The Czech composer based his libretto on the play "Le Voyage de Thésée" by his friend and trusted source of inspiration, Georges Neveux. Martinu is said to have written the opera for Maria Callas. In this production, the role is sung by the…

Alfred Brendel is arguably the most outstanding exponent of Schubert's piano music currently before the public, a man capable of bringing to vibrant life not only the verve of this music but also its poetic intensity and intellectual depth. In this…

The televised recording of this singular concert with the Russian monastery choir took place in the Cathedral of Ulm, the tallest Gothic parish church in Germany. In conjunction with the millenium of the Christianization of Russia, the monastery…

With an introduction by Sir John Gielgud, this first-rate performance took place at the Winchester Cathedral.

Stravinsky found the inspiration for his work in sources ranging from Greek Orthodox liturgy to his beloved Verdi.

J.S.Bach's arrangement of the "Stabat Mater" by G.B. Pergolesi has been produced in Italy, in the Villa Medici Giulini, which was built in 1643. The room with its great acoustics was named Zuccarelli Hall after Francesco Zuccarelli who, in the late…

In the baroque church of Dornheim, where Bach married his first wife Maria Barbara, Anner Bylsma plays Bach's 1st and 5th cello suite on a period instrument. The six cello suites by Bach are considered an essential part of the cello repertoire and…

Little Red Riding Hood begins, like all fairy tales, with: "Once upon a time..." For children of all ages the composer Georges Aperghis imagined a tale in music and movement: he chose the very first version written by Charles Perrault almost 300…

The "Philosophers' Hall" in the library of Strahov Monastery in Prague forms the grand setting for these chamber music performances with the Berlin Soloists. Ludwig van Beethoven: Septet in E-flat major Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Horn Quintet in E-flat…

"Il Ballo delle Ingrate" is based on the Idea that the "Ingrate" (women who have been hard-hearted in love) should return to earth from hell to warn the ladies in the audience against a similar fate. The warning is not expressed in the form of…