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PG02:52:002015HD

Gioachino Rossini's opera La Cenerentola ('Cinderella'), with a libretto by Jacopo Ferretti, was first performed in February 1816 following the success of Il Barbiere di Siviglia. Interestingly, much like its predecessor, the first performance of the opera was received with some hostility, but the work soon became popular throughout Italian theaters and beyond. The opening of La Cenerentola is one of the most famous Rossini pieces, evoking a spirit of lightness and freshness. The work’s originality lies in the violent contrast between the heroin’s tenderness and the plot’s sentimentalism mixed with Rossini’s virtuosity and unbridled sense of humor. This 2015 performance of La Cenerentola at the Opéra de Rennes is conducted by Darrell Ang and features the Symphonic Orchestra of Brittany and choir of the Opéra de Rennes and José Maria Lo Monaco, Daniele Zanfardino, Marc Scoffoni and Bruno Pratico.

G01:15:002007HD

Swedish pianist and composer Roland Peter Pöntinen performs Couperin’s Les Baricades mistérieuses, Rameau’s Gavotte in a minor, Busoni’s Albumblatt No. 1, Saariaho’s Prelude and Ballade, Chopin’s Ballade No. 4 in F minor, Albéniz’ Ibera (book 2, Nos. 1 and 3), Rachmaninov’s Sérénade in B flat minor and Ravel’s Oiseaux tristes (from Miroirs), recorded in July 2007, in the Folwang Hochschule in Essen.

G00:26:002018HD

In this six-part documentary on the life and work by Heitor Villa-Lobos, director Liloye Boubli takes viewers on a journey through the life and work of the Brazilian legend of classical music. The composer, conductor, cellist, and classical guitarist was born 1887 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Growing up amongst the immense social changes Brazil went through at the time - social revolution and modernization, abolishing slavery in 1888 - Villa-Lobos went on to become one of the best-known South American composers of all time. In this sixth and final episode of the mini-series, Brazilian musicians and experts discuss Villa-Lobos' everlasting legacy and how his compositions continue to inspire Brazilian composers and artists to this day.

G00:38:002014HD

Swiss conductor Philippe Jordan and the Orchestre de l’Opéra national de Paris recorded all of Ludwig van Beethoven’s symphonies in 2014-2015. In this program, Jordan conducts Beethoven’s Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 36. Completed in 1802, the work saw its first performance at the Theater an der Wien on April 5, 1803. That same concert also included the premieres of the composer’s Piano Concerto No. 3 and his only oratorio, Christ on the Mount of Olives, as well as a reprise performance of his Symphony No. 1. Instead of the traditional minuet, Beethoven wrote a lively scherzo as the third movement of his Symphony No 2. The overall mood of the work is optimistic. Jordan’s performance was recorded at Palais Garnier in Paris, France, in 2014.

G00:21:002018HD

Patrick Debrabandere conducts the Vox Mago chamber choir in a performance of Christoph Graupner's (1683-1760) cantata Magnificat anima mea. This performance is part of the concert program In Tempus Adventus, consisting of three beautiful baroque cantatas, recorded in December 2018 in Onze-Lieve-Vrouw Presentatiekerk, Ghent in Belgium. This festive cantata was composed for Christmas in 1722. Graupner was a very prolific composer, with one of the largest oeuvres in the classical music history. He befriended composers like Händel and Matheson and even was chosen over Johann Sebastian Bach as the new cantor of the St. Thomas Church in Leipzig, but his employer Ernst Ludwig I, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen decided otherwise and still wished to keep Graupner as court composer.

G00:25:002016HD

Can we get into Beethoven’s creative mind, especially in the last phase of his life, when he was coping with severe hearing loss? Tom Beghin’s new recording of Beethoven’s Piano Sonatas Opus 109, 110, and 111 is an artistic exploration of how Beethoven’s musicking was shaped by the work environment he created with the help of colleagues and friends. Not only does pianist Tom Beghin perform Beethoven’s trilogy of pianistic masterpieces on a magnificent new replica of Beethoven’s Broadwood piano, he uses a reconstruction of the Gehörmaschine that was mounted on the composer’s piano so he could continue to create music as his hearing declined. ‘You do hear better when you bring your head under this machine, don’t you?’ André Stein asked Beethoven. Two centuries later, we too can bring our heads under the machine and wonder: Do we hear Beethoven differently? Beghin draws us inside the hearing machine, where we feel as well as hear the essence of Beethoven’s rambunctious and irresistibly poetic musical vibrations. Inside the Hearing Machine invites us into the multisensory playground of a deaf composer for whom the machine was more than a hearing aid and who interacted with his instrument through much more than sound.

