Peter Tschaikowsky

TCHAIKOVSKY / COOPER / AMBLER / LLOYD-JONES SWAN LAKE

Schumann, Tschaikowsky: Klavierkonzerte

Tschaikowsky, Peter - Pique Dame

Waléry Gergiew

Tchaikovsky: LAC | After Swan Lake (Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo) [Blu-ray]

Jean-Christophe Maillot has re-worked Swan Lake with the writer Jean Rouaud (1990 Prix Goncourt winner) to bring a new drama to this pillar of the classic repertoire. This new adaptation, filmed in a special studio-setting at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco, brings a modern-day relevance to the timeless story of Siegfried and Odette. Designed by leading visual artist Ernest Pignon-Ernest, with costumes by Philippe Guillotel, and performed to a specially conceived and mastered soundtrack of Tchaikovsky's score performed by the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra, directed by Leonard Slatkin, the production has been hailed as ? outstanding' ( Le Figaro), while the Jerusalem Post asserted ? Swan Lake will never be the same after the tempestous Lac'. This film of Lac won the top award at the 2103 Golden Prague, as ? Best Performing Arts Program', where it was described as ? A ravishing stage production offering the spectator a thrilling interpretation of Tchaikovsky's masterpiece through contemporary dance.

Press Reviews

" Swan Lake has never cast such a chill. " ( Suddeutsche Zeitung)

" For those who love motion in dance, what a delight. . . the ballet is outstanding - one of those rewrites that dance needs, which innovates and entertains without turning its back on the story. . . Jean-Christophe Maillot has succeeded in the difficult challenge of reshaping this diamond without removing any of its brightness or its essence. " ( Le Figaro)

" A major production, a work where the modern and traditional are combined in a timeless meeting. Here, quality is all-important, and it shows in every movement. " ( A B C)

Cast
Anja Behrend ( Le Cynge Blanc)
April Ball ( Le Cynge Noir)
Stephan Bourgond ( Le Prince)
Alvaro Prieto ( The King)
Mimoza Koike ( The Queen)
Jeroen Verbruggen ( Le Confident du Prince)
Bernice Coppieters ( Sa Majesté la Nuit)

Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra; Leonard Slatkin

Stage Director: Jean Rouaud
Television Director: Denis Caïozzi
Designer: Ernest Pignon-Ernest
Choreographer: Jean-Christophe Maillot

Catalogue Number: O A B D7154 D
Date of Performance: 2013
Running Time: 93 minutes
Sound: L P C M & D T S Master Audio 5. 1
Aspect Ratio: 16:9
Label: Opus Arte

TCHAIKOVSKY: Sleeping Beauty (Live from the Place des Arts, Montreal, Canada, 1989) [DVD]

TCHAIKOVSKY: Eugene Onegin (Royal Opera House, 2013) [DVD]

Kasper Holten's first production for The Royal Opera. Working with the Danish set designer Mia Stensgaard, whose design hallmark is clean, strong images ripe with emotion, and fielding a brilliant cast (including Simon Keenlyside in the title role), Holten provides a fresh reading of this classic opera.

Press Reviews

" Simon Keenlyside in the title role brings virility to the unpleasant, usually buttoned-up hero. You can see why the teenaged Tatyana might fall for him, even if he is on the mature side. This Onegin delights in being louche, playful, arms folded, casual rather than stiff. He sings with flexibility, expression and, most of the time, a golden tone, suggesting more capacity for emotion than is usually evident: even brutes have their decent qualities. " ( The Observer)

" Kasper Holten's new production of Eugene Onegin, his first staging for the Royal Opera House, was in many ways excellent - an auspicious debut indeed. Krassimira Stoyanova's Tatyana was beautifully sung, no mere cipher, but a strong, flawed character, uncertain of where she was heading and all the more credible for that. As ever, Keenlyside's way with words, just like Stoyanova's, was pretty much beyond reproach. Beauty there was aplenty in the honeyed tones of Pavol Breslik, every inch the Romantic poet; his verbal acuity was no less impressive. Peter Rose's Gremin did everything it should - and more. Likewise the Royal Opera Chorus was on splendid form, for which Renato Balsadonna should once again receive considerable credit. " ( Seen and Heard International)

