presented in new guise in 1929 with Richard Tauber in the main lead. Then it was a tremendous success. This was Das Land des Lächelns.

There is no denying that Lehár was a tremendously skilful composer. The Chinese allusions in the score are no less striking than corresponding music in Turandot. The procession with chorus at the beginning of act 2 could just as well have been written by Puccini. It is followed by a highly attractive Chinese ballet suite. Towards the end of the act the wedding procession is colourful and powerful, also incorporating quotations from Sou-Chong’s first act song Von Apfelblüten einen Kranz.

This recording is the fourth of a Lehár operetta from CPO to have come my way the last couple of years and it is in the main very successful. Ulf Schirmer, who also conducted Schön ist die Welt (review), secures excellent playing from the Munich Radio Orchestra. His choices of tempo seem unerringly right. He is very close to Otto Ackermann in the historical 1953 recording now on Naxos (review) and that is my benchmark. The long overture, with quotations from the music that follows, very clearly prepares the listener for a largely serious, even tragic play and the ballet suite in act 2 is excellently played. The chorus is also splendid. For once in a recording with spoken dialogue between the musical numbers the balance is such that one need not turn up the volume every time to hear the dialogue properly. Recorded at three live performances the technicians have succeeded in finding the best of both worlds and there is hardly any evidence of an audience. There is quite a lot of dialogue but it is separately tracked and for repeated listening this leaves the choice open for those who want to hear only the music numbers.

There is a delightful but small-voiced second couple with Julia Bauer’s Mi, who sings a charming dancing song in act 2, and Alexander Kaimbacher’s Gustl, who is agreeably lyrical in the duet with Mi in the same act. Finnish soprano Camilla Nylund as Lisa is a bit uneven and her uppermost notes tend to be rather hard and strained. She can also be lyrically appealing, not least in duet, and in the dark-tinted and operatic finale to act 2 she delivers strong dramatic singing. Prince Sou-Chong is sung by Polish tenor Piotr Beczala and he is plainly superb with a good ring in the more outgoing music. Most of all though he impresses through delicious lyric singing with carefully judged nuances that cannot be taken for granted in operetta.

I have complained in the past about sloppy presentation from CPO but in this respect they have made amends. They give us both a detailed track-list and a fairly good synopsis in three languages. I still think that a full libretto would be useful – even for German speakers.

I am not fully au fait with all existing alternative versions. Ackermann’s recording, mentioned above, with Schwarzkopf, Gedda, Loose and Kunz is a classic and at Naxos price unbeatable. Gedda’s stereo remake with Anneliese Rothenberger as Lisa is a splendid alternative and EMI’s third offer, Boskovsky’s recording with Jerusalem and Helen Donath, also has much to commend it. Robert Stolz with Rudolf Schock and Margit Schramm will certainly give pleasure, though I haven’t heard it, but for a brand new recording in excellent sound and a Sou-Chong to challenge even the great tenors on the other sets, this is well worth consideration.

-- Göran Forsling, MusicWeb International

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Lehár: Das Land De Lächelns / Schirmer, Et Al
CPO Sep 2007
CD
$36.99

Lehár: Dein ist mein ganzes Herz / Nylund, Beczala, Honeck, Wiener Symphoniker

Profil

$32.99 Feb 04, 2022

The 150th anniversary of Franz Lehár's birth was celebrated in 2021 – an anniversary that the Vienna Symphony Orchestra commemorated with this documentary and concert recording. Lehar himself was the founder of the silver operetta era and was also one of the central artistic companions of the orchestra, which was founded in 1900. In the course of its history, the orchestra has performed more than 120 of his works at over 150 events. And Lehár himself stood at the rostrum of the symphony orchestra more than 20 times. His unforgettable melodies have become the symbol of a Viennese musical culture that is still very close to the orchestra's heart, as well as being one of its main areas of expertise. An important premiere venue for many of Lehár's operettas was the Theater an der Wien, where the Vienna Symphony Orchestra recorded this concert under the expert direction of Manfred Honeck. The recording features such illustrious singers from the Vienna State Opera ensemble as the Finnish soprano KS Camilla Nylund and the tenors KS Piotr Beczala and KS Michel Schade, performing the most popular melodies and rousing numbers from Lehár's The Merry Widow, The Land of Smiles, The Tsarevich, The Count of Luxembourg and Giuditta. The documentary skilfully combines certain periods of Lehár's life with excerpts of works recorded especially for this project by the world class Vienna Symphony Orchestra. The interview with Lehár which forms the framework of the film is fictitious, although the composer's answers were compiled from reliable sources and are therefore authentic. This film provides an interesting insight into diverse aspects of Lehár's life and work based on authentic sources, while the music recordings offer a highly enjoyable experience for music lovers.

