Magdalena Kožená & Ian Bostridge Headline New CD/DVD Releases
By Francisco SalazarThis week audiences will get a chance to hear new albums from two famed singers. They will also get to experience two rarely performed operas. Here is a look a the new releases.
Respighi Songs – Ian Bostridge, Saskia Giorgini
PENTATONE releases Ian Bostridge and Saskia Giorgini’s latest album dedicated to rarely-recorded songs by Ottorino Respighi. This selection of songs demonstrates Respighi’s stylistic versatility and broad literary inspiration, from settings of Ada Negri’s compact verses to florid, Symbolist d’Annunzio poems as well as folk melodies, including Scottish songs.
Nostalgia
Magdalena Kožená releases her third album for PENTATONE presenting Bartók’s Village Scenes, Mussorgsky’s The Nursery, and a selection of Brahms songs. On this album, she is joined by acclaimed pianist Yefim Bronfman. Sung in Slovak, Russian and German, these songs on love, longing, and innocence show three master composers transforming folk traditions into their unique musical styles.
Atys
Lully’s “Atys” gets a new release on Naxos from the Opéra Comique. William Christie conducts the ensemble Les Arts Florissants in a production by Jean-Marie Villégier. The production stars Bernard Richter, Stéphanie d’Oustrac, Emmanuelle de Negri, and Nicolas Rivenq.
Waldmeister
Johann Strauss II’s operetta “Waldmeister” (Woodruff) will be released by Naxos in the world-premiere-recording. The recording stars Martina Bortolotti von Haderburg, Daniel Schliewa, and Robert Davidson, with Dario Salvi leading the Sofia Philharmonic Orchestra and Chorus.