G01:00:002000HD

The German Brass ensemble delivers some of Bach's most popular tunes in breathtaking brass arrangements. Recorded live from the magnificent St. Thomas Church in Leipzig, this concert features timeless pieces by the legendary German composer, such as Toccata and Fugue in D minor, Adagio in G minor, and Jesus bleibet meine Freude. The German Brass is one of the most popular brass ensembles of our time and includes musicians from the best German orchestras, including the philharmonic orchestras of Berlin and Munich. Offering a complete view of the church for which Bach has designed most of his works and taking advantage of the room's exceptional acoustics, this cutting-edge recording is a veritable visual and aural feast, and a perfect celebration of Bach's work.

G00:24:002001HD

Joseph Haydn (1732-1809): Symphony No. 94 in G major "Surprise". Berliner Philharmoniker; conductor: Mariss Jansons. The European Concert has been a tradition of the Berliner Philharmoniker since 1991. The musicians commemorate the anniversary of the orchestra's founding on May 1st, 1882, playing in different European cities. This concert was recorded in the church "Hagia Eirene" in Istanbul, Turkey.

G01:02:002015HD

Conductor Paul Van Nevel and his Huelgas Ensemble present the ideal Christmas program, consisting of an atmospheric musical selection of 14th to 19th-century compositions. The Huelgas Ensemble, which has emerged as one of Europe's premiere vocal ensembles dedicated to the performance of music from the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, is the ideal candidate for the job, conveying all the mystery and luster a Christmas celebration calls for. Van Nevel organized his varied musical selection in four distinct themes: ‘The Birth in Bethlehem’, ‘The Crime of Herodes’, ‘The Travel of the Three Kings’, and an Epilogue. In 2015, the full program was performed and recorded at the baroque St. Augustine Church currently known as AMUZ in Antwerp, Belgium. ‘The Birth in Bethlehem’ opens and closes with pieces by unidentified composers, 'Balaam de quo Vaticinans' and 'A Carol for Christmas Eve' respectively. The core of this section is made up of Jacobus Gallus's 'Myrabile Mysterium' and Jerónimo Luca's 'Este nino que es sol del Aurora'. ‘The Crime of Herodes’ opens with 'Hostis Herodes Impie' by an unidentified composer, followed by Jean Mouton's 'Interrogabat Magos Herodes', Giaches De Wert's 'Vox in Rama', and Bertram Luard-Selby's 'A Voice from Ramah was There Sent'. ‘The Travel of the Three Kings Melchior, Caspar and Balthazar’ opens with 'Vincti Presepio' (anonymous), followed by Pierre De Manchicourt's 'Reges Terrae', Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck's 'Ab Oriente', and Peter Cornelius 'Drei Könige Wandern'. Lastly, the Epilogue consists of 'Quae Stella Sole Pulchrior' (anonymous) and António Marques Lésbio's 'Dexen que Ilore mi Niño'.

G00:23:002021HD

Baritone Arvid Fagerfjäll (Sweden, 1991) and pianist Hikaru Kanki (Japan, 1993) perform Franz Schubert’s An mein Herz, D. 860; ‘Die Aufgeregten’ from Arnold Schönberg’s Sechs Lieder, Op. 3; ‘A poison tree’ from Benjamin Britten’s The red cockatoo and other songs; Bart Visman’s Vermeer’s Gold; ‘La mer est plus belle’ from Claude Debussy’s Trois mélodies de Paul Verlaine, L. 81; Gabriel Fauré’s Prison, Op. 83, No. 1; and ‘Die Geister am Mummelsee’ from Hugo Wolf’s Mörike-Lieder, during the semi-finals of the International Vocal Competition 2021 – Lied Duo. This performance was recorded at Het Noordbrabants Museum in ’s-Hertogenbosch, the Netherlands.

