Dietrich Buxtehude (1637-1707) is considered today one of the founding fathers of the 17th century German school, whose influence on composers such as Johann Sebastian Bach, his spiritual son, cannot be overestimated. Not only was he an indisputable…

Using the example of the impossible love between the Jew Samson and the Philistine Dalila, Camille Saint-Saëns shows the deadly conflict between two hostile cultures and religions. The Palestinian-Israeli production team, including the young Amir…

Copernicus, the man behind the title of the opera, brought the revolution that radically changed man’s way of seeing things, shifting from the earth to the sun and its sacred flames. Barely a few stories – for there is no dramatic conflict here, no…

Monteverdi’s iconic opera articulates Orpheus’ attempts to soothe the keepers of Hades with his voice and his lyre. He is allowed to release his beloved Eurydice from the realm of the dead, on the one condition that he does not turn around to look at…

At the centre of events is the power-crazed Poppea. She aspires to the top level of the hierarchy and seduces Emperor Nero. He is totally captivated by Poppea and does everything possible to marry her, even if it leads to murder. A classic drama…

Johann Sebastian Bach's most famous Christmas work was recorded live at the Salle Henry Le Bœuf in the Palais des Beaux-Arts in Brussels. Who would have thought, three centuries ago, that these cantatas, written by Bach for the services from…

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…

Das Rheingold is the prologue to Wagner's Ring cycle, and opens up the rich world of gods, dwarves, giants, dragons and humans that the story inhabits. With beautiful orchestration and an unerring sense of the dramatic, the first opera explains how…

Die Walküre continues the story of the Rhinedaughters' gold, the Ring of power which was forged from it, and the curse which falls on ist owner. The action moves to the earth - where Siegmund and Sieglinde, the mortal children of Wotan, are…

The final opera of the Ring cycle tells the story of how the ring and its curse brings the downfall of the Gods and a tragic and to the love of Siegfried and Brünnhilde. As Brünnhilde's death becomes an act of redemption for the gods and for all…