{"id":36459,"date":"2023-12-14T11:40:22","date_gmt":"2023-12-14T10:40:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/e9a074d2-1138-41c9-bc40-793debfddf33"},"modified":"2023-12-14T12:40:06","modified_gmt":"2023-12-14T11:40:06","slug":"the-20-best-operas-of-all-time","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/rss_feed\/the-20-best-operas-of-all-time\/","title":{"rendered":"The 20 best operas of all time"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By BBC Music Magazine\n <\/p>

Published: Thursday, 14 December 2023 at 10:40 AM<\/p>

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Selecting the very best operas of all time is quite the task. After all, the opera form has branched off in many different styles and tangents since Monteverdi’s L’Orfeo<\/em> of 1607, the earliest opera still seeing regular performances to this day. <\/strong><\/p>

What are the greatest operas of all time?<\/h2>
However, there are unquestionably some outstanding examples of the genre: works that combine a compelling storyline, captivating characters and, of course, beautiful music. <\/p>
What is the difference between a musical and an opera?<\/a><\/strong><\/p>
Here is our own handpicked list of the 20 greatest operas of all time. Do you agree? And by the way, elsewhere on our site you can read reviews of the latest opera recordings<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>
<\/div><\/figure><h2 id=\"h-the-greatest-opera-of-all-time\">The greatest opera of all time<\/h2><h3 id=\"h-1-mozart-s-the-marriage-of-figaro-1786\">1) Mozart\u2019s The Marriage of Figaro<\/em> (1786)<\/h3>Brilliantly conceived characters and ensemble writing grab Mozart\u2019s comedy the top slot<\/strong><\/em><\/p>Coming in at No. 1 is one of the supreme masterpieces of operatic comedy, whose rich sense of humanity shines out of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/mozart\">Mozart<\/a>\u2019s<\/strong> miraculous score.<\/p>The Marriage of Figaro\u2019s<\/em> intricate plot follows four of the principal characters from The Barber of Seville<\/em> a few years down the line. Both operas are based on plays by the French dramatist Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais which quickly became classics despite their incendiary political content: these problems were particularly acute in Le Mariage de Figaro<\/em>, which was widely banned due to its criticism of the nobility.<\/p><ul><li><a class=\"standard-card-new__article-title\" href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/six-best-mozart-operas\/\">Six of the best Mozart operas<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul>Having relocated to Vienna from his native Salzburg in 1782 to further his career, Mozart was determined to show the Emperor Joseph II, his court and the entire Imperial capital what he could do with a comic Italian libretto, teaming up with the poet attached to the city\u2019s opera house, Lorenzo da Ponte.<\/p>According to Da Ponte, it was the composer\u2019s idea to make an opera of Figaro, the most controversial play of its time. After the Emperor had given it the go-ahead, the work was premiered in Vienna on 1 May 1786 and has been entertaining audiences since.<\/p><h4 id=\"h-all-of-the-main-characters-get-memorable-arias\">‘All of the main characters get memorable arias’<\/h4>As usual, Mozart introduces his opera with an overture, and while it uses none of the opera\u2019s subsequent material, it perfectly defines the general mood of the piece with its Presto<\/em> tempo marking and busy, bustling orchestral writing suggesting the constant whispering and intrigue during the course of what Beaumarchais\u2019s full title \u2013 La folle journ\u00e9e, ou le Mariage de Figaro<\/em> \u2013 calls a \u2018crazy day\u2019.<\/p>All of the main characters are given memorable arias, including Bartolo\u2019s furious \u2018La vendetta\u2019, in which he swears vengeance on Figaro in Gilbert & Sullivan-like comic patter; Cherubino\u2019s \u2018Non so pi\u00f9\u2019, in which the rapid fluttering of his vocal line indicates his constant emotional and sexual excitement. Then there’s the Countess\u2019s sorrow-laden \u2018Porgi amor\u2019, whose shapely melodic line traces the depths of her feeling of abandonment; and the Count\u2019s \u2018Vedr\u00f2 mentre io sospiro\u2019, in which his aristocratic fury at Figaro\u2019s challenge to his entitlement is banged out in firm rhythms and grand triplet roulades.<\/p>And let’s not forget Cherubino’s ‘Voi que sapete’, one of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/famous-opera-songs\">most famous opera songs<\/a><\/strong> in the repertoire.