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James Levine's 25th Anniversary Metropolitan Opera Gala

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Wikipedia article




'James Levine's 25th Anniversary Metropolitan Opera Gala' was a concert, lasting (including intermissions) approximately eight hours, that the Metropolitan Opera staged in 1996 in honour of its then principal conductor and artistic director. Excerpts from the gala were released by Deutsche Grammophon on a 72-minute CD, a 161-minute VHS videocassette and a 161-minute double Laserdisc in 1996, and on a 293-minute double DVD in 2005.

Background



James Levine made his dbut at the Metropolitan Opera at the age of twenty-seven. On 5 June 1971, he conducted a matine performance of 'Tosca' with Grace Bumbry in the title role, Franco Corelli as Cavaradossi and Peter Glossop also making his Met dbut as Scarpia. Levine was the longest serving conductor in the Met's history, becoming its principal conductor in 1973, its music director in 1976 and its inaugural artistic director in 1986. At the time of his gala, he had led the Met in 1,646 performances of sixty-eight operas, twenty-one of which he had introduced into the company's repertoire. He had also notably initiated the Met's series of television broadcasts with a production of 'La Bohme' starring Luciano Pavarotti and Renata Scotto in 1977.

The Met celebrated the silver anniversary of Levine's arrival there with a concert on 27 April 1996. Fifty-eight soloists contributed to a gala that lasted from 6 p.m. until 2 a.m. on the following morning. They performed on three sets: an Ezio Frigerio design for Act 1 of 'Francesca da Rimini', a gift of Mrs Donald D. Harrington; a Gnther Schneider-Siemssen design for Act 2 of 'Arabella', a gift in part of Mrs Michael Falk; and a Schneider-Siemssen design for Act 2 of 'Tannhuser', a gift of the Fan Fox and Leslie R. Samuels Foundation and of the Metropolitan Opera Guild. The gala as a whole was sponsored by Mrs Emily Fisher Landau. Its television broadcast was sponsored by Mrs Harrington, the Texaco Philanthropic Foundation, Inc., and the National Endowment For the Arts, in association with Deutsche Grammophon, the United Kingdom's BBC Worldwide Television, Japan's NHK, Holland's Nederlandse Programma Stichting, Denmark's Danmarks Radio, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Sweden's Sveriges Television.

DVD chapter listing



Disc 1

* 1 (1:51) Opening credits

Set design for Act 1 of 'Francesca da Rimini' by Ezio Frigerio (born 1930)

'Richard Wagner' (18131883)

'Rienzi, der letzte der Tribunen' ("Rienzi, the last of the tribunes", WWV 49, Dresden, 1842), with a libretto by Wagner after 'Rienzi, the last of the Roman tribunes' (1835) by Edward Bulwer-Lytton (18031873)

* 2 (12:46) Overture

'Tannhuser und der Sngerkrieg auf Wartburg' ("Tannhuser and the Wartburg song contest", WWV 70, Dresden, 1845), with a libretto by Wagner after the German legends of Tannhuser and the Wartburg Sngerkrieg (minstrels' contest)

* 3 (3:44) "Dich, teure Halle", with Deborah Voigt (Elisabeth)

'Giuseppe Verdi' (18131901)

'Don Carlo' (Paris, 1867), with an Italian libretto by Achille de Lauzieres and Angelo Zanardini, translated from the French of Joseph Mry (17971866) and Camille du Locle (18321903), after the play 'Don Carlos, Infant von Spanien' ("Don Carlos, Infante of Spain", Hamburg, 1787) by Friedrich Schiller (17591805)

* 4 (12:16) "Restate!... O Signor, di Fiandra arrivo", with Thomas Hampson (Rodrigo) and Roberto Scandiuzzi (Filippo II)

'Gustave Charpentier' (18601956)

'Louise' (Paris, 1900), with a libretto by Charpentier and Saint-Pol-Roux (18611940)

* 5 (6:28) "Depuis le jour o je me suis donne", with Rene Fleming (Louise)

'Pietro Mascagni' (18631945)

'L'amico Fritz' ("Friend Fritz", Rome, 1891), with a libretto by Nicola Daspuro (18531941, writing as P. Suardon) and Giovanni Targioni-Tozzetti (18631934) after 'L'ami Fritz' by mile Erckmann (18221899) and Pierre-Alexandre Chatrian

* 6 (9:55) "Suzel, buon di", with Angela Gheorghiu (Suzel) and Roberto Alagna (Fritz)

'Franz Lehr' (18701948)

'Giuditta' (Vienna, 1934), with a libretto by (18791967) and Fritz Lhner-Beda (18831942)

* 7 (5:20) "Ich wei es selber nicht... Meine Lippen, sie kssen so hei", with Ileana Cotrubas (Giuditta)

'Giuseppe Verdi'

'Don Carlo'

* 8 (5:38) "Ah, pi non vedr... O don fatale", with Dolora Zajick (Eboli)

Set design for Act 2 of 'Arabella' by Gnther Schneider-Siemssen (19262015)

'Georges Bizet' (18381875)

'Les pcheurs de perles' ("The pearl fishers", Paris, 1867), with a libretto by Eugne Cormon (18101903) and Michel Carr (18211872)

* 9 (6:44) "Au fond du temple saint", with Roberto Alagna (Nadir) and Bryn Terfel (Zurga)

'Charles Gounod' (18181893)

'Romo et Juliette' (Paris, 1867), with a libretto by Jules Barbier (18251901) and Michel Carr after 'Romeo and Juliet' ('circa' 1593) by William Shakespeare (15641616)

*10 (4:36) "Je veux vivre dans ce rve", with Ruth Ann Swenson (Juliette)

'Johann Strauss II' (18251899)

