# War of opera. Write your TOP 10 LIST.



## Hesoos (Jun 9, 2012)

I propose a competition, a war of operas.
Sometimes is said that the public like the best Carmen (in the past the best was Faust). Then goes La traviata or Il barbiere, but there are just the most populars.

I’d like to know which operas are the best for the opera lovers like all of you in this forum. I invited you to write a TOP 10 list of operas. The number 1 has 10 points, the number 2 has 9 points etc. For exemple, if Rigoletto in 4 answers is number 1, 4, 10 and 3, Rigoletto's got 26 points. At last, we can count all the repeted operas how many points have and create a new list. It’d be like a war of operas:devil:. I know that is difficult but woud be fine to try.:tiphat:

That’s my list:

1. Rigoletto 10 p
2. Aida 9 p
3. Macbeth (Verdi) 8p
4. The Valkyrie 7 p
5. Les troyens 6 p
6. Così fan tutte 5 p
7. Faust (Gounod) 4 p
8. I puritani (Bellini) 3 p
9. Rienzi (Wagner) 2 p
10. L’italiana in Algieri 1 p


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## StlukesguildOhio (Dec 25, 2006)

Achieved in a similar manner some time back:

http://www.talkclassical.com/11676-talk-classical-top-272-a.html


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## Hesoos (Jun 9, 2012)

I knew it, ...
but I just wanted to find out a short list of the operas that the opera lovers prefer, not a Most Recommended Operas. If I'd recommend 10 operas, my list would be very different (La traviata, Il Barbiere, Carmen, Rhin's gold, L'elisir d'amore...for exemple Rienzi is not recomendable but is one of my favourites, most of the people maybe don't like) My list means the operas that I like the best for listening once and again.
It's not a Recommended Operas list. 
I mean a list of the operas you like the best, just a personal list of your favourites operas.


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## emiellucifuge (May 26, 2009)

Just for the sake of it and given how ive explored and discovered a lot more since I voted on that list:

1. Parsifal
2. Tristan Isolde
3. Die Meistersinger
4. La Traviata
5. Die walkure
6. Gotterdamerung
7. Das Rheingold
8. Der Rosenkavalier
9. Les Troyens
10. Die Soldaten


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## Bardamu (Dec 12, 2011)

Really hard to rank different kind of operas even using your own preference (my likings aren't so absolute).

My ranking as of now maybe be the following (or maybe not )

1. Iris
2. Turandot
3. Cavalleria Rusticana
4. Aida
5. Eugene Onegin
6. La Cenerentola
7. La Traviata
8. Norma
9. L'Elisir d'Amore
10. Madama Butterfly


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## sospiro (Apr 3, 2010)

emiellucifuge said:


> Just for the sake of it and given how ive explored and discovered a lot more since I voted on that list:
> 
> 1. Parsifal
> 2. Tristan Isolde
> ...


Good point Emiel. I can't remember what I put now as my Top Ten but I know my tastes have changed since then.

01. Simon Boccanegra (this will never change)
02. Macbeth
03. Falstaff
04. Boris Godunov
05. Mefistofele
06. Les Troyens
07. Lucia di Lammermoor
08. L'amour des trois oranges
09. Don Giovanni
10. Les contes d'Hoffmann


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## StlukesguildOhio (Dec 25, 2006)

Just for the sake of it and given how ive explored and discovered a lot more since I voted on that list:

I've certainly explored a lot since then... yet I doubt that my core favorites have changed much:

1. Tristan und Isolde- Wagner
2. Le nozze di Figaro- Mozart
3. Don Giovanni- Mozart
4. Die Zauberflöte- Mozart
5. Der Ring des Nibelungen- Wagner
6. La Traviata- Verdi
7. Salome- Richard Strauss
8. La bohème- Puccini
9. Der Rosenkavalier- Richard Strauss
10. Parsifal- Wagner

It might be in a second 10 that I would discover some operas unknown to me earlier:

11. Cosi fan tutte- Mozart
12. Lucia di Lammermoor- Donizetti
13. Carmen- Bizet 
14. Orfeo ed Euridice/Orphée et Eurydice- Gluck
15. L'Orfeo- Monteverdi
16. Eugene Onegin- Tchakovsky
17. Giulio Cesare- Handel
18. I Capuleti e i Montecchi- Bellini
19. Ainadamar- Osvaldo Golijov
20. Florencia en el Amazonas- Daniel Catán


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## StlukesguildOhio (Dec 25, 2006)

Simon Boccanegra (this will never change)

Which version? 1857 or 1881?