<\/p><h4 id=\"h-mozart-s-music-reflects-each-tiny-twist-and-turn-of-the-plot\">‘Mozart’s music reflects each tiny twist and turn of the plot’<\/h4>Figaro is unusually rich in ensembles, where the test for the composer is to maintain individual vocal character and specific individual emotions while the other characters are singing something entirely different \u2013 a trick Mozart pulls off with flying colours, notably in the sextet in the trial scene in Act III that was Mozart\u2019s own favourite piece in his score.<\/p>But it is in the two big finales that end the second and fourth acts that Mozart brings his skills in ensemble writing to an apogee rarely equalled \u2013 even by him. Here his music reflects each tiny twist and turn of the plot, reaching extraordinary heights of complexity as the audience experiences every fleeting emotion that the individual characters are feeling; few operatic comedies can match Figaro\u2019s combination of wit with emotional truth.<\/p>Recommended recording of Mozart\u2019s The Marriage of Figaro<\/em>:<\/strong>Andrei Bondarenko; Simone Kermes; Christian Van Horn; Fanie Antonelou; Mary-Ellen Nesi; Maria Forsstrom; Nikolai Loskutkin; Krystian Adam; James Elliott; Garry Agadzhanian; Natalya Kirillova; MusicAeterna\/Teodor CurrentzisCATALOGUE NO: 88883709262<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/Nozze-Figaro-Hard-Back-Limited\/dp\/B00CE26AU6\/ref=sr_1_7\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Buy from Amazon<\/a><\/strong><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/reviews\/opera\/mozart-marriage-figaro-2\/\">Read full review<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul><ul><li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/article\/10-mozart-works-you-might-not-know\">10 Mozart works you might not know<\/strong><\/a><\/li><\/ul>You can also read our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/tag\/mozart-reviews\/\">reviews of the latest Mozart recordings<\/a><\/strong>, and find out more about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/tag\/mozart\/\">Mozart and his works<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p><h2 id=\"h-top-five-operas-of-all-time\">Top five operas of all time<\/h2><h3 id=\"h-2-puccini-s-la-boheme-1896\">2) Puccini\u2019s La boh\u00e8me<\/em> (1896)<\/h3>Close, but no cigar, though Puccini\u2019s romantic opera is still a masterclass in story-telling<\/strong><\/em><\/p>He figures in our list of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/the-greatest-opera-composers-of-all-time\">greatest opera composers<\/a><\/strong> of all time, and it should be no surprise that <a href=\"http:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/giacomo-puccini\">Puccini<\/a><\/strong> is also high up the list in our ranking of the greatest operas ever composed. <\/p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/recordings\/la-boheme-best-recordings\/\">La boh\u00e8me<\/em><\/a><\/strong> is about as perfect as an opera can be. It\u2019s concise, it\u2019s packed with delicious melody and it\u2019s about being young and in love. And even better, young love undone by death. Like Romeo and Juliet, James Dean, Jimi Hendrix and Kurt Cobain, the best die young, thus robbing age of its wrinkled victory. We weep for ourselves in the closing bars of the opera when Rodolfo suddenly realises that Mim\u00ec has gone. And woe betide the theatre that brings up the houselights too soon.<\/p>If the drama is taut then the score is as expansive as anything Puccini composed. The duet for the young lovers that closes Act I is a masterclass in creating character through music and in manipulating an audience\u2019s feelings. Musetta\u2019s waltz at the Caf\u00e9 Momus is as teasing as the woman herself. <\/p>But almost better is the sequence of numbers in Act III at the Barri\u00e8re d\u2019Enfer, the farewell duet for Mim\u00ec and Rodolfo, then Musetta and Marcello quarrelling that effortlessly slips into the quartet, \u2018Addio dolce svegliare alla mattina\u2019.<\/p>How does Puccini do it? With short musical themes that define each of his characters and their worlds and which \u2013 master orchestrator that he was \u2013 are conjured back into the score in a way that makes them sound the same but always different.<\/p>Recommended recording of Puccini’s La boh\u00e8me<\/em>:<\/strong>Michael Fabiano, Nicole Car, Simona Mihai et al; Chorus & Orchestra of the Royal Opera House\/Antonio Pappano; dir. Richard Jones (Opus Arte, DVD)<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/Puccini-Antonio-Pappano-OABD7248D-Blu-ray\/dp\/B07FST5L6R\/ref=sr_1_1\">Buy from Amazon<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul>Read our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/tag\/puccini-reviews\/\">reviews of the latest Puccini recordings here<\/a><\/strong><\/p><figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\"><iframe title=\"Puccini - La Boh\u00e8me - Musetta's Waltz\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/KP3lV-YvCYM?