The Metropolitan Opera: Eugene Onegin

Queen at the BBC

November 2021 •English

A trip through the archives that serves up an hour of killer Queen material, featuring some of the band's greatest musical moments ever delivered to our screens. The legendary band’s huge international status and punishing touring schedules meant that over the years they made surprisingly few appearances on programmes like Top of the Pops, and tragically for their fans, several of those performances were either lost or never recorded. This collection brings together the very best of what’s survived from one of the most enduring and best-loved acts in British rock, featuring perhaps the most charismatic and best-loved frontman of all time. Amongst the gems are moments from the band’s celebrated 1975 concert at London’s Hammersmith Odeon and highlights from their trips to the prestigious Montreux Pop Festival in the 1980s – an event that would attract the cream of the world’s music acts every year.

The Rolling Stones: Live from London 1995

July 1995 •English

As part of their 1994/1995 Voodoo Lounge world tour, the Rolling Stones gave a handful of small-scale, stripped-down concerts in Europe as a kind of response to 'MTV Unplugged.' This show that took place on July 19, 1995 at the Brixton Academy in London, a venue with a capacity of about 5000, was the final of a total of four club shows. The other shows were held in Paris and Amsterdam, and all of them were recorded for a forthcoming album, which was eventually named 'Stripped' and released on November 13, 1995. Two songs from the London show made it on the album, namely "Dead Flowers" and the Bob Dylan-penned "Like a Rolling Stone," with the latter also being released as the lead single off the album. "Black Limousine" and "Live with Me" from this show were chosen as the B-sides for the singles "Like a Rolling Stone" and "Wild Horses," respectively. The full Brixton Academy concert was released on DVD and SD Blu-ray as part of the 'Totally Stripped' deluxe boxed set on June 3, 2016.

The Rolling Stones: Live from Paris 1995

July 1995 •English

In November of 1995, the Rolling Stones released the acclaimed album 'Stripped,' their second release on the Virgin Records label after 1994's 'Voodoo Lounge.' The concept for 'Stripped,' a studio/live hybrid album with stripped-down instrumentation, was conceived as a kind of response to 'MTV Unplugged' while the band was on their big-scale 1994/1995 world tour in support of 'Voodoo Lounge.' A total of four stripped-down concerts were held at small venues in Amsterdam, Paris and London, and recorded for the album 'Stripped.' The concert that was released under the title "Live from Paris 1995" on DVD and SD Blu-ray as part of the 2016 'Totally Stripped' deluxe boxed set took place on July 3, 1995 at the Paris Olympia, a venue with a capacity of about 2000. Three songs from this intimate concert were included on the original 'Stripped' album, namely "Shine a Light," "Let It Bleed" and "Angie."

Lisa Limone and Maroc Orange: A Rapid Love Story

March 2013 •Estonian

Main hero is a singing boat refugee – orange boy Maroc. He dreams about freedom. Lemon girl Lisa collects singing seashells and dreams about love. Lisa’s father is a businessman, owner of a ketchup factory and tomato plantation. He loves money. And so the opera begins: Poor Maroc escapes from his homeland and defying stormy waters take a boat across the sea to the “promised land”. Upon arrival he is forced into being a slave worker in a tomato plantation instead of freedom, democracy, wealth and parties he had hoped for. Despite the initial let down our orange boy is destined to gain happiness – selfish Lisa falls in love with him and sets him free. We see an orange revolution – houses are blown up and tomatoes are made from ketchup, all in the name of democracy! Movie that is full of rebellion and love has happy ending – we will see sour-sweet culmination of lemon girl’s and orange boy’s love.

Hadrian

August 2020 •English

Rufus Wainwright's original opera finds Emperor Hadrian devastated after his lover Antinous drowns in the Nile River. While matters of state encroach on his grief, and advisors clamour for war against a radical new threat to the Empire, Hadrian slips out of time to re-encounter the vision and reality of Antinous—and learn the truth about what happened on the Nile.

PLAY! A Video Game Symphony

January 2009 •English

From the creative team that brought you the ground breaking Dear Friends-Music from FINAL FANTASY Symphony Tour, comes an entirely new celebration of video game music and images: PLAY! A Video Game Symphony is a Symphony world-tour featuring music from blockbuster video games. The music is performed by some of the finest, world-class orchestras and choirs. All concerts take place in classy, prestigious venues. Graphics on large screens suspended above the orchestra accompany the scores, highlighting memorable moments from the video games.

S.S.T. Band Live

November 1990 •Japanese

A game music festival held at the Nippon Seinenkan on 25th August, 1990 and released on home video. Featuring Sega Sound Team performing numerous Sega classics live on stage.

Blind Spot Live!

February 2013 •Japanese

Formed by the members of the original Sega Sound Team, Blind Spot celebrates SEGA's classic music live on stage. The DVD is a recording of the 2012 performance at the Takadanobaba Club Phase.

Die Meistersinger Von Nürnberg

December 2001 •German

James Morris leads an all-star cast including Karita Mattila, Ben Heppner, Thomas Allen and René Pape, in this production of Wagner's comic opera, recorded live at New York's Metropolitan Opera in 2001. James Levine conducts.

