CD-Charts Position 1
Average Rating:

Donizetti - Don Pasquale

starring: Juan Diego Florez, Ruggero Raimondi, Isabel Rey, Oliver Widmer, Valeriy Murga
directed by: Grischa Asagaroff

Release Date September 25, 2007
What a shame that the only existing DVD of Juan Diego Florez in one of his signature roles is in this wrong-headed "Don Pasquale." Wrong-headed because once again we have an opera director for whom restraint seems to be a four-letter word. Yes, this is opera buffa, but as anyone who has seen a successful performance of this piece knows, the moments of comedy are leavened with those of genuine heart and poignancy. None of which is in evidence here...unless Senor Florez is on stage -- alone. The opening of Act II is magnificently sung, passionate and sincere. Donizetti is known for giving his tenors these moments of emotional clarity in his comic operas, and Florez makes the most of it; honestly, I've never heard him sing better. And then ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 2
Average Rating:

Rossini - Il Turco in Italia / Bartoli, Raimondi, Macias, Rumetz, Schmid, Welser-Most, Zurich Opera

starring: Ruggero Raimondi, Cecilia Bartoli, Paolo Rumetz, Reinaldo Macias, Oliver Widmer
directed by: Thomas Grimm

Release Date March 22, 2005
Il Turco in Italia is much less well-known than Rossini's L'Italiana in Algieri, but I like it better. It feels so contemporary, with a plot revolving around marital difficulties. The short three-part arias are an inventive break from the usual opera format, making Il Turco particularly accessible to newcomers to the art form. The entire cast is superb, led by Cecilia Bartoli whose coloratura is crystal clear and sparkling. And she has great comedic timing.

This would be a wonderful opera for young people. The energetic cast are all having a great time onstage. The costumes and sets are a feast for the eyes, so colorful and creative. It has a zany plot, short arias and ensemble pieces, quite a bit of slapstick, and a nice little moral ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 3
Average Rating:

Mozart - Cosi Fan Tutte / Harnoncourt, Bartoli, Nikiteanu, Zurich Opera

starring: Cecilia Bartoli, Liliana Nikiteanu, Agnes Baltsa, Roberto Saccà, Oliver Widmer
directed by: Brian Large

Release Date July 17, 2001
`Cosi fan tutte' is as rich as life itself and this production does it justice. Production really is the word, because the performance offers much more than excellent singers and fine orchestra. The stage direction, sets, and costumes deserve as much praise as the musicians. From the first minutes of the overture--when the rippling deep blue seems the perfect color for this opera--to the stunning finale, sets and lighting work in unison with the music. It is refreshing to see a production that abandons the `girls in pink lace' kinds of conventions that sometimes plague Mozart performances. The darker, more abstract and more intense color palette is far more appealing. It creates an atmosphere that is at once vibrant and alluringly intimate. The sets are never needlessly ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 4
Average Rating:

Offenbach - La Belle Helene / Harnoncourt - Complete Opera

starring: Hartmut Schottler, Vesselina Kasarova, Deon van der Walt, Carlos Chausson, Volker Vogel
directed by: Jakob Baumann

Release Date June 26, 2001
I'm agreeing with CT Havadas' review. And noting that this VHS performance IS NOT from the same performance as in the DVD version.

Kasarova is fantastic in both... slightly more vocally alluring in the VHS than in the DVD version. Drop dead gorgeously sultry voice and knows how to use it. The singing of the Act II duet 'C'est ne qu'un reve' is virtually x-rated in a very classy way.. Though in the VHS more than in the DVD, some shots of her are not flattering (somehow the square jaws don't go well with the stiff blond wig).

Van de Walt is in glorious voice in the DVD version, on the VHS performance he just gets by... and with shaky high notes (the VHS version of 'Au Mont Ida' is at a slightly draggier tempo, too).

Chausson is the perfect Chalcas, ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 5
Average Rating:

Johann Strauss - Simplicius / Welser-Most, Volle, Zysset, Zurich Opera House

starring: Michael Volle, Martin Zysset, Rolf Haunstein, Elizabeth Magnuson, Piotr Beczala
directed by: Thomas Grimm

Release Date June 10, 2003
This Operetta by Johann Strauss can almost be classified as an Opera. This operetta by Strauss is one filled with delightful music. The staging is somewhat wierd, maybe because thats how it suppose to be but other than that, we have very good singers singing duets and waltzes. A few scences almost resembles an opera rather than an operetta. I think this rare operetta by Strauss is very good and I recommend it to all Strauss fans. I really hope this rare Operetta survives and hope to see more performances around the world with top tenors and sopranos. Now, that will spice this operetta even more.