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## Couchie (Dec 9, 2010)

1. Tristan und Isolde
2. Parsifal
3. Gotterdammerung
4. Die Walkure
5. Die Meistersinger von Nurnberg
6. Tannhauser
7. Das Rheingold
8. Lohengrin
9. Der fliegende Hollander
10. Siegfried


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## ComposerOfAvantGarde (Dec 2, 2011)

1. Wagner: Tristan und Isolde
2. Wagner: Götterdämmerung
3. Wagner: Die Walküre
4. Wagner: Die Meistersinger von Nurnberg
5. Wagner: Das Rheingold
6. Wagner: Tannhauser
7. Wagner: Siegfried
8. Britten: Albert Herring
9. *Ligeti:* Le Grande Macabre
10. Brett Dean: Bliss


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## mamascarlatti (Sep 23, 2009)

1. Mozart -Don Giovanni
2. Britten - Billy Budd
3. Handel - Giulio Cesare in Egitto
4.Tchaikovsky - Eugene Onegin
5. Puccini - La Fanciulla del West
6. Verdi - Don Carlos
7. Tchaikovsky - Pique dame
8. Bizet - Carmen
9. Puccini - Tosca
10.Vivaldi - Ercole sul termodonte


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## sospiro (Apr 3, 2010)

StlukesguildOhio said:


> Simon Boccanegra (this will never change)
> 
> Which version? 1857 or 1881?


Either, both


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## sospiro (Apr 3, 2010)

Couchie said:


> 1. Tristan und Isolde
> 2. Parsifal
> 3. Gotterdammerung
> 4. Die Walkure
> ...


Have you thought of trying Wagner for a change?


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## MAuer (Feb 6, 2011)

Not only have some members' preferences changed since that original "most recommended" list was compiled, but a lot of new members have joined since then.

My top 10:
1. Fidelio (you knew that was coming, didn't you?)
2. Die Zauberflöte
3. Rigoletto
4. La Clemenza di Tito
5. Tosca
6. Il Trovatore
7. Madama Butterfly
8. Faust
9. La Traviata
10. Lohengrin


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## Hesoos (Jun 9, 2012)

La Clemenza is a nice opera " Ah se fosse in torno al trono..."
Interesting that your lists are not like the recommended lists or the most populars.


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## sospiro (Apr 3, 2010)

Hesoos said:


> La Clemenza is a nice opera " Ah se fosse in torno al trono..."
> Interesting that your lists are not like the recommended lists or the most populars.


Well there was bribery, threats, promises & all sorts of skullduggery to get our favourites on the list :lol:


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## StlukesguildOhio (Dec 25, 2006)

_Fidelio_?


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## mamascarlatti (Sep 23, 2009)

StlukesguildOhio said:


> _Fidelio_?


Mary has a Fidelio obsession. It's terminal. poor thing.

I have the same disease in its Billy Budd incarnation. Many people can't understand this.


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## StlukesguildOhio (Dec 25, 2006)

01. Simon Boccanegra (this will never change)

Well, Annie, considering your experience with opera I find that I am interested in picking up a copy of this... in spite of the fact that I have never heard it before. Alma sold me in a similar manner on _Le Troyens_. There don't seem to be a whole lot of choices with regard to _Simon Boccanegra_. Which do you recommend? CD... not DVD.


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## StlukesguildOhio (Dec 25, 2006)

_Fidelio_ obsession? A rather rare affliction. Not at all as common as Tristan und Isolde Disease, The Ring Disorder, or Don Giovanni Plague.


