What opera have you been listening to, lately?

[Floria]

Spontini: La Vestale
1954
Callas, Corelli, Rossi-Lemeni, Stignani
Votto

[Clayton]

Spontini: La Vestale
1954
Callas, Corelli, Rossi-Lemeni, Stignani
Votto...

I haven't heard this in a while, I have the La Scala Memories release but I only listened to it once. This post has reminded me to revisit

[Clayton]

Saariaho: L'Amour de loin
Daniel Belcher, tenor (Jaufré Rudel), Ekaterina Lekhina, soprano (Clémence) & Marie-Ange Todorovitch, mezzosoprano (Le Pèlerin)
Rundfunkchor Berlin & Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Kent Nagano
Recorded 2006/2008



This is the second time I have come to Tripoli. The first time was way by the Esa-Pekka Salonen/Finnish National Opera DVD and I was teetering on whether to call it a desert island dvd
This time round I think it's better. Unsure as to whether this is as I am more familiar with the work so am picking up more or if it is Nagano presenting me with more. It sounds like he is making more poetry out of the score. I think I prefer the cast (all three) of the Esa-Pekka Salonen production but there is little between them.
I would be happy to recommend either dvd or cd.
Oh, and I do think it is a masterpiece.

[Hoffmann]

Will you two just stop it, you're torturing me!! Have you seen how much it is?

Well, I recently came across this new recording of La Gazza Ladra and, I must admit, I don't know most of the singers (except Kenneth Tarver, and then only by reputation - good), but I'm tempted. Oh.. Look at the price!

http://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/r/N...m_medium=email

[Hoffmann]

Lovely opera, lovely recording. Lots of good music.

[Clayton]

That's funny, because as someone reminded me of Edita yesterday, I was just listening to the same!

Donizetti: Linda di Chamounix
Edita Gruberova, Don Bernardini, Monika Groop, Ettore Kim, Stefano Palatchi, Anders Melander, Ulrika Precht, Klas Hedlund
Mikaeli Chamber Choir, Members of the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Freidrich Haider
Recorded live September 1993, Berwaldhallen, Stockholm

[Florestan]

Well, I recently came across this new recording of La Gazza Ladra and, I must admit, I don't know most of the singers (except Kenneth Tarver, and then only by reputation - good), but I'm tempted. Oh.. Look at the price!

http://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/r/N...m_medium=email

Or this one, which is found on Ebay for $7 (Clips here):


Or a DVD I found on Ebay for $10.55:

[Ann Lander (sospiro)]

Well, I recently came across this new recording of La Gazza Ladra and, I must admit, I don't know most of the singers (except Kenneth Tarver, and then only by reputation - good), but I'm tempted. Oh.. Look at the price!

http://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/r/N...m_medium=email

Thank you!

[Clayton]

Stayed with Donizetti but distracted from listening pile by Almaviva mentioning Christopher Purves (so easily distracted)

Donizetti: Maria di Rohan
Krassimira Stoyanova (Maria di Rohan), José Bros (Riccardo), Christopher Purves (Enrico), Brindley Sherratt, Loïc Félix (Armando di Gondì), Graeme Broadbent (Il Visconte di Suze), Christopher Turner (Aubry), Riccardo Simonetti (Un Familiare di Chevreuse); Enkelejda Shkosa (mezzo - appendix arias)
Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Sir Mark Elder
2009



Jeremy Commons in the accompanying booklet calls this one of two of Donizetti's "pruned" operas - operas which show him experimenting with ways of creating tense and unrelieved drama (the other of which is Imelda de' Lambertazzi)

[Hoffmann]

That's funny, because as someone reminded me of Edita yesterday, I was just listening to the same!

Donizetti: Linda di Chamounix
Edita Gruberova, Don Bernardini, Monika Groop, Ettore Kim, Stefano Palatchi, Anders Melander, Ulrika Precht, Klas Hedlund
Mikaeli Chamber Choir, Members of the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Freidrich Haider
Recorded live September 1993, Berwaldhallen, Stockholm

I know it's Edita, so it has to be great/good...right? I see that it's a live recording - how's the sound?

[Clayton]

then I was going to continue with Purves and listen to Parrott's L'Orfeo but was distracted by idea of Monteverdi and Emanuela Galli (so easily distracted)

Monteverdi: L'incoronazione di Poppea
Naples manuscript version
Emanuela Galli (Poppea), Roberta Mameli (Nerone), Josè Maria Lo Monaco (Ottone), Xenia Meijer (Ottavia), Ian Honeyman (Arnalta) & Raffaele Costantini (Seneca)
La Venexiana, Claudio Cavina
2009



Emanuela Galli is the second most beautiful woman on the planet

[Clayton]

I know it's Edita, so it has to be great/good...right? I see that it's a live recording - how's the sound?

The sound is very good, well balanced between singers and orchestra (singers voices are forward and does not sound like theatre sound), there is no stage noise (no wooden clogs on these feet or comedy props falling over or regie guns going off(I really hate that) as I think it is concert performance), and the very polite Swedish audience (or any nationality audience who happened to be in Sweden to watch this performance) clap only after the music stops.

[Clayton]

I was going to listen to Krol Roger as I want to watch the streamed performance tomorrow and have been inspired by Annie's homework approach but I had the Parrott L'Orfeo and so was distracted again (so easily distracted)

Monteverdi: L'Orfeo
Charles Daniels (Orfeo), Faye Newton (Euridice), Emily Van Evera (Messaggiera), Clare Wilkinson (Speranza/Proserpina), Curtis Streetman (Caronte), Christopher Purves (Plutone), Anna Dennis (Ninfa), Guy Pelc (Apollo), Rodrigo del Pozo, Simon Wall, Gareth Morrell Robert Macdonald (Pastori), Richard Latham, Gareth Morrell, Curtis Streetman, (Spiriti infernali)
Taverner Consort & Players, Andrew Parrott
2012



Andrew Parrott and the Taverner Consort & Players definitely laid their mark here as in original interpretations (though that probably gets said every time a new interpretation that is different is made). I like some of the echo and tunnel sounds which sound authentic, almost like in the style of Harry Christopher performance of vespers.

[Clayton]

oh, it's only 5:08pm. I forgot I woke up today at 4:30am so managed to enjoy much opera. I can still fit in another after tea (that's English for supper at this time of day, as opposed to tea at any other time of day which is, tea). Maybe I'll listen to Krol Roger. That's my plan for the moment.
Though I do so easily get distracted.

[Ann Lander (sospiro)]

oh, it's only 5:08pm. I forgot I woke up today at 4:30 am so managed to enjoy much opera. I can still fit in another after tea (that's English for supper at this time of day, as opposed to tea at any other time of day which is, tea). Maybe I'll listen to Krol Roger. That's my plan for the moment.
Though I do so easily get distracted.

You do surprise me