DVD

Rolando Villazon, Magdalena Kozena, Katherine Watson, Kresimir Spicer, Le Concert d’Astree, Emmanuelle Haim

This DVD derive from the world premiere performances, at the Dutch National Opera in 2016, of Only the Sound Remains, a Japanese-inspired double bill by Kaija Saariaho. Her first opera, L’Amour de loin, has captivated audiences around the world, and she composed Only the Sound Remains with the ethereal tones of Philippe Jaroussky in mind. Appropriately, the French countertenor plays two supernatural characters, an angel and a ghost. The fisherman and priest who encounter them are both sung by baritone Davone Tines, while the production is the work of the celebrated director Peter Sellars.

Diana Damrau (Lucia), Charles Castronovo (Edgardo), Ludovic Tézier (Enrico), Taylor Stayton (Arturo), Kwangchul Youn (Raimondo), Rachael Lloyd (Alisa), Peter Hoare (Normanno), Orchestra and Chorus of the Royal Opera House, Daniel Oren, Katie Mitchell

Waltraud Meier (Isolde), Ian Storey (Tristan), Michelle DeYoung (Brangaene), Gerd Grochowski (Kurwenal), Matti Salminen (Konig Marke), Willy Hartmann II (Melot), Ryland Davies (Hirt), Teatro alla Scala di Milano, Daniel Barenboim, Patrice Chéreau

Three full-length operas composed by Gioacchino Rossini: 'The Barber of Seville', 'La Cenerentola' and 'Le Comte Ory'