'Die Fledermaus' ("The flittermouse", Vienna, 1874), with a libretto by Karl Haffner (18041876) and Richard Gene (18231895) after 'Le rveillon' ("The supper party", Paris, 1872) by Henri Meilhac (18301897) and Ludovic Halvy (18341908), after 'Das Gefngnis' ("The prison", Berlin, 1851) by Julius Roderich Benedix (18111873)

*11 (5:03) "Dieser Anstand, so manierlich", with Karita Mattila (Rosalinde) and Hkan Hagegrd (Eisenstein)

'Richard Wagner'

'Tristan und Isolde' (WWV 90, Mnchen, 1865), with a libretto by Wagner after 'Tristan' by Gottfried von Strassburg (d. 'circa' 1210)

*12 (11:06) "Wie lachend sie mir Lieder singen", with Waltraud Meier (Isolde)

'Giuseppe Verdi'

'Luisa Miller' (Naples, 1849), with a libretto by Salvadore Cammarano (18011852) after 'Kabale und Liebe' ("Intrigue and love", Frankfurt am Main, 1784) by Friedrich Schiller

*13 (7:11) "Oh! Fede negar potessi agl'occhi miei!... Quando le sere al placido", with Carlo Bergonzi (Rodolfo)

Set design for Act 2 of 'Tannhuser' by Gnther Schneider-Siemssen

'Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky' (18401893)

'Eugene Onegin' (Op. 24, Moscow, 1879), with a libretto by Tchaikovsky and Konstantin Shilovsky after Eugene Onegin (published serially, 18251832) by Alexander Pushkin (17991837)

*14 (14:56) "O! Kak mnye tyazhelo", with Catherine Malfitano (Tatyana) and Dwayne Croft (Eugene Onegin)

'Camille Saint-Sans' (18351921)

'Samson et Dalila' (Op. 47, Weimar, 1877), with a libretto by Ferdinand Lemaire (18321879) after the story of Samson and Delilah in Chapter 16 of the Book of Judges in the Old Testament

*15 (6:25) "Mon cur s'ouvre ta voix", with Grace Bumbry (Dalila)

'Jacques Offenbach' (18191880)

'La Prichole' ("The Peruvienne", Paris, 1868), with a libretto by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halvy after 'Le carrosse de Saint-Sacrement' ("The Saint-Sacrement coach") by Prosper Mrime (18031871)

*16 (2:38) "Ah! Quel dner je viens de faire", with Frederica von Stade (La Prichole)

'Richard Strauss' (18641949)

'Der Rosenkavalier' ("The knight of the rose", Op. 59, Dresden, 1911), with a libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal (18741929) after 'Les amours du chevalier de Faubles' by Jean-Baptiste Louvet de Couvrai (17601797) and 'Monsieur de Pourceaugnac' (1669) by Molire (16221673)

*17 (6:05) "Hab mir's gelobt", with Rene Fleming (Feldmarschallin), Anne Sofie von Otter (Octavian) and Heidi Grant Murphy (Sophie von Faninal)

'Charles Gounod'

'Faust' (Paris, 1859), with a libretto by Jules Barbier and Michel Carr from Carr's play 'Faust et Marguerite' after 'Faust: Eine Tragdie' ("Faust, a tragedy", 1808) by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (17491832)

*18 (10:30) "Mais ce Dieu, que peut-il pour moi?", with Plcido Domingo (Faust) and Samuel Ramey (Mphistophls)

'Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart' (17561791)

'Il dissoluto punito, ossia il Don Giovanni' ("The rake punished, or Don Giovanni", K. 527, Prague, 1787), with a libretto by Lorenzo da Ponte (17491838) after 'El burlador de Seville y convivado de piedra' ("The trickster of Seville and the stone guest", ?1616) by Tirso de Molina (15791648)

*19 (8:57) "Di molte faci il lume... Sola, sola in buio loco", with Rene Fleming (Donna Anna), Kiri Te Kanawa (Donne Elvira), Hei-Kyung Hong (Zerlina), Jerry Hadley (Don Ottavio), Bryn Terfel (Leporello) and Julien Robbins (Masetto)

Disc 2

* 1 (1:06) Opening

Set design for Act 1 of 'Francesca da Rimini' by Ezio Frigerio

'John Corigliano' (born 1938)

'The ghosts of Versailles' (New York, 1991), with a libretto by William M. Hoffman (19392017) after 'L'autre Tartuffe, ou La mre coupable' ("The other Tartuffe, or The guilty mother", Paris, 1792) by Pierre Beaumarchais

* 2 (9:18) "Cherubino...", "Now we go back in time", with Hei-Kyung Hong (Rosina), Wendy White (Cherubino), Christine Goerke (Marie Antoinette) and Hkan Hagegrd (Pierre Beaumarchais)

'Giuseppe Verdi'

'Un ballo in maschera' (Rome, 1859), with a libretto by Antonio Somma (18091864) after that written by Eugne Scribe (17911861) for 'Gustave III, ou Le bal masqu' by Daniel Auber (17821871)

* 3 (5:24) "Ahim! S'appressa alcun!", with Ghena Dimitrova (Amelia), Franco Farina (Riccardo) and Juan Pons (Renato)

'Antonn Dvok' (18411904)

'Rusalka' ("The water spirit", Prague, 1901), with a libretto by Jaroslav Kvapil (18681950) after 'Undine' (1811) by Friedrich de la Motte Fouqu (17771843), 'Den lille havfreu' ("The little mermaid", 1837) by Hans Christian Andersen (18051875) and the north-west European folk tradition of Melusine

* 4 (7:13) Song to the Moon: "Msku na nebi hlubokm", with Gabriela Beakov (Rusalka)

'Richard Wagner'