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Lehár: Dein ist mein ganzes Herz / Nylund, Beczala, Honeck, Wiener Symphoniker
Profil Feb 2022
CD
$32.99

Giuditta / (Dol Sub Ws)

Videoland

DVD

$32.99 Jan 08, 2016

Mehrzad Montazeri, Friedrich Schwardtmann, Dietrich Siegl, Natalia Ushakova, Peter Uray, Stephan Paryla, Julia Bauer, Markus Heinrich, Hans Wolfgang Pemmer, Volker Wahl, Eva Christina Binder, Gunther W. Lummert, Franz Robert Wagner, Bernd Ander, Matthias Kofler, and Megan Sarah Laehn star in this Lehar operetta with Chor und Ballett der Seefestspiele Marbisch and Statisterie der Seefestspiele Marbisch Festival Orchester Marbisch conducted by Rudolf Bibl.

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Giuditta / (Dol Sub Ws)
Videoland Jan 2016
DVD
$32.99

Lehár, Brahms, Kálmán et al: Salon de Budapest / Irnberger, Kašpar

Gramola Records

SACD

$23.99 Sep 09, 2022

Thomas Albertus Irnberger, violin, and Pavel Kašpar, piano, lead us with their album Salon de Budapest into the bourgeois salon of the late 19th century – an oasis amid the ‘good old days’ which weren’t, of course, that good to begin with: mired turmoil, social inequalities, and wars as much and more than ever since. The invited audience were to listen to Hungarian dances by Brahms, Kodály or Rachmaninoff, Csárdás’ by Franz Lehár, Miska Hauser or Jeno Hubay, Romances, Fantasies and other melodies by Tchaikovsky, Leopold Auer, Carl Bohm or Joseph Joachim. Some songs from operettas by Lehár, Jeno Huszka, Emmerich Kálmán and Pongrác Kacsóh with the Hungarian soprano Brigitta Simon complete this musical visit to the Salon de Budapest.

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Lehár, Brahms, Kálmán et al: Salon de Budapest / Irnberger, Kašpar
Gramola Records Sep 2022
SACD
$23.99

Vocal Recital: Schöne, Lotte / Tauber, Richard - Lehar, F. /
Prima Voce Oct 1996
CD
$16.99

Lehár: Eva / Bozic, Fadayomi, Et Al

CPO

$36.99 Jul 25, 2006

cpo are doing great things for lesser known music, many times undeservedly neglected works. The cycle of Kurt Atterberg’s nine symphonies is one recent project, gloriously realised, Carl Loewe’s songs and ballads is another long-time undertaking; I reviewed volume 20 not long ago, and Franz Lehár’s “other” operettas – apart from that handful that is frequently played – have been given brand new recordings. This is the third within a year. They may not always have picked the best singers in the business and presentation has sometimes been a bit slipshod, but operetta lovers must still feel grateful that the music becomes available.

Eva has never been much of a success and set beside some of his other stage-works the musical – or rather – melodic inspiration seems a bit meagre. The only hit-song is Eva’s Lied early in act I, Wär es auch nichts als ein Augenblick, which also appears a couple of times later on in the operetta as a kind of Leitmotif. There are good enough melodies of typical Lehár Schmalz and a great deal of light-hearted rhythmic dances, but they tend to slip out of one’s memory as soon as they are over. What is obvious though is his masterly handling of the orchestra and more than in any other operetta I know gives grateful and attractive solos to many of the instrumentalists in a transparent orchestral web. I think he is closer to Puccini’s sensuality than Richard Strauss’s overblown bombast, even though in the second act finale there are reminiscences of Der Rosenkavalier, which was premiered almost a year before Eva was first performed, on 24 November 1911 at Theater an der Wien. That was the same theatre that also saw the premiere of Die lustige Witwe, and the first Hanna Glawari and Danilo, Mizzi Günther and Louis Treumann, also sang the leading roles in the new operetta.

