Lehár: Dein ist mein ganzes Herz / Nylund, Beczala, Honeck, Wiener Symphoniker
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$32.99Feb 04, 2022
The 150th anniversary of Franz Lehár's birth was celebrated in 2021 – an anniversary that the Vienna Symphony Orchestra commemorated with this documentary and concert recording. Lehar himself was the founder of the silver operetta era and was also one of the central artistic companions of the orchestra, which was founded in 1900. In the course of its history, the orchestra has performed more than 120 of his works at over 150 events. And Lehár himself stood at the rostrum of the symphony orchestra more than 20 times. His unforgettable melodies have become the symbol of a Viennese musical culture that is still very close to the orchestra's heart, as well as being one of its main areas of expertise. An important premiere venue for many of Lehár's operettas was the Theater an der Wien, where the Vienna Symphony Orchestra recorded this concert under the expert direction of Manfred Honeck. The recording features such illustrious singers from the Vienna State Opera ensemble as the Finnish soprano KS Camilla Nylund and the tenors KS Piotr Beczala and KS Michel Schade, performing the most popular melodies and rousing numbers from Lehár's The Merry Widow, The Land of Smiles, The Tsarevich, The Count of Luxembourg and Giuditta. The documentary skilfully combines certain periods of Lehár's life with excerpts of works recorded especially for this project by the world class Vienna Symphony Orchestra. The interview with Lehár which forms the framework of the film is fictitious, although the composer's answers were compiled from reliable sources and are therefore authentic. This film provides an interesting insight into diverse aspects of Lehár's life and work based on authentic sources, while the music recordings offer a highly enjoyable experience for music lovers.
In his later stage works, Franz Lehar replaced the happy ending usual for the genre with a bittersweet conclusion filled with painful doubts. In contrast, the ending of the operetta Schon ist die Welt, premiered in 1930, is unsurpassed in it's clarity. Crown Prince Georg and Princess Elisabeth, who were arranged to be married by his father and her aunt respectively, do not want to go through with the arrangement, but end up together in a mountain hut without having met before. They fall in love and realise in the end that the world is quite beautiful after all. Lehar pulls out all the stops of his artistry in this piece. The modern dances and inextinguishable melodies are surprising and he again proves himself to be a master of skilful recycling by bringing the second act of a once dismal story to a new, brilliant life. A highlight of the 2023 Bad Ischl Lehar Festival!
‘My Vienna’ is Jonas Kaufmann’s deeply personal tribute to the world-famous melodies from the birthplace of waltz and operetta and follows up the album release from Fall 2019. The 100-minute film consists of Jonas Kaufmann’s Wiener Konzerthaus concert interspersed with documentary-style segments where Jonas Kaufmann explores the city’s fascinating lighter musical heritage. His concert from the Wiener Konzerthaus includes well-known Viennese songs like “Wien, Wien nur du allein“, “Im Prater blühn wieder die Bäume”, “Sag beim Abschied leise “Servus““. He also sings scenes from famous operettas such as “The Merry Widow”, “Wiener Blut” and “Die Fledermaus” where soprano Rachel Willis-SØrensen joins him on the duets.
![Mein Wien / Kaufmann, Willis-Sorensen, Rieder, Prague Philharmonic [Blu-ray]](http://arkivmusic.com/cdn/shop/files/3862731-2631617.jpg?v=1790451249&width=800)
![Mein Wien / Kaufmann, Willis-Sorensen, Rieder, Prague Philharmonic [Blu-ray]](http://arkivmusic.com/cdn/shop/files/3862731-2631617.jpg?v=1790451249&width=400)