The dissolute knight, Sir John Falstaff, unable to pay his bills at the Garter Inn, decides to exert his charms on Mistress Ford and Mistress Page, wives of wealthy merchants. The two women, aided by Mistress Quickly, devise a plot to outwit him. But…

An extraordinary document of its time: Gil Evans live at the Berliner Jazztage in 1976 – one of Europe’s most prestigious jazz festivals. Amidst a stellar line-up, the legendary arranger unveils a richly textured set that moves seamlessly between…

Live from Paris 1977

Based on Hogarth's series of prints, "The Rake's Progress" combines the eighteenth century with the twentieth. The highly individualized set of this production, designed by David Hockney, reflects perfectly the "spikiness" of the music, combined with…

Mozart's 'Don Giovanni', "the opera of all operas", as E.T.A. Hoffman once called it, is a work with many meanings. Peter Hall and Bernard Haitink's interpretation of the Mozart cycle was enthusiastically received at the Glyndebourne festival.

As part of the renowned Berliner Jazztage 1977, trumpet star Freddie Hubbard thrilled the audience with a blazing performance. Since the 1960s a hotspot of international jazz, the festival gave him the stage for a concert brimming with energy…

Glyndebourne's 1978 production of Mozart's "Die Zauberflöte" received as much critical acclaim for the imaginative David Hockney sets as for the operatic performances. Hockney emphasised the magical and mystical qualities of one of Mozart's best…

Live recording of a concert at Schloss Ansbach 1978. The line-up: Gil Evans (p), Steve Lacy (ss), Arthur Blythe (as), Pit Levin (synth), Earl McAntyre (tu, tb), Lewis Soloff (tr), Geoffrey Berlin (b), Sue Evans (perc),

This programme records a concert at Schloss Ansbach in 1978, with Coleman at the peak of his musical expression, supported by Shannon Jackson and Ornette Denardo Coleman jnr (

Sir Peter Hall's outstanding Glyndebourne Festival Opera production of "Fidelio" remains remarkably faithful to the way Beethoven intended the opera to be. He managed to inject fresh excitement and suspense into "Fidelio", providing a perfect…