In Offenbachs's Secret, Academy Award winning director István Szabó throws new light on the timeless interplay between power, helplessness, courage and conformity in his character studies of two of the most scintillating personalities of France's…

One of the greatest revolutions in the history of mankind happened around 3000 years ago: the transition from polytheism to monotheism through the prophet Moses. God revealed himself directly to Moses, instructing him in absolute truth. Moses was…

Singer, Pianist and Conductor Michel Legrand, a living film music legend, presents his most famous scores, jazz tunes and chansons on this DVD. Not many composers can claim to have written for both Edith Piaf and the James Bond films – and it’s…

PIERRE BOULEZ: ECLAT | SUR INCISES Directed by Frank Scheffer and Andy Sommer Eclat is a real study of resonance written for fifteen instruments by Pierre Boulez. It is a kind of “concerto for conductor”, the conductor “composes” and controls the…

“The music says it all. Mozart is cool.” So said the self-confessed “opera ignoramus” Doris Dörrie before she grabbed hold of one of the sacred cows of the operatic repertoire and transformed it into a “hippie musical”. Mozart’s Così fan tutte (“Thus…

Commemorating the 155th anniversary of Robert Schumann’s death, this film, inspired by the book by Ernst Burger, reveals his human side through a chronicle of his life from 1828 to his death in 1856. While the music features prominently, Burger’s…

Epic staging of Aida with special lighting effects, pyrotechnics and monumental elements: horses, elephants and more than 400 participants are set against the backdrop of the wild-romantic quarry of St. Margarethen. The impressive and breathtaking…

Peter Konwitschny’s celebrated and innovative staging of Wagner’s Lohengrin was recorded at the Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona in 2006, where it was revived as an unconventional and spectacular view on the piece. Originally staged in Hamburg in…

The most spectacular concert of African music ever staged, featuring nothing but Africa’s finest musicians performing before an audience of more than 50,000 at the recent AFRICA LIVE Roll Back Malaria Concert in Dakar, Senegal. Artists include…

A fascinating production of La Traviata formed this year’s opera highlight at one of Europe’s most important open-air festivals: the Opera Festival St. Margarethen. The dazzling production, set in a rustically romantic Roman quarry, already boasts…