'Die Walkre' ("The Valkyrie", WWV 86B, Munich, 1870), with a libretto by Wagner

* 5 (18:44) "Leb wohl, du khnes, herrliches Kind!", with James Morris (Wotan)

Set design for Act 2 of 'Arabella' by Gnther Schneider-Siemssen

'Giuseppe Verdi'

'Ernani' (Venice, 1844), with a libretto by Francesco Maria Piave (18101876) after 'Hernani' (1830) by Victor Hugo (18021885)

* 6 (13:01) "Cessaro i suoni", with Deborah Voigt (Elvira), Plcido Domingo (Ernani) and Roberto Scandiuzzi (Silva)

'Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart'

'Le nozze di Figaro' ("The marriage of Figaro", K. 492, Vienna, 1786), with a libretto by Lorenzo da Ponte after 'La folle journe, ou Le Mariage de Figaro' ("The mad day, or The marriage of Figaro", 1784) by Pierre Beaumarchais (17321799)

* 7 (5:42) "Giunse alfin il momento... Deh! Vieni, non tardar", with Dawn Upshaw (Susanna)

'Umberto Giordano' (18671948)

'Andrea Chnier' (Milan, 1896), with a libretto by Luigi Illica (18571919) based on the life of the poet Andr Chnier (17621794)

* 8 (6:48) "Esito dunque?... Nemico della patria", with Sherrill Milnes (Grard)

'Gaetano Donizetti' (17971848)

'Don Pasquale' (Paris, 1843), with a libretto by Donizetti and Giovanni Ruffini (18071881) after that written by Angelo Anelli (17611820) for 'Ser Marcantonio' (Milan, 1810) by Stefano Pavesi (17791850)

* 9 (9:18) "Don Pasquale?... Cheti, cheti, immantinente", with Mark Oswald (Malatesta) and Paul Plishka (Don Pasquale)

'Jacques Offenbach'

'Les contes d'Hoffmann' ("The tales of Hoffmann", Paris, 1881), with a libretto by Jules Barbier, after 'Les contes fantastiques d'Hoffmann' ("The fantastic tales of Hofmann") by Jules Barbier and Michel Carr, after 'Der Sandmann' ("The Sandman", 1816), 'Rath Krespel' ("Councillor Krespel", 1818) and 'Das verlorene Spiegelbild' ("The lost reflection", from 'Die Abenteuer der Sylvester-Nacht', ["The adventures of New Year's Eve", 1814]) by E. T. A. Hoffmann (17761822)

*10 (5:13) "Hlas, mon cur s'gare encore", with Florence Quivar (Giulietta), Rosalind Elias (Niklausse), Alfredo Kraus (Hoffmann), Charles Anthony (Pitichinaccio), James Courtney (Schlmil), Paul Plishka (Dapertutto) and the Metropolitan Opera Chorus

Set design for Act 2 of 'Tannhuser' by Gnther Schneider-Siemssen

'Giuseppe Verdi'

'I Lombardi alla prima crociata' ("The Lombards in the first crusade", Milan, 1843), with a libretto by Temistocle Solera (18151878) after 'I Lombardi alla prima crociata' (1826) by Tommaso Grossi (17911853)

*11 (13:46) "Qui posa il fianco... Qual volutt trascorrere", with June Anderson (Giselda), Carlo Bergonzi (Oronte), Ferruccio Furlanetto (Pagano) and Raymond Gniewek (violin solo)

'Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart'

'Cos fan tutte, ossia La scuola degli amanti' ("Thus do all women, or The school for lovers", K. 588, Vienna, 1790), with a libretto by Lorenzo da Ponte

*12 (5:35) "Sorella, cosa dici?... Prender quel brunettino", with Carol Vaness (Fiodiligi) and Susanne Mentzer (Dorabella)

'Giuseppe Verdi'

'Un ballo in maschera'

*13 (5:34) "Morr, ma prima in grazia", with Aprile Millo (Amelia)

'Richard Wagner'

'Gtterdmmerung' ("Twilight of the gods", WWV 86D, Bayreuth, 1876), with a libretto by Wagner

*14 (20:05) "Starke Scheite schichtet mir dort", with Jane Eaglen (Brnnhilde)

'Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart'

'Il dissoluto punito, ossia il Don Giovanni'

*15 (7:00) "In quali eccessi, o numi... Mi trad quell'alma ingrata", with Kiri Te Kanawa (Donna Elvira)

'A tribute'

*16 (5:56) Concluding encomium by Birgit Nilsson

'Richard Wagner'

'Die Meistersinger von Nrnberg' ("The mastersingers of Nuremberg", WWV 96, Munich, 1868), with a libretto by Wagner

*17 (11:47) "Wach auf!", with the Metropolitan Opera Chorus'James Levine's 25th Anniversary Metropolitan Opera Gala', conducted by James Levine, Deutsche Grammophon DVD, B00004602-09, 2005

Laserdisc and VHS videocassette chapter listing



Laserdisc side 1

'Richard Wagner'

'Rienzi, der letzte der Tribunen'

* 1 (12:48) Overture

'Tannhuser und der Sngerkrieg auf Wartburg'

* 2 (3:47) "Dich, teure Halle", with Deborah Voigt (Elisabeth)

'Giuseppe Verdi'

'Don Carlo'

* 3 (12:19) "Restate!... O Signor, di Fiandra arrivo", with Thomas Hampson (Rodrigo) and Roberto Scandiuzzi (Filippo II)

'Gustave Charpentier'

'Louise'

* 4 (6:29) "Depuis le jour o je me suis donne", with Rene Fleming (Louise)

'Pietro Mascagni'

'L'amico Fritz'

* 5 (9:54) "Suzel, buon di", with Angela Gheorghiu (Suzel) and Roberto Alagna (Fritz)

