A return to its roots for Castor et Pollux, Jean-Philippe Rameau’s lyric tragedy first performed in 1737 at the Académie royale and inspired by the mythological episode of the Gemini. Rarely performed in its original version – the score was reworked by Rameau himself in 1754 –, this daring work plays on contrasts and expressiveness, as in the famous “Tristes apprêts”. The aria is sung by Télaïre mourning the death of her fiancé Castor, killed in battle, before his twin brother Pollux descends into the Underworld to ask his father, Jupiter, to bring him back to life. While this opera celebrates brotherly love, its prologue poses an essential question for director Peter Sellars: how do you stop a war and its attendant hatred and resentment?

A production of Mozart's opera recorded live at Zurich Opera House in 2000. Cecilia Bartoli leads an...

In the awe-inspiring Teatro Olimpico,Vicenza, Cecilia Bartoli, recognised as one of the best singers...

The life and career of Italian opera singer Farinelli, considered one of the greatest castrato singe...

Passion, jealousy and betrayal take center stage at Londons Royal Opera House in a spectacular produ...

Simon Rattle conducts the Berliner Philharmoniker in Stepháne Braunschweig's production of Richard W...

The first-ever audio-visual recording of this opera – directed by Christof Loy, conducted by Marc Al...

Starring Jonas Kaufmann as Bacchus and featuring Emily Magee with Daniel Harding conducting the Vien...

The grand scale and magnificent acoustics of the Roman arena in Verona are ideally suited to the pag...

This Blu-ray is a splendid record of a creative production with terrific voices and direction, as go...

This thought-provoking, modern-day interpretation of Rossini's 'Mosè in Egitto' sets the scene for s...

Visually this is a gripping production which captures the drama of this opera perfectly. It's downri...

Premiered in 1787, “Don Giovanni” exposes the timeless theme of a man hovering between vitality and ...

What happened to Figaro and his friends after the events told in Rossini’s and Mozart’s operas? One ...

Officers Ferrando and Guglielmo are certain that their lovers Dorabella and Fiordiligi are faithful ...

Imagine a window into the past. Imagine finally connecting singers' bodies to the voices you have al...

It took Anna 10 years to recover from the death of her husband, Sean, but now she's on the verge of ...

Performed live at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, Gluck's opera in three acts is conducted by ...

The celebrated mezzo-soprano Cecilia Bartoli joins Bryn Terfel for a recital of arias and duets reco...

John Eliot Gardiner conducts Gluck’s 1776 French version of “Alceste” at the Théâtre du Châtelet in ...