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\/><\/div><\/figure><p\/><h3 id=\"h-3-richard-strauss-s-der-rosenkavalier-1911\">3) Richard Strauss\u2019s Der Rosenkavalier<\/em> (1911)<\/h3>Strauss\u2019s opera may be stylistically old-school, but its music and vocal scoring are sublime<\/strong><\/em><\/p>Why do so many people regard Der Rosenkavalier<\/em> as a guilty pleasure? Is it because the highlights, like the title character Octavian\u2019s Presentation of the Rose to young Sophie and the famous <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/articles\/what-trio\/\">Trio<\/a><\/strong>, are too beautiful to be true? <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/richard-strauss\">Strauss<\/a><\/strong> intended them that way, with the characters stepping out of time, but his first wholly original collaboration with the Viennese poet and playwright Hugo von Hofmannsthal is also shrewd and pointed.<\/p>Its often acidic wit contrasts with meditations on transience using as mouthpiece the central character of the Marschallin, the 32-year-old woman with whom the public identifies, and lending this \u2018comedy for music\u2019 a depth to match its most obvious model, Mozart\u2019s The Marriage of Figaro<\/em>.<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/20-landmark-opera-productions-picture-gallery\">20 landmark opera productions: picture gallery<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul>The plot, featuring a ridiculous older suitor and the teenage girl to be married off to him, a stylish young buck with an older woman as lover who comes along to save the girl, is drawn from Moli\u00e8re and other French sources. But Hofmannsthal in 1911 was creating a mythical Vienna that stretched from the nominal setting of the opera, the 1740s, up to the brink of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/articles\/what-was-impact-world-war-one-music\/\">First World War<\/a><\/strong>; and Strauss, incorporating waltzes as well as some of the dissonances familiar from the opera\u2019s contrasting predecessor, Elektra, composed his most encyclopedic masterpiece of a score.<\/p>Recommended recording of Der Rosenkavalier<\/em>:<\/strong>Rene\u0301e Fleming, El \u0304\u0131na Garanc\u030ca, Gu\u0308nther Groissbo\u0308ck, Erin Morley, Markus Bru\u0308ck, Matthew Polenzani; Metropolitan Opera Chorus & Orchestra\/Sebastian Weigle; dir. Robert Carsen<\/p>DVD: 074 3944 (2 discs); Blu-ray: 074 3944<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/Rosenkavalier-Metropolitan-Opera-Weigl-DVD\/dp\/B075VVSFBX\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Buy from Amazon<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/artists\/20-greatest-tenors-all-time\/\">The 20 Greatest Tenors of all time<\/a><\/strong><\/li><li>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/tag\/r-strauss-reviews\/\">reviews of the latest Richard Strauss recordings<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul><h3 id=\"h-4-berg-s-wozzeck-1925\">4) Berg\u2019s Wozzeck<\/em> (1925)<\/h3>Serialism at its most expressive \u2013 a brutal tale told with mocking wit and extreme tenderness<\/strong><\/em><\/p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/alban-berg\">Alban Berg<\/a><\/strong>\u2019s expressionist first opera is as viscerally wrenching today as the audience found the premiere in Berlin in 1925 \u2013 and it remains as socio-politically radical; one of most powerfully incisive, influential works in the entire repertoire, relating the tragedy of an ordinary soldier who is driven to madness and brutal murder by the grotesque cruelty of his supposed superiors.<\/p>It was the erosion of humanity that Berg witnessed during and after World War I that drove him to adapt Georg B\u00fcchner\u2019s seminal, unfinished 1837 play, Woyzeck<\/em>, first staged in 1913. The resulting Wozzeck<\/em> would prove to be one of the most searing portraits anywhere of a mind, a relationship and a society in harrowing collapse.<\/p>Wozzeck\u2019s hallucinations of apocalypse become more than just metaphors, propelled by a lush, atonal score that is at once exquisitely orchestrated and rigorously structured in a kind of homage to classical forms; all the better to give heartrending voice, through Wozzeck and his equally doomed Marie, to a nightmare reality in which the poor and vulnerable are tormented and abandoned.<\/p>Recommended recording of Berg\u2019s Wozzeck<\/em>:<\/strong>Carl Johan Falkman, Katarina Dalayman, Ulrik Qvale, Sten Wahlund; Stockholm Royal Opera Chorus & Orchestra\/Leif Segerstam<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/Berg-Wozzeck-Carl-Johan-Falkman\/dp\/B00005Y0MH\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Buy from Amazon<\/a><\/strong><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/reviews\/opera\/berg-2\/\">Read full review<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul>Read our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/tag\/berg-reviews\/\">reviews of the latest Berg recordings here<\/a><\/strong><\/p><figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-4-3 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\"><iframe title=\"Berg: Wozzeck (HQ) - 1970 film version [English Subtitles]\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/rHFFPyU41_0?