Eric Garrett

A version of Benjamin Britten's opera based on the Melville story. Will the virtuous young sailor Billy Budd be hanged for murder?

Live from ROH 1985. Giordano's Andrea Chenier is one of the greatest of verismo operas, full of heart-stopping big tunes and powerful emotional situations. If it is not as well-known as it should be, it is because in summary it sounds a little too like Puccini's Tosca: there is a tussle between political opponents over a woman, an attempt to save a condemned man, a tenor aria about writing poetry on the eve of execution. The difference is that Gerard (Giorgio Zancanaro) is not a villain like Scarpia, he is an idealist whom the French Revolution has betrayed as much as it has his rival the poet Chenier (Placido Domingo). His temptation to abuse his power to seduce the virtuous Maddalena (Anna Tomowa-Sintow) is a momentary one, though its consequences are terrible. There is a streak of post-Wagnerian decadence in much of this--Maddalena is at least as much in love with death as she is with Chenier, and the final love duet has a deeply sinister aspect. -- From Amazon.co.uk

After the Viennese premiere, the Fledermaus (the bat) conquered the world. It is one of the few operettas that are regularly performed at the major opera houses such as the Metropolitan Opera, the Scala Milan, the Vienna State Opera and the Royal Opera House Convent Garden in London. John Cox directed this lavishly equipped production by Julia Trevelyan Oman initially in London in 1977. On New Year's Eve 1990, this staging offered the luxurious ambiance for the farewell to Joan Sutherland from her London audience. The singer had admired them since her first great success at this prestigious opera house in the fifties. The rushing feast in the second act reached its climax with its stormy cheered performance and the commitment of her friends and colleagues Luciano Pavarotti and Marilyn Horne, with whom she often stood together on the stage.

Recorded live at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London on 2 June 1992.

Seeking to exorcise the failure of his current love affair, the poet Hoffmann tells the tales of his three past loves - the doll-like Olympia, the high-class courtesan Giulietta, and the ambitious but delicate Antonia - and recalls how each was thwarted by the evil influence of his rival. In this production by the distinguished film director, John Schlesinger, with spectacular designs by Maria Bjornson and William Dudley, Offenbach's nightmare world is brought to life. The all-star cast is headed by Placido Domingo as Hoffmann: his three loves are Ileana Cotrubas, Anges Baltsa and Luciana Serra and the manifestations of his rival are sung by Geraint Evans, Robert Lloyd, Siegmund Nimsgern and Nicola Ghiuselev. The score, which includes such favourites as the "Barcarolle" and the "Doll's Song", is conducted by Georges Pretre.

TV movie version of the famous Prince Igor opera

C'est en Italie, à la fin des années 1940 et au début des années 1950, que Maria Callas a commencé sa courte et riche carrière d'opéra. De là, sa voix particulière, que certains qualifieraient de « laide » et d'autres de magique, a transporté la soprano à Londres, Paris et New York. Ses mémorables prestations dans « La traviata », « Norma » et « Tosca », mais aussi pour son rapide déclin personnel et professionnel. Au milieu des années 1950, sa voix commence à perdre de sa chaleur, « devenant mince et acidulée », diront certains. À 40 ans, sa carrière de chanteuse est pratiquement terminée. À 53 ans, elle meurt d'une crise cardiaque à Paris, seule et malheureuse. Les 04 novembre 1962 et 09 février 1964, Maria Callas se produit au « Royal Opera House », Covent Garden, à Londres, vers la fin de sa brève mais spectaculaire carrière. Elle a participé à l'improviste à un concert de gala retransmis par la télévision britannique.