G00:25:002020HD

This documentary by Mark Perna shows the training and professional growth actions for opera singers, the promotion and enhancement of the cultural offer of the city and province of Modena and the maintenance and development of the Modenese musical tradition in the field of opera.

G00:46:002017HD

Alexander Ullman (1991, United Kingdom) performs Franz Liszt's Piano Concerto No. 2 (S125) during the final of the 11th International Franz Liszt Piano Competition, held in TivoliVredenburg, Utrecht 2017. The competition actively presents, develops and promotes piano talents from around the world. In doing so, it has become one of the prominent gateways to the international professional classical music scene for young musicians. The International Franz Liszt Piano Competition was founded in 1986 in the Netherlands and since has built a reputation as one of the world’s most prestigious piano competitions.

10:02
Handel - Messiah, HWV 56
G01:27:002016HD
The Messiah (HWV 56) by Georg Frederich Handel, also known as “A New Sacred Oratorio”, tells the life and suffering of Christ: a story of passion, fire, and sacrifice. This is one of Handel's best-known works, which took only three weeks to compose this oratorio and its famous "Hallelujah". The work has immense popularity since its premiere in Dublin in 1742, and is often presented at Easter. This performance of the Dutch ensemble Ribattuta Musica under the direction of conductor Dick Duijst was filmed in the grand church of the city of Ermelo, the Netherlands, in 2016. The soloists are Elvire Beekhuizen (soprano), Rosina Fabius (viola), Oscar Verhaar (counter-tenor) Satriya Krisna (tenor), and Hans Voschezang (bass). Ribattuta Musica is a professional ensemble that delivers authentic performances based on current musical practices at the time of the composers.

G01:38:002020HD

Renowned French string quartet Quatuor Ébène marked the 250th birth anniversary of Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) with a remarkable project: recording all of the great composer’s sixteen string quartets. For five years, violinists Pierre Colombet and Gabriel Le Magadure, violist Marie Chilemme, and cellist Raphaël Merlin immersed themselves in Beethoven’s 650 pages of sheet music. Their efforts culminated in the performance of the composer’s complete repertoire for string quartet, which covers three decades of Beethoven's musical creativity, during six impressive concerts at Philharmonie de Paris in the autumn of 2020. Quatuor Ébène explored every facet of Beethoven's string quartet repertoire: from the youthful Opus 18 string quartets to the Razumovsky, Harp, and Serioso quartets (Opus 59, 74, and 95) from his middle period, and finally, the depth of his late quartets (Opus 127 to 135). This program features Quatuor Ébène performing Beethoven’s String Quartet No. 1 in F major, Op. 18, No. 1; String Quartet No. 10 in E-flat major, Op. 74, "Harp"; and String Quartet No. 9 in C major, Op. 59, No. 3, "Razumovsky". This concert performance was recorded at Philharmonie de Paris on October 13, 2020.

G00:20:002015HD

From August 28 to September 6, 2015, the Early Music Festival Utrecht focused on England, my England. On the basis of the festival theme, presenter Lex Bohlmeijer takes the viewer in a two-part documentary on an intriguing journey through England of the Middle Ages, Renaissance and Baroque, and relates this to the city of Utrecht. Episode 1 offers a peek into the inner city churches of Utrecht, visiting the source of inspiration if this year's festival: the English estate Boughton House, where the Duke of Buccleuch shows us around.

G00:15:002024HD

Italian pianist Alessandro Marangoni and Italian organist Paolo Oreni perform Marcel Dupré’s Variations on Two Themes for piano and organ, Op. 35. Designed by the organist himself, Oreni plays his ‘Wanderer’ organ in this performance, which is currently the largest existing transportable pipe organ. With its 1200 pipes and 42 stops, it has all the essential timbres needed for the organ repertoire. This performance was recorded at FabbricaPoggi in Pavia, Italy, on April 5, 2024.

G00:15:002017HD

French conductor Adrien Perruchon leads the Flanders Symphony Orchestra in a performance of Maurice Ravel’s famous Boléro. The Boléro, one of the world’s most popular classical pieces, was commissioned by Russian dancer Ida Rubinstein. She asked the composer to create ballet music of a Spanish character. Ravel’s 1928 composition is inspired by the bolero, a Spanish dance in 3/4 time that originated from the 18th century. Ravel’s piece is characterized by a prominent, unchanging rhythm played on the snare drum, which continues throughout the piece. This performance was recorded in Belgium at Concertgebouw Brugge on March 1, 2017.