The libretto is a variant of the old Cinderella story, where the poor factory girl wins the prince, in this case the owner of the glass factory, situated near Brussels. A kind of social realism, one could think, but in the second act we are back in the normal upper class operetta world, in Octave Flaubert’s villa. The third and last act takes us, not for the first time in a Lehár operetta, to Paris. There are rather few arias, and those few are labelled Lied (song) to make them less pretentious, since they are often very short. Most of the musical numbers are duets, but there are no less than three melodramas that grow into songs or duets. The three finales are quite extended numbers, the one in act II is almost 14 minutes long, and here, just as in the melodrama numbers, Lehár works in freer, partly recitative style, more related to opera. It is also in these more ambitious numbers that his inventive scoring is at its most colourful. This recording is complete with all the spoken dialogue, in some places fairly stilted and unatmospheric but there are several heated scenes where the acting is lively and involved. It is a pity, though, as is unfortunately often the case, that the spoken dialogue is recorded at a seemingly lower level. This means that you have to turn up the volume quite a bit to hear it properly and then turn it down again when the music starts. The melodramas are likewise afflicted and even though Lehár has scored the music lightly, the orchestra still tends to mask some of the spoken words. I also regret that the sung and spoken texts are not printed in the booklet, which would have been a great asset even for fluent German speakers. Apart from the balance problem the recording is good without being very atmospheric. It was recorded in the Festival Hall in Bad Ischl, where every summer there is a Lehár festival. Lehár lived in a beautiful villa in Bad Ischl in Salzkammergut in Austria, from 1910 until his death, but he also had a house in Vienna. This recording was not made during performances but with a cast that had played a number of performances and were settled into their roles. Conducted by Wolfgang Bozic, who is well versed in this genre – I have heard him conduct operetta in Vienna – and he finds that typical Lehárian lilt in the music with tempos that feel absolutely right. The chorus is good. There is even some a cappella singing at the beginning of Act I.

Of the soloists Morenike Fadayomi impresses in the title role with a large vibrant dramatic soprano voice. It comes as no surprise to find that she has been singing both Aida and Salome. Reinhard Alessandri, an experienced operetta singer. I saw his Edwin in Die Csardasfürstin at Volksoper some years ago. He is a good actor while his voice is rather small and he has some trouble with the top notes. But he can sing meltingly beautifully when the tessitura is not too high and in the main he makes a positive impression. Zora Antonic as Pipsi is fully into her role and Thomas Malik is just perfect for the comic part as Dagobert with his expressive and fluent buffo tenor. Stefan Frey contributes one of his well-researched liner notes and also a synopsis that unfortunately isn’t related to the track-list, but rather gives a general overview. On the credit side it is nice to have several photos, both from the original production back in 1911 and from the Bad Ischl event.

A matter of swings and roundabouts but operetta lovers will find much to enjoy here.

Göran Forsling, MusicWeb International

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Lehár: Eva / Bozic, Fadayomi, Et Al
CPO Jul 2006
CD
$36.99

SYMPHONIC WORKS
CPO Jan 2011
CD
$36.99

Lehar: Zigeunerliebe [Operetta] / NDR Radiophilharmonie

CPO

$36.99 Jun 21, 2005

REVIEW:

Although the "golden age" of operetta has come and gone, composer Franz Lehár isn't in any real danger of being neglected so long as The Merry Widow continues to tread the boards of the world's stages. But as his first major "hit," and as an operetta stylistically limited by the constraints of contemporary fashion and tradition, The Merry Widow does not provide a full measure of the extent of Lehár's mastery as a composer. Zigeunerliebe (Gypsy Love) is a far better candidate for that qualification, and its first complete recording, now available from CPO, is reason for operetta fans to celebrate. Premiered in 1910, this three-act operetta is closer to being an opera and draws into the musical texture an odd admixture of influences ranging from Wagner to Richard Strauss to pop-styled Hungarian Romani music. Although no one would give credit to Lehár the distinction of being an "experimental composer," he does nonetheless present an experimentally conceived blend of styles here, confirming his own otherwise bewildering comment that "I have always experimented, reached out to something new, often enough against the intentions of directors and publishers." That the middle act is set out in the form of a dream, and that Lehár matches the story to a musico-stylistic pastiche that progresses in the same manner as a dream, shows how far Lehár was willing to go with his experimental ideas.

