Faszinierende Frauen - Faszinierende Stimmen

Serge Kakudji is a twenty-year-old Congolese counter tenor who fell in love with opera as a young boy, listening to audiotapes of opera recordings in his room in Lubumbashi. Later he traveled to Europe to achieve his dream of becoming a top opera singer. Although Serge's artistic ambitions are pure and uncomplicated, the reactions among his environment and audiences are often ambiguous and divided. While some people respect and acknowledge his artistic vocation, others see him as an exotic oddity, or complain that that his African timbre jars with classical opera. Serge refuses to be discouraged by any of this. On the contrary, he wants to hold up a mirror to Western culture and confront it with its underlying beliefs. He also wants to use his story and experiences in the west to bring opera to Congo. Together with his countrymen and women, he wants to found a Congolese opera tradition based on African stories that will inspire people to follow their dreams.

A short film by Walerian Borowczyk in two parts. The first 'panel' follows the morning routine of Leon Boyer who, despite being almost 100 years old, still farms the land, drives a vintage car, and plays with his two dogs. The second panel shows shots of beautiful flowers and a cat, to a recording of Tino Rossi singing 'La romance de Nadir / Je crois encore entendre' from Bizet's opera 'Les pêcheurs de perles'.

From the first steps of an emerging singer to the final bow of a celebrated soprano, 'PRIMADONNA OR NOTHING' follows three relentless women who sacrifice everything to be an opera star.

Kui saabub õhtu

A cinematic portrait of Ivan Kozlovsky a great Soviet and Ukrainian lyric tenor and opera director.

This short documentary gives us insight into the singing prowess of renowned tenor Ben Heppner, one of Canada’s pre-eminent musical ambassadors.

With Sounds of Dortmund, Dortmund Opera picks up where MusiCircus left off in the 2018/19 season. Once again, musical groups and all Dortmund residents were invited to become part of the performative sound collage. For one day, Dortmund was to be filled with music, noises, sounds, and performances. A poetic sound art work that focuses on the diversity of the city with its individual sounds.

This film takes you through the inspiring journey of Venezuela's Coro de Manos Blancas (White Hands Choir) while exploring their daily struggles and lives. Established in 1995 as part of Venezuela's El Sistema program, the White Hands Choir provides artistic opportunities for children, youth, and adults with disabilities, utilizing music for social development and inclusion.

After 2000 years of history, the Arena of Verona is celebrating the Centenary of its Opera Festival with Verdi's AIDA by La Fura dels Baus. From rehearsals to the opening night, we follow the workers and artists who created the most famous operatic festival in the world.

Short documentary follows a group of provincial school pupils on their excursion to the capital, and their visit to the concert of Zagreb Philharmonic in Vatroslav Lisinski national music hall.

This film is a docufiction on the great Toscanini directed by well-known filmmaker Larry Weinstein; who pushes the boundaries of conventional documentary storytelling by borrowing tools from fiction films; including dramatic reconstructions and historical cinematic stylings.

Ouroboros

First film by Nobel Prize laureate Gao Xingjian.

Medailon národní umělkyně Milady Šubrtové

Discover Grace Bumbry’s inspiring rise to global opera fame. Spotlighting her historic performances, the film explores the racial barriers she overcame to triumph in her 1966 performance as "Carmen."

Documentary about opera in Hollywood.

What happens when famous directors stage an opera? Eckhart Schmidt shows successful and failed attempts.

Discover Verdi’s magnificent ‘hometown’, the Parma region. From the small village of Le Roncole, near Parma, where Verdi was born, to the estate situated close to Parma, where Verdi always returned and chose to spend most of his life, despite the great triumphs he achieved in Milan, Venice, Naples and other major cities. We discover how Verdi ‘still lives on’ in the region and has even shaped the local landscape, from the daily life of a simple farmer to that of one of the world’s greatest opera stars, Leo Nucci, who is a regular guest at the Verdi Festival in Parma. From the 27-opera box set ‘Tutto Verdi’.

Born in 1873 in a poor neighbourhood in Naples, Enrico Caruso conquered the world with his singing voice. At the age of 27 he got a contract at the Scala in Milan, and his already considerable popularity skyrocketed thanks to the invention of the gramophone. He sold millions of records, and garnered international acclaim. In 1903 he moved to New York to perform at the prestigious Metropolitan Opera, in the role of Radames. But his riches and fame attracted the attention of the Mafia, who started blackmailing him. He felt trapped by his fame and died at just 48 years old. Biographer Francesco Canessa, the music critic Jürgen Kesting and the composer Micha Hamel explain the ups and downs of the man behind the timeless Italian voice.

BBC documentary exploring the dynamic relationship that developed between British composer Benjamin Britten and the BBC as they worked together to broadcast modern classical music further and wider. Through this collaboration, Britten's music reached television audiences, from elaborately staged studio operas to intimate duets featuring his partner Peter Pears to the massive Proms performance of his War Requiem. The programme features interviews with Britten's collaborators and singers as well as those working behind the scenes including Michael Crawford, David Attenborough, Humphrey Burton and soprano April Cantelo. James Naughtie narrates.