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## sospiro (Apr 3, 2010)

StlukesguildOhio said:


> 01. Simon Boccanegra (this will never change)
> 
> Well, Annie, considering your experience with opera I find that I am interested in picking up a copy of this... in spite of the fact that I have never heard it before. Alma sold me in a similar manner on _Le Troyens_. There don't seem to be a whole lot of choices with regard to _Simon Boccanegra_. Which do you recommend? CD... not DVD.


The reasons this is my favourite are complex and I doubt that many people would be affected in the same way. But I can recommend this CD.


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## Hesoos (Jun 9, 2012)

For now Wagner is your favourit… :tiphat:
Remember, yor number 1 is 10, number 2 is 9…

I counted all the points, for now the fusion of your lists (9 lists in total) is the next:

1. Tristan und Isolde 39
2. Die Walküre 28 
3. Gotterdammerung 22
4. Meistersinger 21
5. Parsifal 20 and Don Giovanni 20
6. Rigoletto 19
7. La Traviata 18
8. Macbeth 17
9. Die Zauberflöte 16 and Aida 16
10 Das Rheingold 14

Others:

Eugene Onegin 13 and Les Troyens 13

Tannhauser 10, Iris 10, Fidelio 10, Simon Boccanegra 10

I hope that the people wants to continue writing lists of favourits. 
Are there any surprises in the fusioned list for you?


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## Bardamu (Dec 12, 2011)

sospiro said:


> The reasons this is my favourite are complex and I doubt that many people would be affected in the same way. But I can recommend this CD.


Mmmh Freni...
Count me as another one you made interested in listening Simon Boccanegra ( and Mefistofele).


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## sospiro (Apr 3, 2010)

Bardamu said:


> Mmmh Freni...
> Count me as another one you made interested in listening Simon Boccanegra ( and Mefistofele).




Hard for me to choose between these, love both equally.


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## mamascarlatti (Sep 23, 2009)

sospiro said:


> Hard for me to choose between these, love both equally.


I don't know the second one, but i LOVE Sam Ramey in this role.


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## MAuer (Feb 6, 2011)

Hesoos said:


> La Clemenza is a nice opera " Ah se fosse in torno al trono..."
> Interesting that your lists are not like the recommended lists or the most populars.


Welcome to the Forum, Hesoos! I fell in love with _Tito_ after purchasing the DVD with Jonas Kaufmann in the title role. One gorgeous aria or ensemble follows another.


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## leomarillier (Nov 12, 2011)

1. Tristan Und Isolde 10 points
2. Parsifal 9 points
3. Don Giovanni 8 points
4. Walkure 7 points
5. Cosi fan tutte 6 points
6. Erwartung 5 points
7. Elektra 4 points
8. Licht 3 points
9. Le grand macabre 2 points
10. Die Frau ohne Schatten 1 point


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## Hesoos (Jun 9, 2012)

MAuer said:


> Welcome to the Forum, Hesoos! I fell in love with _Tito_ after purchasing the DVD with Jonas Kaufmann in the title role. One gorgeous aria or ensemble follows another.


Thank you MAuer!

I like very much La Clemenza di Tito too! 
My dvd is with Landridge, Montague and Lough from England's Glyndebourne Festival 1991.

That is my favorite aria from this opera, I melt when I listen to this. I can't take out this aria from my head.






Ah se fosse intorno al trono ogni cor così sincero... Wonderful


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## TxllxT (Mar 2, 2011)

1. Pique Dame
2. Semyon Kotko
3. War and Peace
4. Eugen Onegin
5. Don Giovanni
6. Vivaldi
7. Betrothal at a monastery
8. Boris Godunov
9. Don Carlos
10. Wagner


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## Dins (Jun 21, 2011)

This was hard. This is my top 10 right now. Tomorrow it might be different....

