Filmed in 1983, this DVD captures the Metropolitan Opera’s sweeping sets, its army of authentically costumed singers, and a cast of glowing soloists led by Plácido Domingo, Mirella Freni, Grace Bumbry and Nicolai Ghiaurov. Verdi’s drama of private passions played out against a backdrop of intense political battles becomes extra vivid in this immense staging. This Met version, sung in Italian, includes the oft-omitted Fontainebleau scene, as well as the Prelude and Introduction.

Even in an age of thrilling countertenors, Max Emanuel Cencic stands out for the heroic scale and brilliance of his voice, his expansive lyricism, and his imagination and enterprise in choice of repertoire. Cencic has excelled as both a soprano and a mezzo-soprano, and Fantastic Cencic showcases his extraordinary interpretative range – from the great and lesser-known masters of the Baroque to the bel canto of Rossini and composers of the Romantic era from Schubert to Strauss. The third of these three CDs comprises recordings from the early 1990s, shortly after Cencic left the Wiener Sängerknaben, which are released here for the first time.

The Verdi Messa da Requiem is probably the best known Requiem in the repertoire. Many great conductors have recorded it. I’m thinking of Toscanini at New York/1951, Victor De Sabata at Milan/1954 and probably the best known of all Carlo-Maria Giulini at London/1964-65. Some more recent versions have proved popular notably John Eliot Gardiner using period instruments in London/1992, Claudio Abbado at Berlin/2001 and also Nikolaus Harnoncourt at Vienna/2004.

The music in this collection, inspired by religious thought and liturgical text, has been selected in honor of Pope John Paul II's visit to Paris in August of 1997 to celebrate Mass as part of the Worldwide Days of Youth. Much of the music here is very familiar to even casual listeners to classical music. From J. S. Bach's "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring," to a rousing version of "Hallelujah" from Handel's 'Messiah,' this CD plays like a greatest hits of church music from the last 400 years.

Giuseppe Verdi may have written his most glamorous and heroic roles for tenors, but he often assigned his more psychologically complex and conflicted character portrayals to baritones- and Rigoletto is just such a role: perhaps the greatest baritone role ever written. It demands not only a magnificent voice, but also a supremely gifted actor who is able to convey a broad range of emotions, human qualities, and inner subtleties. Enter universally beloved Dmitri Hvorostovsky: a prolific Delos artist and supreme Verdi baritone. The resplendent beauty and incomparable versatility of his voice is matched only by the depth of his interpretive soul. In this- Dmitri’s first ever (and long-awaited) complete recording of Rigoletto- he performs the title role magnificently, along with an all-star supporting cast. Choral-orchestral splendor comes courtesy of renowned maestro Constantine Orbelian, his Kaunas City Symphony Orchestra, and the men of the Kaunas State Choir.

Ein Rückblick auf zehn Jahre Cecilia Bartoli: Die Arie "Non piú mesto" aus der 1992 entstandenen Gesamtaufnahme von Rossinis La Cenerentola ist das älteste Tondokument dieser Anthologie, und mancher, der wie der Rezensent diese Cenerentola damals erworben hat, wird sich gut erinnern an die unbeschreiblich elektrisierende Wirkung, die die junge Italienerin mit ihrem vollblütigen Stimmmaterial, ihrem Temperament und ihrer faszinierenden Virtuosität auf ihn ausübte. Das Besondere: Die Geschwindigkeit der rasend schnellen Koloraturen geht niemals zu Lasten des Ausdrucks oder der Intensität.

Placido Domingo has recorded the role of Otello commercially three times (maybe four–who’s counting?), and each has something to offer. This performance, opening night at La Scala, 1976, when Domingo had been singing the role only slightly more than a year, is the most thrilling and most vocally secure. If it lacks the ultimate in insights and tragedy, it’s hardly empty: even at this stage of his career, Domingo could find the intelligence in each role he sang. His growing impatience with Iago in Act 2, his barely-controlled rage with Desdemona in Act 3, and his towering sadness in the final scene are all the work of a superb singing actor. In addition, the sheer vocal splendor is something to revel in; rarely thereafter were the high notes so brilliant.

