Browse Opera. Vocal Recitals

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The Three Tenors Christmas

Actors: Placido Domingo, Luciano Pavarotti
ASIN : B00004ZERW
Sales Rank : 9238
Director : Jose Carreras
Brand : CARRERAS/DOMINGO/PAVAROTTI
Studio : Sony
Region Code : 1
Format : Classical, Color, Dolby, DVD-Video, Full Screen, NTSC
Binding : DVD
EAN : 9780738919157
ISBN : 0738919152
UPC : 696998906396
Release Date : December 07, 2000
Publisher : Sony
Manufacturer : Sony
Availability : Usually ships in 24 hours
Label : Sony
Running Time : 81

Product Description

No Description Available
No Track Information Available
Media Type: DVD
Artist: CARRERAS/DOMINGO/PAVAROTTI
Title: THREE TENORS CHRISTMAS
Street Release Date: 11/07/2000
Domestic
Genre: XMAS VIDEO

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The 3 Tenors in Concert 1994 / William Cosel

Actor: Josep Carreras; PlÃ¡cido Domingo; Luciano Pavarotti; Zubin Mehta; Lalo Schifrin
ASIN : 6304531303
Sales Rank : 30466
Director : William Cosel
Studio : Atlantic
Region Code : 1
Format : AC-3, Classical, Color, DVD-Video, Full Screen, Live, NTSC
Binding : DVD
EAN : 9786304531303
ISBN : 6304531303
UPC : 075678296925
Release Date : December 02, 1997
Publisher : Atlantic
Manufacturer : Atlantic
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Label : Atlantic
Running Time : 86

Product Description

The three greatest operatic tenors of the day - Jose Carreras, Placido Domingo, and Luciano Pavarotti - reunite for this 1994 concert commemorating soccer's World Cup Championships. Features the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orche stra, directed by Zubin Mehta. Certified over 5 million units by the RIAA.

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Paris 1998

Actors: Josep Carreras, Luciano Pavarotti, Plácido Domingo, James Levine
ASIN : 6305216096
Sales Rank : 13609
Director : Mathias Ledoux
Studio : Atlantic / Wea
Region Code : 1
Format : Classical, Color, DVD-Video, Live, NTSC
Binding : DVD
EAN : 9786305216094
ISBN : 6305216096
UPC : 085365205222
Release Date : December 08, 1998
Publisher : Atlantic / Wea
Manufacturer : Atlantic / Wea
Availability : Usually ships in 1 to 3 weeks
Label : Atlantic / Wea
Running Time : 125

Product Description

Studio: Wea-des Moines Video Release Date: 12/01/1998

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Charlotte Church - Voice of an Angel in Concert

Actors: Charlotte Church, Prince Charles
ASIN : 1573301469
Sales Rank : 30508
Director : David Mallet
Studio : Sony
Region Code : 0
Format : Classical, Color, DVD-Video, Live, NTSC
Binding : DVD
EAN : 9781573301466
ISBN : 1573301469
UPC : 074646177099
Release Date : December 17, 1999
Publisher : Sony
Manufacturer : Sony
Availability : Usually ships in 24 hours
Label : Sony
Running Time : 66

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Among the more charming--and improbable--of pre-millennial success stories is the left-field crossover triumph for this Welsh soprano, 12 years old at the time of her debut, and still on the near side of her teens in this concert video derived from a hit PBS special. At a time when "teeny pop" reigns over MTV and radio playlists, Church's serene program of Welsh and Irish folk airs, devotional hymns, and generally tranquil classical melodies gives alternative music an entirely new meaning.

Then again, it's just possible that Church's very appeal rests on the delicate balance between the unapologetic sweetness of her music and the unforced girlishness she flashes between songs, rare qualities indeed against the harsher foil of sexualized pop culture. Given the degree to which various predecessors, from Brenda Lee to Tanya Tucker to LeAnn Rimes, have been groomed to transmit a precocious "maturity," Church's virginal typecasting may be methodically anachronistic, but at least it offers a calming refuge from the mixed messages and soft-core spin offered by Britney Spears.