" The cast is led by two outstanding artists - British baritone Simon Keenlyside and Bulgarian soprano Krassimira Stoyanova. Both artists sing with exceptional imagination and commitment. In Stoyanova's case, particularly, it is hard to conceive a voice more perfectly aligned with the needs of the role - she combines Slavic vocal firmness and heft with the purest lyricism . . . there are some exceptional individual performances. As Onegin's friend Lensky, Slovak tenor Pavol Breslik sings with purposeful intensity . . . Christophe Mortagne delivers an unforgettable cameo as Monsieur Triquet. In the pit, rising star Robin Ticciati conducts a dynamic, passionate musical performance. " ( The Stage)

" Robin Ticciati's conducting proved alert, responsive and engaged . . . As Tatyana and Onegin, Krassimira Stoyanova and Simon Keenlyside sang with style, grandeur, ardour and every desirable quality except the freshness of youth. Meanwhile Pavol Breslik's blonde bombshell of a Lensky stole the show . . . " ( The Daily Telegraph)

" . . . Simon Keenlyside's Onegin . . . From start to finish his anti-hero is socially and emotionally dysfunctional, which makes for a fascinating study - and Keenlyside, commanding the stage in voice, presence and gesture, makes the most of it. " ( The Financial Times)

Cast
Simon Keenlyside ( Eugene Onegin)
Krassimira Stoyanova ( Tatyana)
Elena Maximova ( Olga)
Pavol Breslik ( Lensky)
Diana Montague ( Madame Larina)
Peter Rose ( Prince Gremin)

Royal Opera Chorus; Orchestra of the Royal Opera House; Robin Ticciati

Stage Director: Kasper Holten
Television Director: Jonathan Haswell

Catalogue Number: O A1120 D
Date of Performance: 2013
Running Time: 154 minutes
Aspect Ratio: 16:9 Anamorphic
Subtitles: E N; F R; D E; I T; J P; K O
Label: Opus Arte

Tschaikowsky, Peter - The Sleeping Beauty (Dornröschen, La Belle au bois dormant)

Tschaikowski, Peter - Sleeping Beauty

Marius Petipa's demanding but enchanting choreography of Tchaikovsky's romantic fairytale The Sleeping Beauty is one of the best-loved of all classical ballets. This recording of Anthony Dowell's gloriously romantic 1994 production, with charming, dreamlike designs by Maria Bjørnson, features an all-star cast led by Viviana Durante as a charismatic Princess Aurora, Zoltán Solymosi as a delightful Prince Florimund and Anthony Dowell as a wonderfully dishevelled Carabosse. The Royal Ballet, in exceptionally fine form, is beautifully accompanied by the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, conducted by Barry Wordsworth.

Press Reviews

" Viviana Durante, who replaces the injured Darcey Bussell, is outstanding as Aurora. Radiant and youthful, she dances with an ease and naturalness that is enchanting. She also takes astonishing risks, holding a difficult balance for an extra few seconds while maintaining immaculately clean lines. " ( The Evening Standard)

" Maria Björnson's designs horrified the ballet conservatives, but visually this is the best Beauty ever. Petipa's choreography survives mostly intact with Zoltán Solymosi's handsome Prince and Viviana Durante's spellbinding Aurora. " ( B B C Music Magazine)

" What an embarras de richesses from Opus Arte! Only a few months after releasing a D V D of a first class 2006 Royal Ballet Sleeping Beauty starring Cojocaru and Bonelli. . . they now give us this superb performance from 12 years earlier. " ( Musicweb International)

Cast
Viviana Durante ( Princess Aurora)
Zoltán Solymosi ( Prince Florimund)
Anthony Dowell ( Carabosse)
Benazir Hussein ( Lilac Fairy)

Orchestra of the Royal Opera House; Barry Wordsworth

Choreographer: Anthony Dowell

Catalogue Number: O A R3107 D
Date of Performance: 1994
Running Time: 126 minutes
Sound: P C M Stereo
Aspect Ratio: 4:3
Subtitles: E N
Label: Opus Arte

Tschaikowsky, Peter - Der Nußknacker

Viktor Fedotov

Tchaikovsky: Symphony 6 (Russia/ Ukraine) (Antoni Wit, Ondrej Lenard, Polish NRSO, Slovak RSO) (Naxos DVD Travelogue: 2110293)

Peter Tschaikowsky