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Showing posts from September, 2011

Your favourite Siegmund/Sieglinde on DVD

<a href ="http://answers.polldaddy.com/poll/1061897/" >Your favourite Siegmund/Sieglinde on DVD</a> <br /> <span style="font-size:9px;"> (<a href ="http://www.polldaddy.com"> surveys</a>)</span> Peter Hofmann / Jeannine Altmeyer (Cheréau/Boulez) Poul Elming / Nadine Secunde (Kupfer/Barenboim) Gary Lakes / Jessye Norman (Schenk/Levine) Richard Berkeley-Steele / Linda Watson (Kupfer/de Billy) Robert Gambill / Angela Denoke (Stuttgart Ring)

Kasper Holten's Claustrophobic Tannhäuser Production in Copenhagen

Stig Fogh Andersen as Tannhäuser Kasper Holten's production of Tannhäuser is an interesting reading of the story set in the 19th Century in an atmosphere that evokes Strindberg and Ibsen. Tannhäuser is torn between his mission as an artist (the Venus world) and his obligations as a husband and a father (Elisabeth's world). The Rome narration is his own retelling of the work of fiction he has written during his absence in "Rome". This is very innovative and surprising, and provides a fresh perspective of the opera. Kasper Holten's strength is in the details. He is always attentive to nuances in the music, and generally the Personenregie is among the best of the opera world today. And he obviously has an abilty to inspire strong dramatic interpretations from his singers. None of the singers excel vocally in this production, although four principals, Stig Andersen (Tannhäuser, Tina Kiberg (Elisabeth), Susanne Resmark (Venus) and Stephen Milling (Hermann) are al