'Franz Lehr'

'Giuditta'

* 6 (5:24) "Ich wei es selber nicht... Meine Lippen, sie kssen so hei", with Ileana Cotrubas (Giuditta)

Laserdisc side 2

'Giuseppe Verdi'

'Don Carlo'

* 7 (5:21) ""Ah, pi non vedr... O don fatale", with Dolora Zajick (Eboli)

'Richard Wagner'

'Die Walkre'

* 8 (5:27) "Loge, hr", with James Morris (Wotan)

'Georges Bizet'

'Les pcheurs de perles'

* 9 (7:05) "Au fond du temple saint", with Roberto Alagna (Nadir) and Bryn Terfel (Zurga)

'Charles Gounod'

'Romo et Juliette'

*10 (4:37) "Je veux vivre dans ce rve", with Ruth Ann Swenson (Juliet)

'Johann Strauss II'

'Die Fledermaus'

*11 (5:04) "Dieser Anstand, so manierlich", with Karita Mattila (Rosalinde) and Hkan Hagegrd (Eisenstein)

'Richard Wagner'

'Tristan und Isolde'

*12 (11:07) "Wie lachend sie mir Lieder singen", with Waltraud Meier (Isolde)

'Giuseppe Verdi'

'Luisa Miller'

*13 (7:15) "Oh! Fede negar potesse agl'occhi miei!... Quando le sere al placido", with Carlo Bergonzi (Rodolfo)

'Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky'

'Eugene Onegin'

*14 (15:35) "O. Kak mnye tyazhelo", with Catherine Malfitano (Tatyana) and Dwayne Croft (Eugene Onegin)

Laserdisc side 3

'Camille Saint-Sans'

'Samson et Dalila'

*15 (6:31) "Mon cur s'ouvre ta voix", with Grace Bumbry (Dalila)

'Jacques Offenbach'

'La Prichole'

*16 (2:33) "Ah! Quel dner je viens de faire", with Frederica von Stade (La Prichole)

'Richard Strauss'

'Der Rosenkavalier'

*17 (6:12) "Hab mir's gelobt", with Rene Fleming (Feldmarschallin), Anne Sofie von Otter (Octavian) and Heidi Grant Murphy (Sophie von Faninal)

'Charles Gounod'

'Faust'

*18 (10:32) "Mais ce Dieu, que peut-il pour moi?", with Plcido Domingo (Faust) and Samuel Ramey (Mphistophls)

'Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart'

'Il dissoluto punito, ossia il Don Giovanni'

*19 (8:59) "Di molte faci il lume... Sola, sola, in buio loco", with Rene Fleming (Donna Anna), Kiri Te Kanawa (Donna Elvira), Hei-Kyung Hong (Zerlina), Jerry Hadley (Don Ottavio), Bryn Terfel (Leporello) and Julien Robbins (Masetto)

'Tribute'

*20 (3:51) Concluding encomium by Birgit Nilsson

'Richard Wagner'

'Die Meistersinger von Nrnberg'

*21 (8:43) "Wach auf, es nahet gen den Tag!", with the Metropolitan Opera Chorus'James Levine's 25th Anniversary Metropolitan Opera Gala', conducted by James Levine, Deutsche Grammophon LD, 072-551-1, 1996

CD track listing



'Georges Bizet'

'Les pcheurs de perles'

* 1 (6:12) "Au fond du temple saint", with Roberto Alagna (Nadir) and Bryn Terfel (Zurga)

'Gustave Charpentier'

'Louise'

* 2 (5:56) "Depuis le jour", with Rene Fleming (Louise)

'Charles Gounod'

'Faust'

* 3 (10:01) "Mais ce Dieu, que peut-il pour moi?", with Plcido Domingo (Faust) and Samuel Ramey (Mphistophls)

'Franz Lehr'

'Giuditta'

* 4 (4:58) "Ich wei es selber nicht... Mein Lippen, sie kssen so hei", with Ileana Cotrubas (Giuditta)

'Giuseppe Verdi'

'Don Carlo'

* 5 (5:00) "Ah, pi non vedr... O don fatale", with Dolora Zajick (Eboli)

'Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart'

'Il dissoluto punito, ossia il Don Giovanni'

* 6 (8:28) "Di molte faci il lume... Sola, sola, in buio loco", with Rene Fleming (Donna Anna), Kiri Te Kanawa (Donna Elvira), Hei-Kyung Hong (Zerlina), Jerry Hadley (Don Ottavio), Bryn Terfel (Leporello) and Julien Robbins (Masetto)

'Charles Gounod'

'Romo et Juliette'

* 7 (4:11) "Je veux vivre dans ce rve", with Ruth Ann Swenson (Juliette)

'Johann Strauss II'

'Die Fledermaus'

* 8 (4:41) "Dieser Anstand, so manierlich", with Karita Mattila (Rosalinde) and Hkan Hagegrd (Eisenstein)

'Jules Massenet' (18421912)

'Werther' (Geneva, 1892), with a libretto by douard Blau (18361906), Paul Milliet (18481924) and Georges Hartmann (18431900, writing as Henri Grmont) after 'Die Leiden des jungen Werthers' ("The sorrows of young Werther", 1774) by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

* 9 (2:49) "Pourquoi me rveiller", with Alfredo Kraus (Werther)

'Camille Saint-Sans'

'Samson et Dalila'

*10 (5:57) "Mon cur s'ouvre ta voix", with Grace Bumbry (Dalila)

'Richard Wagner'

'Tannhuser und der Sngerkrieg auf Wartburg'

*11 (3:22) "Dich, teure Halle", with Deborah Voigt (Elisabeth)

'Jacques Offenbach'

'La Prichole'