1. Die Meistersinger von Nurnberg
3. Eugene Onegin
3. La Fille du Regiment
4. Tosca
5. Vargen Kommer (Cry wolf)
6. The Cunning Little Vixen
7. Il Barbiere di Siviglia
8. Ercole su'l Termodonte
9. La Cenerentola
10. Aniara


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## crmoorhead (Apr 6, 2011)

Unfortunately, I have maybe only heard about 18 operas (though many of those in multiple versions), so I can't pick a top 10 just yet. My latest two favourites are Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk and Die Zauberflote.


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## MaestroViolinist (May 22, 2012)

crmoorhead said:


> Unfortunately, I have maybe only heard about 18 operas (though many of those in multiple versions), so I can't pick a top 10 just yet. My latest two favourites are Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk and Die Zauberflote.


I've never liked operas much so I've probably only listened to about 5. I just can't put up with the sopranos wobbling away.


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## guythegreg (Jun 15, 2012)

Norma - first opera I ever liked, hardly listen to it any more, but it's still wonderful in memory
Comte Ory - the Glyndebourne production, just wonderful, listen to it again and again
Sonnambula - the Moffo video, wonderful to look at or listen to
Barber - usually listen to the Callas/Gobbi CD but can also enjoy the Kathleen Battle or the Teresa Berganza
Traviata - a recent favorite, never enjoyed it until I saw Dessay do it - Dessay to watch, Cotrubas to listen
Elisir d'Amore - Netrebko and Villazon to watch, Cotrubas to listen to
Simon Boccanegra - usually either Milnes or Mattila
Lucia di Lammermoor - Sills, just because of how Schippers works the orchestra
Cosi fan tutte - Muti/Dessi to watch, Schwarzkopf/Ludwig to listen
Falstaff - hardly ever listen to it any more but, like Norma, it's dear
odd - Ballo in Maschera used to be number 2 and now it's not even on the list - oh dear


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## sospiro (Apr 3, 2010)

guythegreg said:


> Norma - first opera I ever liked, hardly listen to it any more, but it's still wonderful in memory
> Comte Ory - the Glyndebourne production, just wonderful, listen to it again and again
> Sonnambula - the Moffo video, wonderful to look at or listen to
> Barber - usually listen to the Callas/Gobbi CD but can also enjoy the Kathleen Battle or the Teresa Berganza
> ...


:tiphat:

Hello guythegreg & welcome to the forum!

Love your choices & your reasons & analyses. It's interesting how sometimes we can prefer to _see_ one particular singer & then _listen_ to another, although both may be brilliant.

Pleased you still like _Falstaff_. I saw it recently at ROH, well I think I nearly overdosed on it. Saw the final dress, three performances then saw it on a free public big screen.


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## guythegreg (Jun 15, 2012)

Hello Annie, thanks for the welcome! looks like a friendly place ...


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## Xaltotun (Sep 3, 2010)

Die Walküre - 10 pts
Das Rheingold - 9 pts
Siegfried - 8 pts
Parsifal - 7 pts
Lohengrin - 6 pts
Tannhäuser - 5 pts
Tristan und Isolde - 4 pts
Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg - 3 pts
Götterdämmerung - 2 pts
Der Fliegende Holländer - 1 pt


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## Bardamu (Dec 12, 2011)

sospiro said:


> Hard for me to choose between these, love both equally.


Yes, the Ramey/Marton/Domingo one is on my current playlist (with Serafin/Pobbe Isabeau).
Really happy I gave a try.


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## Hesoos (Jun 9, 2012)

crmoorhead said:


> Unfortunately, I have maybe only heard about 18 operas (though many of those in multiple versions), so I can't pick a top 10 just yet. My latest two favourites are Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk and Die Zauberflote.


You can write your 5 favorites if you want... or just your favorite, all of them can count.


