What a strange idea Mondonville had! Based on a cruel fable by La Fontaine with a tragic ending, he wrote a charming opera libretto with a happy ending, and composed a delightful pastoral. In the prologue, Dame Clémence Isaure, the mythical founder…

The great German baritone reveals for the first time on camera the secrets of his outstanding career. This richly illustrated profile of Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, the greatest musician of all singers and the most prolific singer of our time, is an…

The “Bolero”, originally composed as a ballet, is Maurice Ravel's most successful work at all. The world famous melody of the “Bolero” has been featured in popular music, motion pictures and even video games. Pianist and writer Paul Roberts vividly…

On Wednesday, October 16th, Dmitri Hvorostovsky's birthday, the Festival officially opens with a performance of Giuseppe Verdi's Messa da Requiem.

Compelling love duets, escalating conflicts and arias bursting with virtuosity and emotion. In his three Tudor Queens operas, bel canto master Gaetano Donizetti composed at the top of his game. In this concert, an international cast takes you on an…

Violinist Frank Peter Zimmermann is one of the world’s top instrumentalists. His numerous recordings are celebrated by both press and audience and have already received countless awards. Alongside his career as a celebrated soloist, he also focuses…

Orchestras once played Bach as well as Bruckner. Only specialised ensembles showed that note and performance signs have changed their meaning quite a bit over the centuries. So far, so theoretical: in practice, Handel's "Il Trionfo" awaits us, a…

Herbert Blomstedt appears with the Gewandhaus Orchestra for the last time as the Gewandhaus Music Director in this recording. After seven successful years in Leipzig, the maestro performs a work in the Thomas Church that is especially dear to him…

The choir and the orchestra of the Bach Collegium Japan - shooting-star among the celebrated baroque specialists -perform the St John's Passion with only a small ensemble of about 50 musicians (as was custom at the time) under the former Ton Koopman…

Can there be a more charming ambassador for Scotland than Amy Macdonald? On the other hand: On stage, there is an approachable and likable artist who has evidently found her voice, and furthermore— transforms Stuttgart's historic Schlossplatz into a…