Opera Rara’s New “La Princesse de Trébizonde”
Ever since that night so many years ago when I saw my first Offenbach (November 4, 1974, Hoffmanns Erzählungen, at
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New Recording from Graz: Nico Dostal’s “Clivia” on cpo
Nico Dostal scored a hit with his Clivia when it premiered at Berlin’s Theater am Nollendorfplatz in December 1933, after
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World Premiere Recording: Walter W. Goetze’s “Wenn Männer schwindeln”
The works of German pre-WW1 composers have only recently come back into focus again – as opposed to the better-known
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“Camelot” Returns With A New Broadway Cast Album
I have always liked 90 percent of Camelot. And 100 percent of its delicious source material. I am, yes, too
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Rodgers & Hammerstein Revisited: “The King and I” & “South Pacific” on Jay Records
This morning I had an interesting package on my desktop. Complete recordings of The King and I (1994) and South
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Paul Lincke’s “Frau Luna” – A Radio Recording from Cologne on CPO
There is no real shortage of Frau Luna recordings, the Paul Lincke classic from 1899 has always worked well as
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“Das ist die Berliner Luft”: Paul Lincke Overtures Volume 1
This newly issued 2020 recording from CPO has rarely been out of my CD player since it arrived: it is
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First Full Recording of Suppé’s “Reise um die Erde in 80 Tagen“ on Naxos
In recent years we have seen a splendid series of recordings brought forth – in England, France, Italy – of
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“The Pleasure Garden“: The LGBT History of the Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens as a Musical
Back in 2004, the Wien Museum presented the exhibition Alt-Wien: Die Stadt, die niemals war. It examined the phenomenon that
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Ernst Theis Conducts “Tonfilmschlager” from Nazi Times
“Can music be innocent?“ That‘s the first sentence in the booklet to this new CD of the Münchner Rundfunkorchester and
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Opera Rara Set to Record Offenbach’s “La Princesse de Trébizonde”
The British record label Opera Rara returns to the works of Jacques Offenbach – for the first time since they
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Fly Me To The Moon: Kurt Kurt Gänzl reviews the new “Le Voyage dans la lune”
A new recording from Bru Zane? After their tremendous job with La Fille de Madame Angot, I am all agog.
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A Trip Back To The 1920s: Ben Zimmermann’s “Höchste Eisenbahn“ Album
This CD entitled Höchste Eisenbahn by actor Ben Zimmermann and pianist Mark McNeill is called a „Doku Revue der Goldenen
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42nd Street: The First Complete Recording
I have just been on a very, very happy trip down memory boulevard. For a couple of years of my
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Hanns Eisler: Couplets & Ballads With The Amazing HK Gruber
At first glance, Hanns Eisler doesn’t have much to do with operetta. But if you look closer, the very first
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Operetten-Gesamtaufnahmen der letzten zehn Jahre: Ein Überblick
Operette hat Konjunktur. In den letzten Jahren sind (meist beim Label cpo) rund zwei Dutzend Aufnahmen auf CD erschienen, meist
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Rediscovering Marcel Lattès’ Swing Operetta “Le Diable à Paris” (1927)
I knew that I should enjoy this 1927 French operetta directly after I read Richard Traubner’s dismissal of Marcel Lattès
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Homage to Carl Michael Ziehrer: The Vienna Philharmonic New Year’s Concert 2022
It’s only a few days now, and the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra will be at their exercise again. Their 1 January
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Glitter And Be Gay: Marin Alsop’s New “Candide“ From London
Finding the best of all possible Candide recordings is hard. Because Leonard Bernstein’s eclectic work from 1956 – his only
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A New “Porgy & Bess” With Marin Alsop And Angel Blue
Another Porgy and Bess recording? Pentanone Classics has released highlights conducted by Marin Alsop, taken from a live concert in
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An 18th Century Operetta Composer? First Recording Of Charles Dibdin’s “The Wags”
Charles Dibdin is often thought of, assuming he is thought of at all, as one of the links between the
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“La Fille de Madame Angot” On Palazzetto Bru Zane: A Recording Of Reference From Now On
Once upon a time, not so very long ago, a young lady radio or TV ‘interviewer’ asked me: what was
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The First Truly “Complete” Recording Of Kálmán’s “Gräfin Mariza” On CPO
Did it really take until 2021 for a complete Countess Mariza recording to come out? Of course, there have been
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First Full Recording Of Johann Strauss’ “Waldmeister” (1895)
The label Naxos is continuing its Johann Strauss series with a new recording of late operetta Waldmeister, which originally premiered
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What A Voyage! Historic “La Fille de Madame Angot” Recordings In English, French & Italian
The sky is blue, the sun is shining, the waves are tinkling on the shore a hundred metres from me
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World Premiere Recording of Ábrahám’s Jazzy 1932 “Ball at the Savoy” In English
Paul Abrahám’s flavorsome jazz operetta, which premiered to great acclaim in 1932 Berlin at Großes Schauspielhaus, only to have its
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The Showtime Series: Historic Recordings Of “Mademoiselle Modiste” & “Naughty Marietta”
After 1945, Decca and American Columbia developed the 33 rpm LP vinyl record to replace the 78 rpm shellac disc.
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The Smithsonian’s 1981 Recording Of “Naughty Marietta” On CD For The First Time
Harbinger Records is planning a re-issue – for the first time on CD – of the Smithsonian Institution’s 1981 recording
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Johann Strauss’ “Ritter Pásmán”: Live Recording From Vienna 1975 Released On CD
In 1892 Johann Strauss – the world-famous dance music composer and author of numerous operetta classics – managed to premiere
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Basic Operetta Opinions: 11 Questions For Ethel Merhaut
Soprano Ethel Merhaut is part of the “young musical scene of Vienna” and likes to “use lots of charme and
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Ethel Merhaut Sings “Bittersweet” Operetta For Sony Masterworks
It’s astonishing that Sony Masterworks is releasing an album of operetta songs – in jazz arrangements! Presented by the young
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Big Bang Moments: Martin Mitterrutzner Sings Tenor Hits Of The 1930s
The repertoire Tyrolean tenor Martin Mitterrutzner presents on his new album Heut’ ist der schönste Tag was made popular in
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Another “First” Recording Of Reynaldo Hahn’s 1933 “Ô Mon Bel Inconnu”
Venezuelan born Reynaldo Hahn (1874-1947) lived in Paris for most of his life, composed his first successful song (“If My
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“Ball im Savoy” From Estonia, Arranged & Sung By Mart Sander
When I visited Tallinn in 2016 and saw that they were playing Ball im Savoy at the Estonian National Opera,
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Deflowering Austria: The New Year’s Concert From Vienna Lets Suppé Sparkle
There’s something supremely uplifting about starting the new year with Franz von Suppé’s rousing Fatinitza march as played by the
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What Is The Best “Fledermaus” On Disc?
Ah yes, another Fledermaus recording. As if there aren’t enough already, right? Well, actually, this one from the NDR Radiophilharmonie
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