|
Amazon.com's Price: $50.98 as of 11/23/2009 09:13 EST details
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Buy Now!
This item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping.
Binding: Audio CD
EAN: 0028946953228
Format: Box set
Item Dimensions: 60
Label: Deutsche Grammophon
Manufacturer: Deutsche Grammophon
MPN: 469532
Number Of Discs: 3
Publisher: Deutsche Grammophon
Release Date: April 02, 2002
Studio: Deutsche Grammophon
Editorial Review:
Amazon.com:
Full of powerful drama and splendid music, this oratorio (an opera in all but name) has been neglected for reasons that remain a mystery. Marc Minkowski and his crack early-music band set things right, however, with a sparkling performance Handelians will greet with joy. The story revolves around Dejanira's jealousy of hubby Hercules and her attempt to win the hero back, which ends in his death, her remorse, and the union of the young lovers, Hyllus, her son, and Iole, the foreign princess she mistakenly believes her rival. The singing is on a high level throughout, though the intense Dejanira ideally wants a bigger voice than von Otter's lighter, lyric instrument. Gidon Saks's big, resonant bass-baritone is superb, and Lynne Dawson's gorgeous soprano fits Iole perfectly. Richard Croft's firm tenor and imaginative singing make something special of Hyllus's every appearance. Only David Daniels's veiled singing disappoints in the important role of the Herald. At the 1744 premiere, Handel assigned the part to a contralto, so there's no historical justification for a countertenor here. A live 1958 La Scala performance (on Melodram), sung in Italian, is the only viable rival on disc; its deficiencies are compensated for by the presence of great voices including Elizabeth Schwarzkopf and Franco Corelli. But this excellent Archiv production now rules the roost. --Dan Davis
Average Rating: 
Rating: -
This is a truly different and exciting take on Handel, if I may make so bold a statement. The singing has a somewhat modern flavour, being more convincing and less 'periodic'. I mean, when Anne Sofie von Otter almost sighs "Oh Hercules!" as her opening line, there's no mistaking HOW much Dejanira longs for him! We begin to understand, from her characterisation, how Dejanira could have ended up making the fatal blunder. With hindsight, this deserved less that 5 stars- at times von Otter sounds a little ... Read More
Rating: -
One of Handel's more intriguing and epic oratorios, "Hercules" examines the power of jealousy and its fatalistic ramifications using the last hours of the mythic hero's life as the central focus of the story. Wrapped in Handel's wondrous, mood-shifting music and marked by an extremely theatrical sense of character-driven drama, this three-disc set boasts a stellar cast lending their voices to some of his most breathtaking arias. Amazingly, this elaborate piece was a bomb when it first premiered in London ... Read More
Rating: -
This is dangerously beautiful music performed to perfection. Anne Sofie von Otter has never sounded better, in my opinion, nor has she ever sung music more suited to her. The rest of the cast keeps up with her which says a lot I think for them and for Minkowski.
Is Handel opera finally beginning to receive its due? I certainly hope so. It is every bit as celestial as his "greatest hits," or more so. I thank Handel, God and the producer of this recording - but Handel first.
Rating: -
Like "Semele," "Hercules" (1744) is a secular English-language drama drawn from classical mythology, composed at a time when Handel had turned from Italian opera to English oratorio. Though presented without scenery, costumes or stage action, this "Musical Drama" to a text by the Rev. Thomas Broughton (after Ovid, Sophocles & Seneca) is a stageworthy tragedy of love & jealousy -- Handel's librettist Charles Jennens, never one to mince words, called it "an English Opera." Although the only well-known piece ... Read More
Television Show
Collectibles
Movie Searches
|
|
|
Search for posters,
art prints, photos, collectables, merchandise, toys, t-shirts
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
TV Guide
Program listings, celebrity profiles, industry
gossip, movie reviews, puzzle.
More
Entertainment
& TV Magazines
This site is
Hosted
by Bluehost
Read
my Bluehost Review
Most Popular TV collectibles
|
|
Home
Articles
Images
Forum
Search
Shopping
TV Trivia
Watch TV
Wallpaper
