DVD Review 
The Arthaus Musik DVD Video Sampler
ARTHAUS MUSIK 100 005
[60:19]
Blackstar
Crotchet
For those new to DVD and to classical music on video this is an intriguing
sampler of a collection of Arthaus DVD’s which have recently been launched
on the market, some of which have been reviewed on our sister site Classical
Music on the Web.
This sampler includes ten selections of mostly well-known and well-loved
classical ballet opera and concert music plus a medley of briefer excerpts
in an 18 minute bonus track. These excerpts include: Bizet’s
Carmen in the Royal Opera House production, the San Farncisco
Opera’s production of Puccini’s La Bohème with Pavarotti
and Freni, plus excerpts from Swan Lake and Mozart’s Requiem
conducted by Claudio Abbado. All of these are staged in their classical
productions or sung in beautiful Baroque surroundings. However, those who
raise their eyebrows when confronted with modern settings or tinkerings with
operas or ballets, will be daunted when they see the eccentric cavortings
of the dancers in Tchaikovsky’s ‘Sleeping Beauty’. It’s
as though they have escaped from some mental institution; and when they see
Tristan and Islode throwing a sofa’s cushions around the stage, well…
Among the other excerpts is a pungent snippet from La Divina – a portrait
of Maria Callas.
Picture quality, from an aesthetic as well as a clarity point of view, is
variable. The opera excerpts vary considerably from static and awful to very
good. The ballet sequences are better and the concert sequences in their
opulent baroque surroundings best of all.
At budget price, this is a good investment for one can decide what to buy
and what to avoid! No rating applicable.
Ian Lace