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## PlaySalieri (Jun 3, 2012)

1. Die Zauberflote
2. Don Giovanni
3. Le Nozze di Figaro
4. Cosi fan tutte
5. Die Entfurrung
6. Clemenza di tito
7. Idomeneo
8 Otello
9 carmen
10 Der Freishutz


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## brianwalker (Dec 9, 2011)

1. Parsifal
2. Tristan und Isolde 
3. Die Meistersinger 
4. Gotterdammerung 
5. Die Walkure
6. Otello 
7. Turandot 
8. Don Giovanni 
9. Falstaff 
10. Aida


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## Crudblud (Dec 29, 2011)

1. Messiaen - St. François d'Assise
2. Wagner - Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg
3. R. Strauss - Salome
4. Bizet - Carmen
5. Zimmermann - Die Soldaten
6. Berg - Lulu
7. Wagner - Das Rheingold
8. Verdi - Aida
9. Janacek - From the House of the Dead
10. Stockhausen - Dienstag aus Licht


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## emiellucifuge (May 26, 2009)

Do I believe my eyes?

Has Crudblud really placed *Die Soldaten* in his top 10?

Where have you been this whole time?


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## Glissando (Nov 25, 2011)

1. Le Nozze de Figaro
2. Rigoletto
3. Barber of Seville
4. Tosca
5. Madama Butterfly
6. Salome
7. Tristan and Isolde
8. Don Giovanni
9. Boris Godunov
10. Cosi Fan Tutte


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## sospiro (Apr 3, 2010)

Glissando said:


> 1. Le Nozze de Figaro
> 2. Rigoletto
> 3. Barber of Seville
> 4. Tosca
> ...


Great to see someone else likes Boris. I've just ordered two more for my collection.

Does it have to be the original or do you like the Shostakovich and Rimsky-Korsakov orchestrations as well?


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## Crudblud (Dec 29, 2011)

emiellucifuge said:


> Do I believe my eyes?
> 
> Has Crudblud really placed *Die Soldaten* in his top 10?
> 
> Where have you been this whole time?


1. You probably should. I tried not believing them for a while and I kept bumping in to walls, and cars.

2. Yes.

3. Around.


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## emiellucifuge (May 26, 2009)

You are the first person Ive met who has even seen this opera.


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## mamascarlatti (Sep 23, 2009)

I have it in my UWP of youtubes. I always think of it as emiel's opera.


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## DarkAngel (Aug 11, 2010)

Traviata
Marriage of Figaro
Tosca
Trovatore 
Barber of Seville
Puritani
Macbeth
Norma
Carmen
Rigoletto

*Verdi *dominates
If list was extended to top 20 about half would be Verdi, so much great work. Vast majority would be from Italian Bel Canto style of Donizetti, Bellini, Verdi

I could put a "token" Wagner work in there to please Couchie, but my heart will always be Verdi

A great partnership:


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## Glissando (Nov 25, 2011)

sospiro said:


> Great to see someone else likes Boris. I've just ordered two more for my collection.
> 
> Does it have to be the original or do you like the Shostakovich and Rimsky-Korsakov orchestrations as well?


Actually, so far I've liked both the original and the Rimsky-Korsakov versions. This DVD is the first one I saw, and it is a great performance (it features the Rimsky-Korsakov orchestration):









Haven't heard the Shostakovich version yet, though. Which of the three do you prefer?


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## Crudblud (Dec 29, 2011)

emiellucifuge said:


> You are the first person Ive met who has even seen this opera.


Come to think of it, I'm not sure If I know anyone who has seen it apart from you.


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## quack (Oct 13, 2011)

<Puts hand up> I watched it, mostly because someone here recommended it and kept going on about it.  Very interesting stuff not sure i'd put it in a top ten, i'd probably get a Nono opera in above Zimmermann as a vaguely similar composer, although I do like Zimmermann's requiem a lot.

Here's my hit-submit-quick-before-I-change-it-entirely top 10 (unranked sorry):

Purcell - Dido and Aeneas
Bartok - Bluebeard's Castle
Berg - Wozzeck
Tchaikovsky - Eugene Onegin
Wagner - Das Rheingold
Poulenc - Dialogues des Carmelites
Monteverdi - L'Incoronasione di Poppea
Britten - The Rape of Lucretia
Donizetti - Lucia di Lammermoor
Szymanowski - King Roger


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## sospiro (Apr 3, 2010)

DarkAngel said:


> I could put a "token" Wagner work in there to please Couchie


:lol:



DarkAngel said:


> but my heart will always be Verdi


I know what you mean! I'm in a bit of a Don Carlo mood at the moment & have revisited the first CD I got. I know it's only a four act & would have just loved a Carreras/Freni Fontainebleau, all the artists on here are at their very best.