*12 (2:11) "Ah! Quel dner je viens de faire", with Frederica von Stade (La Prichole)

'Richard Strauss'

'Der Rosenkavalier'

*13 (6:01) "Hab mir's gelobt", with Rene Fleming (Feldmarschallin), Anne Sofie von Otter (Octavian) and Heidi Grant Murphy (Sophie von Faninal)

'A tribute'

*14 (2:42) Concluding encomium by Birgit Nilsson'James Levine's 25th Anniversary Metropolitan Opera Gala', conducted by James Levine, Deutsche Grammophon CD, 449-177-2, 1996

Personnel



Artists



* Roberto Alagna (born 1963), tenor

* June Anderson (born 1952), soprano

* Charles Anthony (19292012), tenor

* Gabriela Beakov (born 1947), soprano

* Carlo Bergonzi (19242014), tenor

* Grace Bumbry (born 1937), mezzo-soprano

* Ileana Cotrubas (born 1939), soprano

* James Courtney, bass-baritone

* Dwayne Croft, baritone

* Ghena Dimitrova (19412005), soprano

* Plcido Domingo (born 1941), tenor

* Jane Eaglen (born 1960), soprano

* Rosalind Elias (born 1929), mezzo-soprano

* Franco Farina, tenor

* Rene Fleming (born 1959), soprano

* Ferruccio Furlanetto (born 1949), bass

* Angela Gheorghiu (born 1965), soprano

* Christine Goerke (born 1969), soprano

* Jerry Hadley (19522007), tenor

* Hkan Hagegrd (born 1945), baritone

* Thomas Hampson (born 1955), baritone

* Hei-Kyung Hong (born 1959), soprano

* Kiri Te Kanawa (born 1944), soprano

* Alfredo Kraus (19271999), tenor

* Catherine Malfitano (born 1948), soprano

* Karita Mattila (born 1960), soprano

* Waltraud Meier (born 1956), soprano

* Susanne Mentzer (born 1957), mezzo-soprano

* Aprile Millo (born 1958), soprano

* Sherrill Milnes (born 1935), baritone

* James Morris (born 1947), bass-baritone

* Heidi Grant Murphy (born 1965), soprano

* Anne Sofie von Otter (born 1955), mezzo-soprano

* Mark Oswald, baritone

* Paul Plishka (born 1941), bass

* Juan Pons (born 1946), baritone

* Florence Quivar (born 1944), mezzo-soprano

* Julien Robbins, bass-baritone

* Roberto Scandiuzzi (born 1958), bass

* Frederica von Stade (born 1945), mezzo-soprano

* Ruth Ann Swenson (born 1959), soprano

* Bryn Terfel (born 1965), bass-baritone

* Dawn Upshaw (born 1960), soprano

* Carol Vaness (born 1952), soprano

* Deborah Voigt (born 1960), soprano

* Wendy White (born 1953), mezzo-soprano

* Dolora Zajick (born 1952), mezzo-soprano

* Raymond Gniewek (born 1931), concertmaster

* Metropolitan Opera Orchestra

* Metropolitan Opera Chorus

* Raymond Hughes, chorus master

* James Levine (19432021), conductor

Metropolitan Opera personnel



* Gil Wechsler, lighting designer

* George Darden, musical preparation

* Joan Dornemann, musical preparation

* Dennis Giauque, musical preparation

* Kemal Khan, musical preparation

* Robert Morrison, musical preparation

* Kevin Murphy, musical preparation

* Richard Woitach, musical preparation

* Phebe Berkowitz, stage director

* David Kneuss, stage director

* Robin Guarino, assistant stage director

* Catherine Hazlehurst, assistant stage director

* Peter McClintock, assistant stage director

* Fabrizio Melano, assistant stage director

* Paul Mills, assistant stage director

* Stephen Pickover, assistant stage director

* Sharon Thomas, assistant stage director

* Jane Klaviter, prompter

* Donna Racik, prompter

* Susan Webb, prompter

* Thomas H. Connell III, stage manager

* Stephen A. Brown, stage manager

* Gary Dietrich, stage manager

* William McCourt, stage manager

* Raymond Menard, stage manager

* Scott Moon, stage manager

* Stephen Diaz, master carpenter

* George Green, master electrician

* Edward McConway, properties master

* Magda Szayer, wig and hair stylist

* Victor Callegari, make-up artist

* William Malloy, wardrobe supervisor

* Lesley Weston, costume shop head

* Ray Diffen, costume designer

* Sylvia Nolan, costume designer

Broadcast personnel



* Brian Large (born 1939), director

* Louise Briccetti, producer

* Susan Erben, associate producer

* Jay David Saks, audio producer

* Jay Millard, associate director

* Mark Schubin, engineer-in-charge

* Ron Washburn, technical supervisor and camera operator

* Greg Overton, technical director

* Bill King, audio supervisor

* Michael Shoskes, audio engineer

* Mel Becker, audio engineer

* Paul Cohen, audio engineer

* Jim Jordan, audio engineer

* Susan Noll, video engineer

* Matty Randazzo, video engineer

* Paul Ranieri, video engineer

* William Steinberg, video engineer

* Miguel Armstrong, camera operator

* Juan Barrera, camera operator

* Jim Covello, camera operator

* John Feher, camera operator

* Manny Gutierrez, camera operator

* Jake Ostroff, camera operator

* Manny Rodriguez, camera operator

* Jim Scurti, camera operator

* David Smith, camera operator

* Shaun Harkins, remote camera technician

* Alan Buchner, videotape engineer

* Deborah Cavanaugh, electronic graphics

* Terence Benson, television stage manager

* Rose Riggins, television stage manager

* Karen McLaughlin, score reader

* Victoria Warivonchik, production associate

* Joseph Sbarra, production secretary

* Frances Egler, production assistant

* Aileen Forbes, production assistant

* Brian McCotter, production assistant

* James Simpson, production assistant

* Kevin Wilkin, production assistant

* Laura Tolkow, title graphics

* Jim Naughton, production facilities

* Jim Will, production facilities

* Unitel Mobile Video, production facilities