Der Rosenkavalier

August 2004 •English

This 2004 production of Richard Strauss's three-act comic opera Der Rosenkavalier (1911) emerged from the efforts of the Grosses Festspielhaus Salzburg. It stars Adrianne Pieczonka as Feldmarschallin, Franz Hawlata as Baron Ochs, Angelika Kirchschlager as Octavian and Franz Grundheber as Faninal. The Konzertvereinigung Wiener Staatsopernchor and the Wiener Philharmoniker lend added musical support, with Rupert Huber serving as chorus master of the former and Semyon Bychkov conducting the latter.

Der Rosenkavalier

January 1979 •German

This performance of Richard Strauss' opera Der Rosenkavalier (1979) features the vocal talents of Gwyneth Jones in the lead role; recorded at the National Theatre Munich.

Der Rosenkavalier

January 1994 •German

Felicity Lott, Anne-Sofie Von Otter, and Kurt Moll star in this production of Richard Strauss' opera, staged in Vienna in 1994. A romantic comedy of errors. Princess von Werdenberg must hide her affair with Octavian from her family; when he disguises himself as a chambermaid to avoid scandalizing the Princess, he is pressed into presenting a gift to Baron Ochs von Lerchenau, who has arrived to propose marriage to Sophie von Faninal. However, Ochs soon finds himself infatuated with the chambermaid, much to Octavian's chagrin, which proves to be only the first of a long series of romantic misunderstandings. This production of Der Rosenkavalier is performed by the Vienna State Orchestra and Chorus, under the direction of Carlos Kleiber.

Boris Godunov

January 1987 •English

Mussorgsky's quintessential Russian opera is captured live on stage in this performance by the Bolshoi Opera featuring Rimsky-Korsakov's revised vision and starring Evgeny Nesternko and Vladislav Piavko.

Boris Godunov

January 1990 •English

Modest Mussorgsky's opera in prologue and four acts is performed by the Kirov Opera with performances from Olga Borodina, Alexei Steblianko and Sergei Leiferkust. Boris Godunov has obtained the throne of Russia by murdering the rightful heir Dmitry. An old monk, Pimen, witnessed this, and convinces his apprentice Grigory to avenge Dmitry's death. In the following years Grigory poses as Dmitry, raising an army against Boris, who is now convinced that he is being punished for the murder. Filmed in Russia during the collapse of the Soviet Union, this particular production of Mussorgsky's 1872 tale of political upheaval is considered a highly unique and historical moment in opera. Robert Lloyd stars in the title role of Boris Godunov.

Antikrist

January 2002 •English

A religious mystery opera; a magnificent doomsday vision. Composer Rued Langgaard's opera on the moral decay of modern society features the Royal Danish Opera and the Danish National Symphony Orchestra conducted by Thomas Dausgaard. Performers include Sten Byrel, Anne Margrethe Dahl, John Lundgren and Camilla Nylund. A Danish co-production by the Royal Danish Opera and the Danish Broadcasting corporation from 2002.

Elektra

January 1989 •English

Recorded at the Vienna State Opera house in 1989, this staging of Richard Strauss and Hugo von Hofmannsthal’s Elektra is one of the glories of live opera on film, deserving of eternal availability. The DVD picture has great clarity, despite the darkness of Hans Schavernoch’s set design. Other than the cliché of a huge statue head, toppled on its side, the set manages to be suitably representative of a decaying palace as well as an imposing, theatrical space, dominated by the mammoth body of the statue from which the head apparently dropped, draped with the ropes that seem to have enabled the decapitation. Sooner or later most of the characters cling to and twist around those ropes, an apt stage metaphor for the remorseless repercussions from the murder of Agammenon by his unfaithful wife Klytämnestra and her paramour, Aegisthus. Reinhard Heinrich’s costumes capture a distant era while sustaining a creepily modern look — part Goth, part homeless, part Spa-wear.

Die Soldaten

January 1989 •German

Nancy Shade is persuasive as the awkward adolescent Marie, whose naiveté leads relentlessly to her downfall. Michael Ebbecke is sympathetic as Stolzius, her jilted lover and avenger, while William Cochran is properly brutish as Desportes, the officer who initiates her spiral of decline. Bernhard Kontarsky gets a dedicated response from his Stuttgart Opera forces, who perform with belief in this often excessive but always engrossing work. Recorded at the Staatsoper Stuttgart, 1989.

Christmas with The Chosen: The Messengers

December 2021 •English

A theatrical event combining a Christmas special episode of The Chosen titled, “The Messengers,” and a night of music and Christmas celebration with some of CCM’s biggest names.

Mozart: Idomeneo Teatro Real de Madrid

February 2019 •German

Giuseppe Verdi - I due Foscari

February 2016 •Italian

In his 'new life' as a baritone, Placido Domingo has triumphed in the role of Francesco Foscari in Los Angeles, London and Vienna. Now he takes to the role to La Scala, Milan, the theatre that is the symbol of Italian opera. I due Foscari, premiered in 1844, famously one of Verdi's darkest operas, is staged by Alvis Hermanis, who made such an impact at the Salzburg Festival with "Die Soldaten" and "Il trovatore". Domingo is joined by two of Italy's most exciting singers, the soprano Anna Pirozzi and the tenor Francesco Meli, and the acclaimed Italian conductor Michele Mariotti. The Financial Times was deeply moved by Domingo's performance, calling his interpretation of the role "sublime".