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## sospiro (Apr 3, 2010)

Glissando said:


> Actually, so far I've liked both the original and the Rimsky-Korsakov versions. This DVD is the first one I saw, and it is a great performance (it features the Rimsky-Korsakov orchestration):
> 
> View attachment 7403
> 
> ...


I prefer the Mussorgsky original but not fussy about which versions. These are the two on order

[clicky] Could only find it in US & I've ordered a 'used' & for 3 discs it's a bargain.

And [clicky], got this from UK & again a 'used'.

My DVDs are










Rimsky-Korsakov










Mussorgsky










Mussorgsky (this is my favourite)


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## Crudblud (Dec 29, 2011)

sospiro said:


> Mussorgsky (this is my favourite)


Directed by Tarkovsky? Intriguing!


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## Bas (Jul 24, 2012)

Accis & Galathea by Joseph Haydn
 Dido & Aeneas by Henry Purcell
 Griselda by Antonio Vivaldi
 l'Orfeo by Claudio Monteverdi
 La Silvia by Antonio Vivaldi
 Orlando Furioso by Antonio Vivaldi
 La Traviata by Giuseppe Verdi
 Turandot by Giacomo Puccini
 Don Giovanni by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
 Nabucco by Giuseppe Verdi
 Die Zauberflote by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

I love the early opera's!


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## emiellucifuge (May 26, 2009)

quack said:


> <Puts hand up> I watched it, mostly because someone here recommended it and kept going on about it.  Very interesting stuff not sure i'd put it in a top ten, i'd probably get a Nono opera in above Zimmermann as a vaguely similar composer, although I do like Zimmermann's requiem a lot.


It must have been me. If it was someone else I would have seen and cornered them like I have done Crudblud.

Glad you gave it a go. I saw it in the theater, staged by Willy Decker, it is was one of the most terrifying experiences of my life. Im not too happy with the youtube version in comparison.


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## mamascarlatti (Sep 23, 2009)

emiellucifuge said:


> It must have been me. If it was someone else I would have seen and cornered them like I have done Crudblud.
> 
> Glad you gave it a go. I saw it in the theater, staged by Willy Decker, it is was one of the most terrifying experiences of my life. Im not too happy with the youtube version in comparison.


Well then check this version out, streaming on Sunday http://www.3sat.de/page/?source=/musik/164225/index.html


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## Chi_townPhilly (Apr 21, 2007)

*All right, then*



Hesoos said:


> ...a list of the operas you like the best, just a personal list of your favourites operas.


(as of today)
1. *Tristan und Isolde*
2. *Götterämmerung*
3. *Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg*
4. *Die Walküre*
5. *Parsifal*
6. *Tannhäuser*
7. *Das Rheingold*
8. *Siegfried*
9. *La bohème*
10. *Carmen*

(nearly 20 lists... and only the third mention of _Carmen_)...

Really, the only way to keep Wagner from lapping the field is to allow negative inputs (e.g.: 'minus' votes), so that all the haters can come out and play.


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## Glissando (Nov 25, 2011)

sospiro said:


> My DVDs are
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Interesting -- thanks for the recommendations! This opera has such a unique feel to it. Even compared to other Russian operas I've heard, _Boris_ is one-of-a-kind.


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## emiellucifuge (May 26, 2009)

mamascarlatti said:


> Well then check this version out, streaming on Sunday http://www.3sat.de/page/?source=/musik/164225/index.html


Awesome! Thanks!


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## mamascarlatti (Sep 23, 2009)

Bas said:


> Accis & Galathea by Joseph Haydn
> Dido & Aeneas by Henry Purcell
> Griselda by Antonio Vivaldi
> l'Orfeo by Claudio Monteverdi
> ...