The music is ravishing, challenging, and extraordinary in every way, and we can be thankful that CPO's recording of Zigeunerliebe is close to ideal. The male singers are the weakest element, but these men are coming from a different tradition of singing related to grand opera and are not comfortable with the less forceful and vibrant requirements of operetta. The women are much better, with Dagmar Schellenberger, in the secondary role of Ilona, being excellent in particular, but Johanna Stojkovic is well more than just adequate in the important lead part of Zarika. The NDR Radiophilharmonie under Frank Beermann is splendid in every bar of this music, and this is important as Lehár's orchestration is in this case particularly ambitious and colorful. True operetta fans will so love Zigeunerliebe that even the relatively minor shortcomings of this set will not matter a great deal. If you have an operetta fan in your family who "has everything," CPO's Zigeunerliebe should probably move to top of one's potential gift list.

-- AllMusic

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Lehar: Zigeunerliebe [Operetta] / NDR Radiophilharmonie
CPO Jun 2005
CD
$36.99

GRAF VON LUXEMBURG, DER (THE C
CPO Aug 2006
DVD
$36.99

Viennese Violin
Telarc Jul 2013
CD
$15.99

Verdi, Mozart, Puccini, Dvořák, Lehár: Rachel / Willis-Sørensen, Kaufmann, Chaslin, Orchestra del Teatro Carlo Felice di Genova

Sony Masterworks

$11.98 Apr 08, 2022

“Rachel” the debut album from American soprano Rachel Willis-Sørenson, showcases the depth and variety of her incredible voice, which leading French daily Le Monde cites as “without a doubt one of the most impressive voices in the opera world.” The album includes key arias and scenes from Verdi, Mozart, Puccini, Dvořák, and Lehár that reflect her stellar career performing on the world’s most prestigious opera stages. Ms. Willis-Sørensen is joined by one of her vocal idols on the famous duet from La Bohème: tenor Jonas Kaufmann, here making his first guest appearance of this kind.

The new album sees this immensely gifted singer, who possesses an impressive vocal and dramatic range, explore a wide swathe of repertoire to showcase her versatility, vocal depth, and artistry. An intimate portrait of the artist at this stage in her career, each piece included on the album was carefully selected by Ms. Willis-Sørensen as she presents a collection of her favorite arias and scenes that she hopes will move the listener as they have moved her. Her dramatic expressivity and vocal virtuosity are both on display in full force, in arias ranging from the album’s centerpiece Verdi scenes, with weighty roles such as Desdemona in Otello, Leonora in Il Trovatore and Violetta in La Traviata, to the ‘Vilja-Lied’ from Lehár’s operetta The Merry Widow and ‘Song to the Moon’ from Dvořák’s Rusalka.

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Verdi, Mozart, Puccini, Dvořák, Lehár: Rachel / Willis-Sørensen, Kaufmann, Chaslin, Orchestra del Teatro Carlo Felice di Genova
Sony Masterworks Apr 2022
CD
$11.98

Lehár: The Merry Widow / Kenny, Skovhus, Kirchschlager

Opus Arte

DVD

$34.99 Aug 01, 2003

Sung in English

Region Code: All regions
Picture format: 16/9 Anamorphic
Sound format: Dolby Digital stereo, Dolby 5.1 surround
Menu languages: English
Subtitles: French/German/Spanish
Running time: 120 minutes

"It's a wonderfully rich piece of musical theatre, of course gorgeous melodies but also the story touches on some real basic truths about human relationships" -- Director Lotfi Mansouri

BBC Opus Arte are proud to release Lotfi Mansouri's spectacular last production as General Director of The San Francisco Opera with Yvonne Kenny making her debut in the title role of the Merry Widow. To bring fresh insight into Lehár's classic operetta new dialogue was specially commissioned from Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, Wendy Wasserstein. Also an original ballet was composed to set the scene 'Chez Maxime.' This production also features another world premiere, Njegus's song "Quite Parisian" although Lehár in fact, wrote it later.

Extra Features:
* Illustrated Synopsis
* Cast Gallery
* "Impressions" - Lotfi Mansouri, Yvonne Kenny, Bo Skovhus, Angelika Kirchschlager and Gregory Turay discuss The Merry Widow.
* Illustrated booklet with an essay by Camille Crittenden examining what insight the Merry Widow gives into women's roles in fin-de-siecle Vienna.

