Rossini, Gioacchino

Rossini: La Cenerentola [Blu-ray]

Rossini - La Cenerentola / Frederica von Stade, Francisco Araiza, Paolo Montarsolo, Claudio Desderi, Laura Zannini, Claudio Abbado

Rossini - Il Barbiere Di Siviglia (The Barber of Seville)

â€Â¢ Acclaimed tenor, Juan Diego Flórez in one of his greatest stage roles.

â€Â¢ Two disc set of the critically praised new production from Madrid’s Teatro Real.

â€Â¢ A top international cast including soprano María Bayo and the great bass baritone Ruggiero Raimondi.

â€Â¢ Includes a bonus disc featuring a fascinating look into the creation of Rossini's comic masterpiece.

Cast List
María Bayo (Rosina)
Juan Diego Flórez (Count Almaviva)
Pietro Spagnoli (Figaro)
Bruno Praticò (Doctor Bartolo)
Ruggiero Raimondi (Don Basilio)
Marco Moncloa (Fiorello)
Susana Cordón (Berta)
Chorus and Orchestra of the Teatro Real, Madrid
Gianluigi Gelmetti, conductor
Directed by Emilio Sagi

Rossini: Il Barbiere di Siviglia (The Barber of Seville)/ Bartoli, G. Quilico, Kuebler, Feller, R. Lloyd; Ferro/Schwetzingen Festival

Rossini was 24 years old when in 1816 he wrote his seventeenth opera and most renowned "buffa", The Barber of Seville, in barely three weeks. The accompanying recording is from the 1988 Schwetzinger Festspiele. The production by Michael Hampe, director of the Cologne Opera at that time, is distinguished by humorous direction of movement which never degenerated into slapstick. It aimed for a high tempo and abandoned the alienation effect to allow for an increasing exuberance in performance by the protagonists. Ezio Frigerios's stage settings are equally as appealing to the eye as Mauro Pagano's costumes, whose design consciously strengthens the comic impact of the characters. Resounding from the orchestra pit is an exceptionally defined, coherent and graceful performance of Rossini's composition. Gabriele Ferro appreciates how to effect subtle differentiations and in so doing strikes an ideal balance between the orchestra and the stage. The choir ensemble is first class, led by an irresistible Cecilia Bartoli.

Rossini - L'Italiana in Algeri

Rossini - La Pietra del Paragone

Rossini - Il Barbiere di Siviglia

Like all successfully filmed operas, Jean-Pierre Ponnelle's 1974 film of his 1972 La Scala production of The Barber of Seville weaves its magic on multiple levels: naturalistic lighting and camera work that take the viewer to the heart of the action; wonderful casting and magnificent singing; singers who can act; and conducting (by Claudio Abbado) that simply revels in the richness of an extraordinarily vibrant and much-loved score.

Rossini's 1816 work, based on Beaumarchais's Figaro characters, is one of the great joys of comic opera, crammed with familiar arias and duets, all of which drive the galloping pace of the book without ever interrupting the plot. At the heart of the tale is Figaro (Hermann Prey, making the most of his trademark theme "Largo al factotum") and the love triangle of Count Almaviva (a lusty Luigi Alva), the willful Rosina (Teresa Berganza at the peak of her mezzo-soprano powers), and her guardian with an ulterior motive Bartolo (Enzo Dara). --Piers Ford

Rossini - Il Viaggio a Reims

Rossini - La Cenerentola

Rossini - Ermione / Antonacci, Ford, Montague, Austin Kelly, Howell, Nilon, Lopez-Yanez, Unwin, Davis, Glyndebourne Opera

Recorded at Glyndebourne's superb opera house, this lavishly praised production of Rossini's forgotten and unusual tragic opera has proved to be an unequivocal success. Based on Racine's Andromaque, this account of the Greek and Trojan love tangle has been set by Graham Vick in the classically-inspired auditorium of an Italian opera house, rather than in ancient Greece. The set designs, with their striking colours, forms and lighting are as if created especially for the small screen.With the London Philharmonic Orchestra. Subtitles: English / French / German / Italian / Portuguese / Spanish. "Ermione leapt into the house as a drama - engaging, fiery, tragic, profound" OPERA "Glyndebourne pulls out all the stops to do a rarely performed Rossini tragedy proud ... Monday will surely go down in Glyndebourne's history as one of the Great Nights - the first time it has mounted one of Rossini's serious operas, and done so with outstanding success ... As Ermione galloped with headlong momentum to its hair-raising finishing line, you felt you had been through an emotional car-wash ..." THE TIMES