In setting the scene or furthering the action on stage, the opera chorus often provides some
memorable aural scenery in works by composers from Claudio Monteverdi to Arnold
Schoenberg, and this collection offers a representative selection of examples from both those
composers, and well as a number of others. Recorded on 14 January 2004, this concert of the
Stuttgart Staatsopernchor and Staatsorchester offered a program devoted to memorable choruses.
Category: Reviews
Große Opernchöre ó Great Opera Choirs
MAHLER: Symphony no. 6
Based from concerts given on 22 August, 7 September, and 8 September 2005, this recording of
Mahler’s Sixth Symphony is the latest release of the Concertgebouw’s own RCO Live label.
Teseo ó Handel by the Sea
Nice Opera, on the French Cote d’Azur, seemed a most suitable place for this early work by
Handel.
Das Gänsebuch (The Geesebook): German Medieval Chant
In their attempt to recreate a combination of musical styles typical of fifteenth- and sixteenth-century Nürnberg, Schola Hungarica and its directors László Dobszay & Janka Szendrei have chosen selections from the Gänsebuch, described as the “only complete extant source for the pre-Reformation liturgy of the mass in Nürnberg.” [CD liner-notes, p. 3]
PAISIELLO: Gli Astrologi immaginari
I never heard the 1966 live recording with Margherita Rinaldi and Paolo Montarsolo and I don’t
have a clue what the sound picture is like.
Angela Gheorghiu, Los Angeles
A near-capacity audience, expectant and enthusiastic, streamed into the Dorothy Chandler for an old-fashioned evening of operatic glamour, as Angela Gheorghiu, with the Los Angeles Opera Orchestra in support, flew into town for a one night concert.
The Tempest at Covent Garden
This year is Thomas Adés’ annus mirabilis. He’s the subject of a major, six-week retrospective at the Barbican, and, of course, will be a major presence at the Aldeburgh Festival.
The Gondoliers — English National Opera
Speaking to a trusted chorus-member friend after this performance, I was told that I had benefited from not having seen this production when new three months ago.
LA Opera “Recovered Voices”
Just about halfway though his first season as music director of Los Angeles Opera, James Conlon has already made himself an endearing and appreciated figure.
Native-American Drama at Opera Omaha
Perhaps the gestation period for ìWakondaís Dream,î premiered by Opera Omaha on March 7, was too long.