Director David Mallet, who's become the DeMille of up-market music videos and a staple for PBS fund drive specials, applies a familiar balance of sure technical craft and slick sentimentality. He dresses the Brixton Academy concert site with a faux stained glass window, flickering candle light, and delicate laser lighting units that imbue Church with a backlit radiance, just so we won't miss the angel connection. Skeptics will also note her Andrew Lloyd Webber connection (the signature Pie Jesu), as well as canny nods to Celtic chic in the inclusion of such warhorse choices as "Danny Boy" and "My Lagan Love." Still, whether or not the young star achieves her dream of singing Tosca at La Scala, for the moment Church achieves a poised lyricism that's no mean feat. --Sam Sutherland

New Price: $115.54

Dream a Dream: Charlotte Church in the Holy Land

Actor: Charlotte Church
ASIN : B000053VAE
Sales Rank : 43418
Studio : Sony
Region Code : 1
Format : Classical, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC
Binding : DVD
EAN : 9780738919270
ISBN : 0738919276
UPC : 696998944695
Release Date : December 21, 2000
Publisher : Sony
Manufacturer : Sony
Label : Sony
Running Time : 46

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Filmed on location at the Dormiton Abbey and on location in the Holy Land, Dream a Dream: Charlotte Church in the Holy Land was broadcast as a PBS special during the 2000 Christmas season. With a beautiful if inevitably immature voice and rather saccharine arrangements, Church performs a selection of favorite hymns, carols, and spiritual songs, including "The First Noel," "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing," "Silent Night, and "O Come All Ye Faithful." These are interspersed with short clips of the young singer discovering what it is like to wear traditional dress from the time of Christ, riding a camel and a donkey, and visiting locations associated with the Nativity, including the site some believe is the very place Jesus was born. Church is likable and natural in these sections, and given that program lasts only 48 minutes, it is a shame these were not extended. Fans of her albums will love this release, which is sure to be on Christmas lists for years to come. --Gary S. Dalkin, Amazon.co.uk

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Maria Callas - La Callas... Toujours

Actor: Maria Callas
ASIN : B00005LIN2
Sales Rank : 21830
Studio : EMI Classics
Region Code : 1
Format : Classical, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC
Binding : DVD
EAN : 0724349250390
UPC : 724349250390
Release Date : December 03, 2001
Publisher : EMI Classics
Manufacturer : EMI Classics
Availability : Usually ships in 24 hours
Label : EMI Classics
Running Time : 91

Description

Maria Callas is the quintessential diva who changed the face of the opera in the 20th century. The repertoire in this performance shows Callas at her best, both in recital and as an operatic actress. Verdi, Rossini, and Bellini were three composers at the heart of Maria Callas's career. Her personal life was of tragic operatic dimensions and perhaps no role comes closer to the essence of Callas than Floria Tosca. The second half to the program comprises the complete Act 2 of this opera, with a brilliant performance by Tito Gobbi in the role of Scarpia. A genuine collector's item, this live recording documents Callas's Paris debut at the peak of her career. Also included is documentary footage about the performance and the opera house. 91 minutes.

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The career of Maria Callas was just a bit too early and too brief to receive full and satisfying video documentation like that now being accorded to such singers as Renée Fleming and Luciano Pavarotti. This black-and-white televised recital (Callas's Paris debut) took place at the Paris Opera on December 19, 1958 when television was still in its infancy. We might wish that it had happened earlier, when her voice was in better condition, or later, when video recording technology was more advanced--so that, for example, we would not have to take the narrator's word that Callas is wearing a red dress. But this is probably the best available Callas video recording, and her fans will welcome it warmly. Visual elements were as important as the vocal dimensions in her art.

The material, carefully chosen to show Callas at her best and most versatile, includes "Casta Diva" from Bellini's Norma (a Callas specialty), the haunting "Miserere" scene from Verdi's Il trovatore, and the mischievous "Una voce poco fa" from Rossini's Barber of Seville, a fine series of stylistic contrasts in which the essential point is not pure tonal beauty but characterization and subtle expressive nuances. Others have made this music sound prettier; nobody has presented it with more impact.

But the climax of this program is its second half, a staged performance of Act II of Puccini's Tosca. This is a study in police brutality, sexual harassment, and sheer violence, psychological and physical, that has some of opera's most extreme moments--including the great aria "Vissi d'arte," the murder of the villain Scarpia, and the contemptuous dismissal flung at his corpse--"and all Rome trembled before him!" In this segment, Callas goes mano a mano with Tito Gobbi, her only equal as a singing actor during her career. They savor this material in a virtuoso performance. --Joe McLellan

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The Irish Tenors - The Essential Collection

Actor: Irish Tenors
ASIN : B00004YZFE
Sales Rank : 32566
Studio : Music Matters
Region Code : 1
Format : Best of, Classical, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC
Binding : DVD
EAN : 0658926901958
UPC : 658926901958
Number Of Discs : 1
Release Date : December 24, 2000
Publisher : Music Matters
Manufacturer : Music Matters
Label : Music Matters
Running Time : 225

Description

The Complete Irish Tenors on DVD features both of the spectacular PBS broadcast concerts (Dublin and Belfast) in their entirety, including performances not available on any video release. With in-depth bios on each artist, specially recorded studio interviews, rare backstage footage, and much, much more, this DVD represents the complete Irish tenors experience.