* David Hewitt, remote recording services

* Phil Gitomer, remote recording services

DVD production personnel



* Roland Ott, project manager

* Burkhard Bartsch, project coordinator

* Johannes Mller, producer, msm-Studios GmbH, Munich

* Hermann Enkemeier, screen designer, msm-Studios

* Christian Mller, video encoding and authoring, msm-Studios

* Claudia Pohl, AMSI II mastering, Emil Berliner Studios

* Udo Potratz, AMSI II mastering, Emil Berliner Studios

* Sonya Friedman, subtitles

* Eva Reisinger, booklet editor

* Merle Kersten, booklet art director

Critical reception



Mike Silverman reviewed the gala for the Associated Press on 28 April 1996. It was not until the early hours, he wrote, that the Met's audience heard Birgit Nilsson paying tribute to James Levine with a few bars of "Ho-jo-to-ho" from her signature role, Brnnhilde. Despite the absence of some singers, like Ben Heppner, due to scheduling clashes, and of others, like Cecilia Bartoli and Luciano Pavarotti, due to health issues, the concert was a "thrilling, if exhausting spectacle" replete with vocal talent. The gala's cast list ranged from veterans like the 71-year-old Carlo Bergonzi to newcomers like the 32-year-old Roberto Alagna.

Alagna was more impressive than he had been in a recent 'La Bohme'. His contributions to the Pearlfishers' Duet and the Cherry Duet from 'L'amico Fritz' were both lovely. Two other young tenors Jerry Hadley and Richard Leech both sang well too, but no other representatives of their peer group put in an appearance: instead the Met heard the elderly Bergonzi and Alfredo Kraus and the 55-year-old Plcido Domingo, as suave as usual in a trio from 'Ernani' and a duet from 'Faust'.

Bryn Terfel displayed his "ebullient" Leporello in addition to duetting with Alagna in Bizet, his "booming, mellifluous baritone and utter ease and gracefulness as a performer [marking] him as one in a million". He was "sure to be one of the superstars of the next generation".

The best of the evening's female singers was Rene Fleming, "whose soprano voice is as beautiful as any in memory". She was luminous in 'Louise' and 'Der Rosenkavalier', abetted in the latter by gorgeous singing from Heidi Grant Murphy and Anne Sofie von Otter. Her inclusion in a sextet from 'Don Giovanni' made her the only soloist to be heard more than twice.

Wagner enthusiasts would undoubtedly be encouraged by the Immolation Scene from 'Gtterdmmerung' delivered by Jane Eaglen, a British dramatic soprano whose recent success in Wagner in Chicago had evidently not been a flash in the pan. She was worthy to share a billing with Birgit Nilsson. On the last occasion on which Nilsson had appeared at the Met, in its 1983 Centennial Gala, she had sung Isolde's Narrative and Curse. In the Levine gala, that was the passage offered by Waltraud Meier. Her performance was "thrilling", but she was a mezzo-soprano venturing into soprano territory, and the stress evident in her highest notes made one anxious as to whether she was pursuing a path that was right for her.

Dawn Upshaw was "typically simple, silvery and winning" in Mozart's "Deh! Vieni, non tardar". "The contrast could not have been more striking with the number that preceded it - a mannered, diva-ish rendition by Jessye Norman, with high notes that consistently went flat, of an aria from Berlioz's 'Damnation of Faust'".

Levine did not avail himself of the opportunity to make any speeches, but merely "conducted the Met's wonderful orchestra with love and enthusiasm".

Tim Page reviewed the gala in 'The Washington Post' on 29 April 1996. It was, he wrote, a "glorious, crazy, songful party". Not all the most distinguished opera singers were present: Jos Carreras had a previous commitment, Montserrat Caball, Marilyn Horne and Teresa Stratas were ill and Kathleen Battle had been fired from the Met in 1994. But the concert still presented an astonishing constellation of some of opera's brightest stars.

Dominated by Mozart, Verdi and Wagner, the gala's programme was typical of the repertoire of the Levine era but lacked any unifying theme otherwise. It was "a sort of melodious circus a celestial vaudeville". There were consequently many awkward transitions. For example, Jane Eaglen's noble rendition of the immolation scene from 'Gtterdmmerung' was followed by the broad comedy of Frederica von Stade in the tipsy aria from 'La Prichole'; the effect was to "dissipate the solemn afterglow of the one and make the other seem goofy and tasteless".

Von Stade also supplied "one of the evening's true glories" in a performance of Cherubino's "Voi che sapete" [omitted from DG's DVD and CD]. "Opera has recently offered little more wonderful than von Stade's interpretation of that famous ardent, hormone-crazed pubescent boy". Also outstanding were Carlo Bergonzi and Alfredo Kraus, skillfully making the most of resources depleted by old age; Ileana Cotrubas, "ripely and irresistibly nostalgic" in 'Giuditta'; Plcido Domingo, combining "magnificent vocalizing and the most acute artistic intelligence" in 'Don Carlo' and 'Faust'; Rene Fleming, "luscious and immaculate" in 'Louise', 'Don Giovanni' and 'Der Rosenkavalier'; Waltraud Meier, singing Isolde's curse with "thrilling ferocity"; and Ruth Ann Swenson, compensating for her technical deficiencies in a coloratura showpiece from 'Romo et Juliette' with character and intelligence.