CD-Charts Position 6
Average Rating:

Purcell - King Arthur / Bonney, Schade, Rey, Widmer, Remmert, Maertens, Konig, Henkel, Bantzer, Renner, Rohrer, Harnoncourt, Salzburg Opera

starring: Barbara Bonney, Isabel Rey, Birgit Remmert, Michael Schade, Nikolaus Harnoncourt

Release Date September 20, 2005
The music is sublime. The staging is tiresome trash. I barely managed the first disc. I needed much brandy to sit through the second. Luckily you can set the DVD to show only the music part. And I did that with the second disc. A true waste of money. Avoid.

CD-Charts Position 7
Average Rating:

La Belle Hélène [Region 2]

starring: Vesselina Kasarova, Deon van der Walt, Carlos Chausson, Volker Vogel, Oliver Widmer
directed by: Hartmut Schottler

Release Date
I'm agreeing with CT Havadas' review. And noting that this VHS performance IS NOT from the same performance as in the DVD version.

Kasarova is fantastic in both... slightly more vocally alluring in the VHS than in the DVD version. Drop dead gorgeously sultry voice and knows how to use it. The singing of the Act II duet 'C'est ne qu'un reve' is virtually x-rated in a very classy way.. Though in the VHS more than in the DVD, some shots of her are not flattering (somehow the square jaws don't go well with the stiff blond wig).

Van de Walt is in glorious voice in the DVD version, on the VHS performance he just gets by... and with shaky high notes (the VHS version of 'Au Mont Ida' is at a slightly draggier tempo, too).

Chausson is the perfect Chalcas, and Nichiteanu an engagingly ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 8
Average Rating:

Don Giovanni

starring: Rodney Gilfry, László Polgár, Isabelle Rey, Cecilia Bartoli, Roberto Saccà
directed by: Brian Large

Release Date
I'm agreeing with CT Havadas' review. And noting that this VHS performance IS NOT from the same performance as in the DVD version.

Kasarova is fantastic in both... slightly more vocally alluring in the VHS than in the DVD version. Drop dead gorgeously sultry voice and knows how to use it. The singing of the Act II duet 'C'est ne qu'un reve' is virtually x-rated in a very classy way.. Though in the VHS more than in the DVD, some shots of her are not flattering (somehow the square jaws don't go well with the stiff blond wig).

Van de Walt is in glorious voice in the DVD version, on the VHS performance he just gets by... and with shaky high notes (the VHS version of 'Au Mont Ida' is at a slightly draggier tempo, too).

Chausson is the perfect Chalcas, and Nichiteanu an engagingly ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 9
Average Rating:

Così fan tutte

starring: Cecilia Bartoli, Liliana Nikiteanu, Agnes Baltsa, Roberto Saccà, Oliver Widmer
directed by: Brian Large

Release Date
`Cosi fan tutte' is as rich as life itself and this production does it justice. Production really is the word, because the performance offers much more than excellent singers and fine orchestra. The stage direction, sets, and costumes deserve as much praise as the musicians. From the first minutes of the overture--when the rippling deep blue seems the perfect color for this opera--to the stunning finale, sets and lighting work in unison with the music. It is refreshing to see a production that abandons the `girls in pink lace' kinds of conventions that sometimes plague Mozart performances. The darker, more abstract and more intense color palette is far more appealing. It creates an atmosphere that is at once vibrant and alluringly intimate. The sets are never needlessly complicated, although it certainly took a great deal of ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 10
Average Rating:

Simplicius [Region 2]

starring: Michael Volle, Martin Zysset, Rolf Haunstein, Elizabeth Magnuson, Piotr Beczala
directed by: Thomas Grimm

Release Date
This Operetta by Johann Strauss can almost be classified as an Opera. This operetta by Strauss is one filled with delightful music. The staging is somewhat wierd, maybe because thats how it suppose to be but other than that, we have very good singers singing duets and waltzes. A few scences almost resembles an opera rather than an operetta. I think this rare operetta by Strauss is very good and I recommend it to all Strauss fans. I really hope this rare Operetta survives and hope to see more performances around the world with top tenors and sopranos. Now, that will spice this operetta even more.