G01:44:002007HD

Millions of television viewers in Germany, France, Portugal, Greece and Finland experienced live the moving open-air concert within the highly symbolic surrounding of the Alhambra in Granada. Music as a language of peace – this vision unifies the young musicians of the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra who come from Israel, Palestine, Syria, Jordan, Egypt and Europe. They perform side by side in the orchestra formed in 1999 by Daniel Barenboim and Edward Said. The orchestra has taken on the complex challenge of performing music to promote peace. Soloists are Kyril Zlotnikov and Nabil Shehata. On the program are Beethoven's Leonore Overture No. 3, Bottesini's Fantasia on a theme by Rossini, Brahms' Symphony Nr. 1 and Vorspiel and Liebestod from Wagner's Tristan und Isolde.

G00:11:002021HD

J. S. Bach’s six Brandenburg Concerto’s belong to his best-known works. The composer wrote these concertos between 1711 and 1720 and dedicated them in 1721 to Christian Ludwig, Margrave of Brandenburg. In celebration of the pieces’ 300th anniversary, Czech harpsichordist and conductor Václav Luks and the renowned Baroque ensemble Collegium 1704 recorded all six Brandenburg Concertos on historical instruments in 2021. The concertos are based on the Italian concerto grosso form, in which a group of solo instruments is set against a large ensemble. Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos feature remarkable combinations of solo instruments and virtuoso solos. In this performance at the Hall of Mirrors in the Köthen Castle, Germany, Luks and his Collegium 1704 present Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 in G major, BWV 1048. This concerto was composed for three violins, three violas, three cellos, and basso continuo. Remarkable is the concerto’s form: the two fast movements are separated by an Adagio consisting of a single measure of just two chords.

G01:39:002017HD

After the world premiere of autumn 2017, Seeing Dance describes this ballet adaptation of "Hedda Gabler" of the Norwegian National Opera and Ballet as burning with "intensity". Hedda Gabler is one of world theatre’s best-known characters – an icon created by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. Here, this deeply psychological play is transformed into a ballet, created by director Marit Moum Aune and performed by The Norwegian National Ballet to music by Nils Petter Molvær. The star of this performance is Grete Sofie Borud Nybakken, portraying the main character Hedda. Recorded 2017 in Oslo, Norway.

00:52:002023HD

“Shusha, the Renaissance” is a musical journey featuring pianist Murad Huseynov. The city of Shusha is often considered the cradle of Azerbaijan's music and poetry and one of the leading centres of the Azerbaijani culture, having been declared the cultural capital of Azerbaijan in January 2021. On the program are the following works: Fikret Amirov’s (1922-1984) Twelve Miniatures for Piano Solo: I. Ballade - II. Ashigsayagi – III. Nocturne – IV. Humoresque – V. Lyrical Dance – VI. Hunting - VII. Lullaby – VIII. Waltz – IX. Barcarolle – X. Toccata – XI. Elegy – XII. March; Adil Babirov’s (1934-2021) ‘s Prelude & Scherzo; Gara Garayev’s (1918-1982) Sonatine: I. Allegro – II. Moderato assai – III. Vivo ; Tofik Kouliyev’s (1917-2000) ‘Gaytagi’ and F. Amirov’s Romantic Sonata: I. Allegro energico - II. Andante espressivo - III. Allegro non troppo). This performance is filmed in Shusha in October 2023 and in the Heydar Aliyev Center, Baku, in December 2023. Written and directed by Michel Swierczewski.

G01:10:002021HD

The Maggio Musicale Fiorentino (Florence Musical May) is Italy’s oldest opera and arts festival. It was founded in 1933 with the aim of presenting contemporary and forgotten operas. Over the years, the scope widened, and orchestral concerts have long been an integral part of the festival. As part of the festival’s 2021 edition, Sir John Eliot Gardiner leads the Orchestra del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino in a wonderful concert program that includes Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 2 in C minor, Op. 17, ‘Little Russian’, and Edward Elgar’s Variations on an Original Theme, Op. 36, better known as the Enigma Variations. Written in 1872, Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 2 bears the nickname ‘Little Russian’, as the composer used folk tunes in his work from Ukraine, then known as ‘Little Russia’. Completed in 1899, Elgar’s Enigma Variations is an orchestral work comprising a theme and fourteen variations, each variation being a musical sketch of one of the composer’s friends. This performance was recorded at Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino in Florence, Italy, in 2021.