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Television producers seeking to combine the twin phenomena of the original Three Tenors (Luciano Pavarotti, Placido Domingo, José Carreras) and Irish music (an international sensation fueled by Riverdance) came up with the Irish Tenors. The Essential Collection includes both their televised concerts from Dublin and Belfast, the first of which establishes the format: John McDermott, Anthony Kearns, and Ronan Tynan appearing on a small, plain stage and singing mostly traditional songs ("She Moved Through the Fair," "Will Ye Go, Lassie, Go?") in both solos and trios with a full orchestra in front of an appreciative audience. These classically trained performers have strong voices, enthusiasm, and more than a bit of whimsy. The second concert provides more of the same, but is most notable for the debut of new tenor Finbar Wright after McDermott had taken leave from the group following the death of his mother. McDermott does make a brief but dramatic appearance, however, to sing "The Last Rose of Summer," as a tribute to his parents, then rejoins Kearns and Tynan for "Red Is the Rose." And of course both shows include "Danny Boy"--as inevitable a closer as "Nessun dorma" was for that other trio of tenors.

In generous bonus DVD segments (13 to 19 minutes each), Tynan, Kearns, and Wright (but not McDermott) each discuss their musical upbringing and a bit of background on some of the songs they sing. Tynan talks about the emotion of the plight of the disabled child in "Scorn Not His Simplicity" without bringing up his own disability (which is mentioned in the text biographies), and Wright, the newest tenor, admits the advantages and disadvantages of performing with the group and also cites influences as wide-ranging as Mario Lanza and Queen. This DVD is excellent value for the Irish tenor fan. --David Horiuchi

New Price: $98.84

Andrea Bocelli - A Night in Tuscany

Actor: Andrea Bocelli
ASIN : 6305165998
Sales Rank : 53448
Studio : Philips
Region Code : 0
Format : Classical, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, Live, NTSC
Binding : DVD
EAN : 9786305165996
ISBN : 6305165998
UPC : 044005620528
Release Date : December 10, 1998
Publisher : Philips
Manufacturer : Philips
Label : Philips
Running Time : 86

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Part concert, part documentary, part travelogue, this video hit duplicates the sleeper success of Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli's album compilations and underscores his unique crossover appeal. In the U.S., Bocelli's critical response has been confined to fusillades of scorn from classical and opera writers, but the bulletproof superstar is better understood in the context of Europe's more established tradition of pop-classical fusions. Ironically, fans abroad are less prickly than stateside arbiters about the need for a discreet wall between high (classical) art and low (pop) kitsch, which Bocelli cheerfully ignores with his mix of operatic chestnuts, soft pop, and traditional Italian songs.

Indeed, despite interview segments in which he proclaims his love of opera or proudly recalls an apprenticeship to operatic veteran Franco Corelli, Bocelli comes across as more fan than virtuoso. But if his voice can prompt technical cavils from hard-core opera buffs, the blind singer's emotional directness and relative lack of onstage preening explain much of his populist appeal. Featured songs include warhorse arias, leading off with the "Louie, Louie" of tenor showpieces, Turandot's "Nessun Dorma," and duets with gruff Italian pop-rocker Zucchero and sopranos Nuccia Focile and Sarah Brightman (who buddies up for the tear-jerking closer, "Time to Say Goodbye").

Even with the marquee bonus of those guests, however, A Night in Tuscany gets its biggest boost from the seductive Italian countryside, prominently featured in between-song segments, and in the romantic concert setting, Pisa's Piazza dei Cavalieri. --Sam Sutherland

Browse Vocal Recitals Online

Three Tenors: In Concert

The Three Tenors Christmas

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A Gala Christmas in Vienna

The 3 Tenors in Concert 1994 / William Cosel

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Paris 1998

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Charlotte Church - Voice of an Angel in Concert

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Dream a Dream: Charlotte Church in the Holy Land

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Maria Callas - La Callas... Toujours

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The Irish Tenors - The Essential Collection

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Andrea Bocelli - A Night in Tuscany

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