The Maggio Musicale in Florence is the oldest and one of the most famous music festivals in Italy. When it’s director, Zubin Mehta, celebrated his 70th birthday, the staging of Giuseppe Verdi’s Falstaff was part of the festivities. The opera was conducted by Zubin Mehta himself and directed by Luca Ronconi.

True lovers of opera know that Verdi’s Ballo in maschera was originally set in Stockholm, at the Court of Gustav III, King of Sweden. That first version was censured for political reasons and Verdi was forced to change names, setting and several passages of the score. But now, on the initiative of Philip Gosset and Ilaria Narici, musicologists of Casa Ricordi, Gustavo III has been reconstructed, thanks, also, to the recent rediscovery of some Verdian manuscripts.

This first-ever, specially remastered collection compiles highlights chosen by Renée of her “most magical experiences”, captured live on stage in this pinnacle of opera houses. Produced by GRAMMY-winning David Frost, the collection features duets with Cecilia Bartoli, Susan Graham, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Samuel Ramey, Bryn Terfel & more. Since her 1991 debut when she stepped in for Felicity Lott, Renée has performed on the MET stage over 250 times and describes the MET as “my musical home, the theater where I feel welcome amongst friends – backstage, onstage, and in the audience.” Renée will return to the MET on 22 November for the world premiere work by Kevin Puts, The Hours, with Joyce DiDonato & Kelli O’Hara.

This 1977 production was highly enthusiastically received. Speight Jenkins, the noted critic and opera impresario, wrote of Cornell MacNeil's Rigoletto in the New York Post that "few have ever sung a more moving denunciation of the courtiers or a better Vengeance Duet with Gilda. His was a great Verdian interpretation… Dramatically (Domingo) and Miss Cotrubas did not make a false move, and the same camn be said for Justino Diaz' ominous, well-sung Sparafucile, Isola Jones, the Maddalena…while John Cheek made a stirring Monterone. conducted with the command of Verdi that has so often been his trademark. His adherence to the composer's markings, his rhythm and his opneing of the traditional small cuts in the opera all made for a superb musical performance.

Levine's powerful and starrily cast DVD of Aida brings a grandly traditional staging…Zajick is a vibrant, powerful Amneris,and Sherrill Milnes, only just past his peak, is a magnificent Amonasro…Levine is in his element, drawing warm and dramatic playing and singing from his formidable team at the Met. (The Penguin Guide)

Of the 10 selections on this disc of Verdi “discoveries”, four are bona fide world premieres, though in one of those, the Variations for Oboe and Orchestra, only the orchestral part is by Verdi. In the late 1830s clarinetist Giacomo Mori hired the young Verdi to provide an orchestra accompaniment to his variations on the theme “Canto di Virginia”. Here, Verdi displays his early skill at handling large orchestral forces, and the same can be said of his Variations for Piano and Orchestra. However, there are few musical hints in these works–or in the Capriccio for Oboe and Orchestra, the Sinfonia in C, or the Adagio for Trumpet and Orchestra–that suggest the great master Verdi was to become.

Au moment de cet enregistrement, au début des années quatre-vingt, Sir Georg Solti était encore tout auréolé du prestige d'une précédente interprétation du Bal masqué réalisée en 33 tours. Plus encore que dans la première mouture, le chef d'origine hongroise exacerbe ici la violence du drame, poussant tous les personnages vers leur destin, dans un souffle épique d'une rare intensité. Une distribution quasiment idéale fait face au chef : un Pavarotti de la grande époque, un Bruson idiomatique et une Christa Ludwig d'une ardeur insoupçonnée.

Arthaus presents the world première of the unabridged version of Don Carlos at the Vienna State Opera, in a staging by the worldrenowned German director Peter Konwitschny. This staging in its unabridged version remains true to Giuseppe Verdi’s originally vision of his grand opera, when it was premiered in Paris in 1867. However, during the rehearsals it soon became clear that Don Carlos would not fi t within the convention of duration, and Verdi was forced, against his will, to make cuts. Over the next 20 years, he would repeatedly turn out new versions of the opera, none of which ultimately left him satisfied.