There were disappointments too. Hkan Hagegrd and Karita Mattila were guilty of "campy snickering" in 'Die Fledermaus'. Jerry Hadley perpetrated "vulgar Mario Lanza-isms" in 'The land of smiles' [also omitted by DG]. Ghena Dimitrova, Franco Farina and Juan Pons were "third-rate" in 'Un ballo in maschera'. And Sharon Sweet's mere appearance at the gala was "difficult to explain".

Of especial interest were two prominent up and coming artists, Roberto Alagna and Angela Gheorghiu [appearing one day after their wedding]. Alagna had "a light, sweet and supple voice of moderate size (some high notes that were both delicate and ringing) and a not inconsiderable dramatic ability", but it was far too soon to bracket him with Carreras, Domingo and Pavarotti. Gheorghiu was much more impressive, with "a voice of unusual and haunting timbre, a distinctive creative personality [and] attention to the sheer phonic sound of the words she sings".

None of the soloists, though, could outshine the orchestra and their conductor. Thanks to Levine, the Met's pit was home to "one of the most responsive and virtuosic ensembles in the world", and it was remarkable that he could "preside so effortlessly and so idiomatically over such a range of musical styles, over so many hours".

Martin Bernheimer reviewed the gala in 'The Los Angeles Times' on 29 April 1996. It was, he wrote, a "mega-monster concert", a "shameless, shapeless, formless smorgasbord of arias and ensembles", "a parade of disparate singers striking poses in competitive evening attire" in which "the assembled women blew a crescendo of kisses to their beaming boss out front".

The gala began with a somewhat lethargic treatment of the overture to 'Rienzi'. Newlyweds Roberto Alagna and Angela Gheorghiu were clear, refined and sugary in the Cherry Duet from 'L'amico Fritz'. Dolora Zajick sang with "full-throated bravura" in Eboli's "O don fatale". Waltraud Meier was incandescent in Isolde's Narrative and Curse. Carlo Bergonzi was touching and elegant in 'Luisa Miller'. Alfredo Kraus amazed with his suavity and staying power as Werther and Hoffmann. Raymond Gniewek played an exquisite violin solo in 'I Lombardi'. Catherine Malfitano and Dwayne Croft provided one of the evening's most successful passages of authentic music drama in a pyrexic scene from 'Eugene Onegin'.

Jane Eaglen, "a Wagnerian diva straight from a 'New Yorker' cartoon", showed that it did not much matter what Brnnhilde looked like if she had a voice as overwhelming as a tsunami. Sharon Sweet was "strident" in 'La forza del destino'. Frederica von Stade demonstrated that "charm conquers all" with "her still boyish Cherubino and irresistibly tipsy Prichole". Karita Mattila and Hakn Hagegrd were almost as seductive in a flirtatious Watch Duet from 'Die Fledermaus'. Birgit Nilsson provided the gala's most exhilarating tribute to Levine with a trumpet-like Valkyrie war-cry.

Plcido Domingo and Samuel Ramey were comfortingly stellar in "Faust", Ramey for once being allowed to perform without baring his chest. Deborah Voigt, Bryn Terfel, Ruth Ann Swenson, Aprile Millo and Gabriela Beakov were equally impressive in their celestial wattage.

As far as clothing was concerned, the contributors most deserving of an award were Ileana Cotrubas for sporting a "gigantic Christmas bow", Mark Oswald for losing his tie and vest in 'Don Pasquale' and "the various cleavage divas who lent new meaning to the concept of heaving bosoms".

Jessye Norman perpetrated the evening's "most mannered" selection in a "crooned, roared and sighed" performance of "D'amour l'ardente flamme" that was so erratic in pitch as to present Berlioz as bitonal. Grace Bumbry was a wobbly old Dalila, and Gwyneth Jones an even wobblier Turandot. Dawn Upshaw's eloquent ornamentation in a "silver-bell" "Deh! Vieni, non tardar" was jarringly followed by the Jerry Hadley slathering on the schmalz in "Dein ist mein ganzes Herz". Maria Ewing "yowled" Gershwin's "My man's gone now" with her hands rather oddly thrust into her pockets. Kiri Te Kanawa's honeyed performance of an aria from 'Don Giovanni' was accompanied by "comic-vamp routines". Ghena Dimitrova, Franco Farina and Juan Pons sang a trio from 'Un ballo in maschera' as though working in some theatre in the provinces.

Rene Fleming provided the most beautiful vocalism of the entire concert in her excerpts from 'Louise' and 'Der Rosenkavalier'. James Morris, on the other hand, raised concerns for the health of his voice by the way in which he delivered Wotan's Farewell in his "fraying basso". James Levine's guidance of his excellent orchestra was "sympathetic if sometimes loud and sometimes inflexible".

Neil Crory reviewed the gala on Laserdisc in the Fall 1997 issue of 'Opera Canada'. It was, he wrote, "the gala-to-end-all-galas". Its programme booklet's cancellation list alone deserved a mention in The Guinness Book of Records, with Cecilia Bartoli, Hildegard Behrens, Nicolai Ghiaurov, Marilyn Horne and Luciano Pavarotti all pleading illness.

The gala had not been consistent in quality. There were "a few blazing performances", but also "many that merely smouldered and others that simply failed to ignite". Happily, some of the evening's better selections had been preserved on DG's video discs.

Deborah Voigt was "radiant" in "Dich teure Halle". Rene Fleming was "stunning" in both 'Der Rosenkavalier' and an "expressive, detailed" excerpt from 'Louise'. Ruth Ann Swenson was "appropriately sun-filled" in the Waltz Song from 'Romo et Juliette'. Frederica von Stade a perennial Met darling was "hysterically funny" in the tipsy aria from 'La Prichole'. And in a "forthright" "O don fatale", Dolora Zajick brought the house down.