Reviews

‘A production that deftly captures the sparkle and eroticism of Lehar’s music. I love it. Under Erich Kunzel, the orchestra brings out all the sparkle and eroticism of Lehár's bewitching melodies and orchestrations. Best of all, perhaps, are Michael Yeargan's sets and Thierry Bosquet's costumes. The gently varied range of colours as the curtain rises on the Widow's lamp-lit Act 2 party is quite simply breathtaking, and Act 3, too, is a riot of colour. Enjoy!’ The Gramophone

‘Mansouri’s staging, lavishly kitted out in elegant Jugendstil sets and costumes by Michael Yeargan and Thierry Bosquet, achieves the rare feat of bringing off the work’s unique mix of boulevard farce and sophisticated eroticism.’ The Independent

‘…this is about as lavish a production of Franz Lehár’s adorable operetta as you are ever likely to see…soprano Yvonne Kenny is perfectly cast in the title role.’ Classic FM Magazine

‘Michael Yeargan’s glamorous and beautifully-wrought designs and Thierry Bosquet’s extravagant costumes. We see all too little of this kind of splendour in these cash-strapped days.’ Opera

"Franz Lehar's immortal Merry Widow is presented here in a San Francisco Opera production recorded during a performance Dec. 8, 2001 at the War Memorial Opera House. New dialogue from Pulitzer Prize-winning playright Wendy Wasserstein adds to the production as does an original ballet during the 'Chez Maxim' scene. The entire cast is superb, with soprano Yvonne Kenny singing the title role for the first time and doing so brilliantly. Angelika Kirschschlager, who already has to her credit a superb SACD of Bach arias (REVIEW), is wonderful as Valencienne. In addition to fine singing throughout, all of the singers are attractive, the many stretches of dialogue spoken with style. Everything about this production is first-rate, the beautiful sets and costumes are perfect, camera work exemplary, and the Dolby digital surround sound totally natural." - CLASSICAL CD REVIEW

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Lehár: The Merry Widow / Kenny, Skovhus, Kirchschlager
Opus Arte Aug 2003
DVD
$34.99

Sale

Solosonaten und Trios von Leopold Mozart
Oehms Classics Nov 2012
CD
~~$31.99~~ $15.99

Dostal: Die Ungarische Hochzeit / Burkert, Franz Léhar Orchester

CPO

$36.99 Sep 30, 2016

This album follows many successful operetta albums released by CPO. This newest addition is Die ungarische Hochzeit by Nico Dostal, a work premiered in Stuttgart in 1939 but rarely performed today. Nico Dostal was very successful both as an operetta composer and a film composer. Alongside this release, Cilvia is regarded as his best operetta music.

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Dostal: Die Ungarische Hochzeit / Burkert, Franz Léhar Orchester
CPO Sep 2016
CD
$36.99

Lehar: Merry Widow / Kenny, Skovhus, Kirchschlager [Blu-ray]

Opus Arte

Blu-Ray

$39.99 Mar 30, 2010

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

Franz Léhar
THE MERRY WIDOW
(Sung in English)
(Blu-ray Disc Version)

Anna Glawari – Yvonne Kenny
Count Danilo Danilovitch – Bo Skovhus
Valencienne – Angelika Kirchschlager
Camille de Rosillon – Gregory Turay
Baron Mirko Zeta – Carlo Hartmann
Vicomte Cascada – Curtis Sullivan
Raoul de St. Brioche – Jonathan Boyd
Kromow – Bob Amaral
Olga – Marnie Breckenridge
Pritschitch – William Saetre
Praskowia – Jayne Taini
Bogdanovitch – Peter Strummer
Sylviane – Colleen McGrath
Njegus – Elijah Chester
Zozo – Janice Lynde
Maître d’hôtel – Matt Logan

San Francisco Opera Ballet
San Francisco Opera Chorus
San Francisco Opera Orchestra
Erich Kunzel, conductor

Lotfi Mansouri, stage director

Recorded live at the War Memorial Opera House, San Francisco on 8 December 2001.

Bonus:
- Illustrated synopsis and cast gallery
- Impressions - Lotfi Mansouri, Yvonne Kenny, Bo Skovhus, Angelika Kirchschlager and Gregory Turay discuss The Merry Widow.

Picture format: 1080i High Definition
Sound format: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 and 4.0
Region code: 0 (worldwide)
Menu language: English
Subtitles: French, German, Spanish
Running time: 189 mins
No. of DVDs: 1 (BD 50)

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Lehar: Merry Widow / Kenny, Skovhus, Kirchschlager [Blu-ray]
Opus Arte Mar 2010
Blu-Ray
$39.99

Alone
SteepleChase Oct 1998
CD
$38.99