So do I, although there are a couple on your list I need to investigate. I've just put this










in my Presto Classical cart ofter sampling some of the arias. Will also investigate La Silvia. My favourite Vivaldis are Ercole sul Termodonte, Farnace and la Verita in Cimento. I share his enthusiasm for the contralto voice.

But what about Handel?


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## mamascarlatti (Sep 23, 2009)

Bas said:


> Accis & Galathea by Joseph Haydn
> Dido & Aeneas by Henry Purcell
> Griselda by Antonio Vivaldi
> l'Orfeo by Claudio Monteverdi
> ...


So do I, although there are a couple on your list I need to investigate. I've just put this










in my Presto Classical cart after sampling some of the arias. Will also investigate La Silvia. My favourite Vivaldis are Ercole sul Termodonte, Farnace and la Verita in Cimento. I share his enthusiasm for the contralto voice.

Any love for Handel?


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## Bas (Jul 24, 2012)

Sure, but I dont own any cd's of his opera works yet - and I don't know his opera's very well. (I love his concerti grossi, and organ works, as well as the Messiah of course). Which of my list were new for you?

I think that especially the Vivaldi opera's may not be to well known, and among the best I think, I love Griselda and La Silvia (of course the ones you mention are very good too, the problem with those top # lists is that it depends on what you can come up with, of course, and your mood, another day will probably cause variations on the list... )


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## Poppin' Fresh (Oct 24, 2009)

1. Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg 
2. Tristan und Isolde 
3. Die Zauberflöte 
4. Les contes d'Hoffmann 
5. La bohème
6. Götterdämmerung
7. Parsifal
8. Otello
9. Die Walküre
10. Don Giovanni


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## mamascarlatti (Sep 23, 2009)

Bas said:


> Sure, but I dont own any cd's of his opera works yet - and I don't know his opera's very well. (I love his concerti grossi, and organ works, as well as the Messiah of course). *Which of my list were new for you?*
> 
> I think that especially the Vivaldi opera's may not be to well known, and among the best I think, I love Griselda and La Silvia (of course the ones you mention are very good too, the problem with those top # lists is that it depends on what you can come up with, of course, and your mood, another day will probably cause variations on the list... )


Acide and La Silvia. But they are coming my way. The problem as you say with Vivaldi is that they are less well known so it's hard to know where to start. I had never even heard of the Haydn one but it sounds glorious from what I can tell. SO thanks for the ideas


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## Bas (Jul 24, 2012)

You are very welcome! I'm going to listen to the agrippinia opera of Handel somewhere today, I think.


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## MAuer (Feb 6, 2011)

Bas said:


> You are very welcome! I'm going to listen to the agrippinia opera of Handel somewhere today, I think.


If you like _Messiah_ and Handel's other music, you'll probably enjoy his operas. At least this has been my own experience so far. (My problem is tracking down recordings with tenors or baritones cast in the old castrato roles.)


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## mamascarlatti (Sep 23, 2009)

Bas said:


> You are very welcome! I'm going to listen to the agrippinia opera of Handel somewhere today, I think.


My favourite Handel Operas, in no particular order:

Giulio Cesare, Semele, Rinaldo, Ariodante, Hercules, Acis and Galatea, Rodelinda, Tamerlano, Alcina and Partenope, + three oratorios, Theodora, Solomon and Athalia.

But actually I like everything I've heard so far.


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## peeknocker (Feb 14, 2012)

Ten of my favorites (ok, twelve) in no particular order:

Anton Rubinstein - "The Demon" and "Merchant Kalashnikov"
Alfredo Catalani - "La Wally" and "Loreley"
Giacomo Meyerbeer -"Le Prophete"
Karl Goldmark - "Die Königin von Saba"
Gaetano Donizetti - "Poliuto"
Mykola Lysenko - "Taras Bulba"
Giuseppe Verdi - "Don Carlos" (original, uncut French version)
Paul Hindemith - Mathis der Maler
Riccardo Zandonai - "I Cavalieri di Ekebu"
Antonio Smareglia - "La Falena"

Dislikes: WAGNER.


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