J. B. Steane reviewed the CD of the gala in 'Gramophone' in December 1998. "Out come the stars," he wrote, "one by one or two by two and then six of them in a galaxy. Some have been in the firmament a long time, others are almost new. But all are there ... to pay tribute".Steane, J. B.: 'Gramophone', December 1996, p. 154

There was no doubt that the gala must have been a delightful celebration, but the wisest rule for such events was to record them in one's memory rather than on tape. This was not to say that the CD was without merit. Rene Fleming sang really beautifully in "Depuis le jour" from the line "Au jardin de mon cur" onwards, and Ruth Ann Swenson essayed a brave and fruitful soft passage halfway through Juliet's waltz. But the album's senior contributors sounded below their best, and even their younger colleagues never rose to real greatness.

It was possible that this was partly to do with the disc's audio quality. Fleming's and Bryn Terfel's voices did not sound as attractive on the CD as they did when heard in person. Indeed, the playing of the Met orchestra was more enjoyable to listen to than any of the singers, and both were surpassed by the album's closing speech by Birgit Nilsson. After explaining how Swedes customarily behaved on such occasions, she said: "'But since I am a daughter of the Vikings, I will do it my way.' Then, with no more than a second's pause and no more than a semitone's adjustment of pitch, she gives vent to a mighty 'Hojotoho', and her top B-flat brings down the house".

The gala was also discussed in Clyde T. McCants's 'American opera singers and their recordings'.McCants, Clyde T.: 'American opera singers and their recordings', McFarland & Company, 2004, p. 381

Broadcast and home media history



The gala was televised in a live transmission on PBS, and was also broadcast in Australia, Denmark, Japan, the Netherlands, Sweden and the United Kingdom.

In 1996, Deutsche Grammophon released versions of the gala in three formats. Thirteen excerpts were released on a 72-minute CD (catalogue number 449-177-2), accompanied by a 24-page insert booklet with an essay by Cory Ellison in English, French, German and Italian, and with production photographs of Alagna, Terfel, Fleming, Domingo, Ramey, Cotrubas, Zajick, Te Kanawa, Hong, Hadley, Robbins, Swenson, Mattila, Hagegrd, Kraus, Bumbry, Voigt, von Stade, von Otter, Murphy, Nilsson and Levine. Twenty excerpts were issued on a 161-minute pair of CLV (constant linear velocity) CX-encoded Laserdiscs (catalogue number 072-551-1) with 4:3 NTSC colour video and digital audio. The same excerpts were issued on a VHS videocassette (catalogue number 072-451-3) with 4:3 PAL colour video and digital audio.'James Levine's 25th Anniversary Metropolitan Opera Gala', conducted by James Levine, Deutsche Grammophon VHS, 072-451-3, 1996

In 2005, Deutsche Grammophon released thirty-three excerpts from the gala on a 293-minute pair of DVDs (catalogue number B0004602-09), with 4:3 NTSC colour video and audio in PCM stereo and an ersatz 5.1-channel surround sound upmix in both DTS and Dolby Digital. The DVDs include an interview with Levine, a picture gallery and trailers, and are accompanied by a 12-page insert booklet with an essay by Kenneth Chalmers in English only. They omit the contributions made to the gala by Maria Ewing, Gwyneth Jones, Richard Leech, Jessye Norman and Sharon Sweet, as well as an excerpt from 'Werther' sung by Alfredo Kraus that can be heard on Deutsche Grammophon's CD.

Gallery of artists





File:ALAGNA-24x30-2004b.jpg|Roberto Alagna

File:Charles Anthony 1974.JPG|Charles Anthony

File:Gabriela Beakov MET.jpg|Gabriela Beakov

File:Carlo Bergonzi.jpg|Carlo Bergonzi

File:Grace Bumbry 2009.jpg|Grace Bumbry

File:Tosca - Dimtrova.jpg|Ghena Dimitrova

File:Concierto de Plcido Domingo con motivo del Ao Jubilar Mariano (7-06-2019) 06 (cropped).jpg|Plcido Domingo

File:Rene Fleming 4 Shankbone Metropolitan Opera 2009.jpg|Rene Fleming

File:Angela Gheorghiu as Floria Tosca at San Francisco Opera, November 2012.jpg|Angela Gheorghiu

File:Polar Music Prize 2005 - Hkan Hagegrd.jpg|Hkan Hagegrd

File:ThomasHampson.jpg|Thomas Hampson

File:Kiri Te Kanawa 2013 (cropped).jpg|Kiri Te Kanawa

File:Boadilla del Monte - monumento a Alfredo Kraus 1.jpg|Alfredo Kraus

File:Catherine Malfitano dans Traviata par Claude Truong-Ngoc 1980.jpg|Catherine Malfitano

File:Rigoletto en el Colon.jpg|Sherrill Milnes

File:Birgitnhat.jpg|Birgit Nilsson

File:Anne Sofie von Otter 2011-10-13 002.jpg|Anne Sofie von Otter

File:Juan-pons-prensa-02.jpg|Juan Pons

File:Frederica von Stade.jpg|Frederica von Stade

File:Bryn Terfel in Stockholm 2013-22.jpg|Bryn Terfel

File:CarolVaness.jpg|Carol Vaness

File:Dolora Zajick at Berlin Opera, July 2016.jpg|Dolora Zajick

File:James Levine 2013.jpg|James Levine



See also



* The Metropolitan Opera Centennial Gala

* The Metropolitan Opera Gala 1991

References



Category:1996 classical albums

Category:1996 television films

Category:1996 films

Category:Classical video albums

Category:Deutsche Grammophon albums

Category:Events in New York City

Category:Live classical albums

Category:Metropolitan Opera

Category:Opera recordings

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