G00:58:002013HD

In 'Dance on screen', renowned film maker Reiner E. Moritz explores how twentieth-century modern media influenced the development of dance, and vice versa. The invention of the film camera and television has allowed audiences to see not only beautiful dancing and wonderful choreography, but it also brought the dancers’ facial expressions and stage presence to the screen. These technical developments allowed this essentially ephemeral art form to be preserved. 'Dance on screen', about both classical ballet and modern dance, features interviews with recognized choreographers and directors. Moreover, many of the great dancers of the twentieth century are seen in performance, including Alvin Ailey, Anna Pavlova, and Pina Bausch.

G00:21:002017HD

Ran Feng (1991, China) performs La notte (S377a) and Hungarian Rhapsody No. 12, (S379a) during semi-final II (chamber music) of the 11th International Franz Liszt Piano Competition, held in TivoliVredenburg, Utrecht, in 2017. The competition actively presents, develops, and promotes piano talents from around the world. In doing so, it has become one of the prominent gateways to the international professional classical music scene for young musicians. The International Franz Liszt Piano Competition was founded in 1986 in the Netherlands and has since built a reputation as one of the world’s most prestigious piano competitions.

G01:15:002005HD

Maestro Claudio Abbado conducts the Lucerne Festival Orchestra in a performance of Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 7. This performance was part of the Lucerne Festival of 2005, recorded at the Lucerne Culture and Congress Center (KKL), Switzerland. In the years between the completion (1906) and premiere (1908) of Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 7, the composer's life changed rather dramatically. He quit his position at the Wiener Staatsoper, his first daughter died, and he was diagnosed with a cardiac anomaly. Because of the ‘dark’ character of several movements (the second and fourth movement are titled ‘Nightmusic’, and the third movement is titled ‘Schattenhaft’, meaning shadowy), the symphony is nicknamed ‘Song of the Night’, a name which the composer himself did not agree with. This Symphony No. 7 is Mahler’s most abstract work, which may account for its bad reception by musicians and listeners alike at the work's premiere. Even today, the Symphony No. 7 is rarely programmed, as it seems to be one of Mahler's least popular works. Unjustly so: No. 7 is uniquely structured, moving from dark to light and from dark to a jubilant finale. In Mahler's later work, No. 7 is certainly no less accessible than the more frequently-played Symphony No. 9. Of of today's leading conductors, no-one skips this symphony.

G00:33:002016HD

Conductor Jan Latham-Koenig leads the Flanders Symphony Orchestra in a performance of Edvard Grieg’s Piano Concerto in A minor, Op. 16. French pianist Pascal Amoyel features as the soloist. Grieg composed the work in 1868, drawing inspiration from Norwegian folk music. It is the composer’s only concerto. The work premiered on April 3, 1869 in Copenhagen, Denmark, with Edmund Neupert as the soloist, and was received enthusiastically. The Norwegian premiere followed a few months later. This performance was recorded at Concertgebouw Brugge, Belgium, on April 21, 2016.

G00:39:002021HD

Colombian principal conductor Andrés Orozco-Estrada took the Spanish Orquesta Sinfónica Freixenet on the road to perform at some of Europe’s greatest music centers in celebration of Madrid’s Reina Sofía School of Music’s 30th anniversary. This concert features a wonderful performance of Antonín Dvořák’s Symphony No. 8 in G major, Op. 88. It was recorded at the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music in Budapest, Hungary on October 20, 2021.

G00:32:002009HD

This Sonata for Violin and Harpsichord No. 5 BWV 1014 is the fifth out of the set of sonatas Johann Sebastian Bach composed before 1725, probably during his time as chapel master in Köthen. Presumably, he wrote these sonatas for Prince Leopold and later adapted them for further use in Leipzig. Maybe this is why these pieces are well playable for amateurs, while every sonata still has the finesse that can offer a challenge to professional musicians. The different pieces are meant to be a set, just like the Brandenburg concertos. Performers: Frank Peter Zimmermann (violin), Enrico Pace (piano)