"Actor: Tatiana Troyanos"

• Bernstein - the Making of Westside Story (Te Kanawa) | DVD | (11/07/2005) from £14.29   |  Saving you £2.70 (18.89%)   |  RRP £16.99

  27 years after its Broadway premiere Leonard Bernstein went into a New York studio for Deutsche Grammophon to conduct his most famous work for the first time. In selecting his cast he decided to go for sound with the sumptuous operatic voices of Kiri Te Kanawa Jose Carreras and Tatiana Troyanos. This spellbinding film winner of the Prix Italia and the British Academy's Flaherty Award documents the stresses and strains exhilaration and eventual triumph in the making of a landmark recording.

• Wagner - Tannhauser (Levine, Cassilly) | DVD | (12/06/2006) from £19.95   |  Saving you £-4.96 (N/A%)   |  RRP £14.99

  Wagner's passionate opera about a medieval minstrel torn between the temptations of sacred and profane love is seen here. A distinguished cast is headed by Richard Cassilly who was perhaps the leading exponent of Tannhauser at this time; Eva Marton is the radiant Elisabeth; Tatiana Troyanos a musically and dramatically stunning Venus.

• Ariadne Auf Naxos | DVD | (02/09/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Strauss's opera 'Ariadne Auf Naxos' performed by the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. Artists include: Jessye Norman Kathleen Battle Tatania Troyanos and James King. Conducted by James Levine.

• Leonard Bernstein conducts West Side Story -- The Making of the Recording | DVD | (04/02/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Filmed in 1984 for the BBC, the feature-length documentary Leonard Bernstein conducts West Side Story follows the composer through one week as he records the first-ever complete album of his musical theatre masterpiece. (The previous Broadway cast and original soundtrack albums had both been cut down to single LP length.) Virtually the entire documentary takes place in a New York recording studio with a pick-up orchestra, session singers and headliners Kiri Te Kanawa (Maria), José Carreras (Tony), Tatiana Troyanos (Anita) and Kurt Ollmann (Riff). The 89-minute programme alternates rehearsal footage with complete final takes of the main numbers--including "Tonight", "America", and "Maria"--with a limited amount of comment from the principal players. Te Kanawa explains how much the music means to her, Troyanos notes how she grew-up in the very streets depicted on stage and Carreras provides a rare moment of tension when a session ends unsatisfactorily. Bernstein himself is by turns commanding, charming, enthusiastic or weary. For anyone wanting an extensive insight into what happens as a major album is recorded this is fascinating, though others who just want to enjoy the wonderful music will be better served by the resultant two-CD set. On the DVD: Though filmed for British television, Deutsche Grammophon have chosen to release a single region-free (Region 0) DVD for the entire world. Unfortunately this means the disc is in NTSC format rather than PAL, and requires an NTSC-compatible television for playback. It also means that while the sound has been effectively remastered for PCM stereo the picture shows all the signs of a bad NTSC copy--weak, washed-out colours and poor definition with a serious lack of detail. Most videos are far better. The DVD has subtitles in German, French, Spanish and Chinese. There are no extras, though the booklet adapts an interesting article by producer Humphrey Burton which originally appeared in Gramophone magazine in 1985.--Gary S Dalkin

• Mozart - La Clemenza Di Tito | DVD | (13/03/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £13.99

  Filmed in 1980 among the ruins of ancient Rome Jean-Pierre Ponnelle's stunning production marked the beginning of a renaissance for Mozart's late opera and continues to stand out as one of finest opera films of all time. James Levine conducts the Wiener Philharmoniker in this performance of Mozart's operatic marvel driven by imperial intrigue fury and forgiveness.

• Les Troyens - Berlioz/The Met/James Levine | DVD | (16/07/2007) from £14.31   |  Saving you £1.94 (14.87%)   |  RRP £14.99

  Filmed at the Metropolitan Opera in 1983 Berlioz's masterpiece Les Troyens is a tragic tale of love and fate based on Virgil's Aeneid. Under the baton of James Levine Jessye Norman is stunning in the part of Cassandra and Pl''cido Domingo makes for a strong compelling Aeneas. This benchmark performance was hailed by both critics and audiences and performed to greatest critical acclaim. Norman's role debut as Cassandra emerged as one her most significant and compelling performances and this DVD is also a stand-out release among Domingo's extensive filmography.

• George London - a Tribute | DVD | (03/10/2005) from £9.99   |  Saving you £15.00 (150.15%)   |  RRP £24.99

  George London: A TributeMozartWagner