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\/><\/div><\/figure><p\/><h3 id=\"h-5-britten-s-peter-grimes-1945\">5. Britten\u2019s Peter Grimes<\/em> (1945)<\/h3> In this evocative, bleak work, Britten ratchets up the tension within a small coastal village<\/strong><\/em><\/p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/benjamin-britten-composer\">Britten<\/strong><\/a>\u2019s first full-scale opera, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/recordings\/peter-grimes-britten\/\">Peter Grimes<\/em><\/a><\/strong> premiered less than a month after Nazi Germany\u2019s defeat. By the decade\u2019s end it was a worldwide hit, and today remains one of the few English operas in the international repertory. Peter Grimes himself \u2013 an impractical dreamer with anger issues, and one of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/articles\/six-best-opera-baddies\">opera’s most famous antagonists<\/a><\/strong>, whose bruised young apprentices have the unfortunate tendency of dying \u2013 is hardly the most sympathetic role.<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/article\/five-essential-works-benjamin-britten\">Five essential works by Benjamin Britten<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul>Yet Britten\u2019s sympathetic skill in writing for voices, honed over 15 years of songwriting, brings a gallery of very English characters vividly to life. What haunts the listener above all, though, is his evocation of the ever-present sea, evident from the very opening inquest: staccato woodwind, brisk and business-like, dominate the scene at first; yet when Grimes steps into the dock, soft, long-breathed string cadences suggest not only his introspective nature but also the rise and fall of waves on the beach outside.<\/p>Then, with the first Sea Interlude, we are outdoors and we hear the bright, keening sound of high strings, with the swell of low brass suggesting the power of the sea itself. This, and the chorus, forged from individuals at the village dance into an alarming, blood-lusting beast, are the ever-present \u2018elemental forces\u2019 which seal Grimes\u2019s fate.<\/p>Recommended recording of Britten\u2019s Peter Grimes<\/em>:<\/strong>Alan Oke, Giselle Allen, David Kempster, Alexander Hutton, Gaynor Keeble, Charmain Bedford, Robert Murray, Henry Waddington, Catherine Wyn-Rogers, Christopher Gillett, Charles Rice, Stephen Richardson; Chorus of Opera North; Chorus of Guildhall School of Music and Drama; Britten-Pears Orchestra\/Steuart Bedford. Catalogue No: SIGCD348<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.onbuy.com\/gb\/alan-oke-britten-peter-grimes-grimes-on-the-beach-aldeburgh-festival~c5629~p1330240\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Buy from OnBuy.com<\/a><\/strong><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/reviews\/opera\/gimes-on-the-beach-nov-13\/\">Read full review<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul> Read our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/tag\/britten-reviews\/\">reviews of the latest Britten recordings here<\/a><\/strong> <\/p><h2 id=\"h-best-operas-of-all-time-6-to-10\">Best operas of all time: 6 to 10<\/h2><h3 id=\"h-6-puccini-s-tosca-1900\">6) Puccini\u2019s Tosca<\/em> (1900)<\/h3>A rollercoaster opera of high emotions that features some of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/topic\/giacomo-puccini\">Puccini<\/a>\u2019s finest orchestrations<\/strong><\/em><\/p>First performed in Rome in 1900, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/puccinis-tosca-guide\/\">Tosca<\/em><\/a> <\/strong>was Puccini\u2019s fifth opera, composed at the beginning of his forties. It’s also one of the composer’s very best operas – which is saying something.<\/p>He drew the subject from the play La Tosca<\/em> by the admired French dramatist Victorien Sardou, who had written it as a vehicle for the great actress Sarah Bernhardt that quickly turned into a major theatrical success; the copious detail of the libretto\u2019s real historical setting, meanwhile, pushed it in the direction of the prevailing verismo aesthetic. <\/p><ul><li><a class=\"standard-card-newarticle-title\" href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/articles\/six-best-puccini-arias\/\">Six of the best Puccini arias<\/a><\/strong><\/li><li><a class=\"standard-card-newarticle-title qa-card-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/articles\/the-best-recordings-of-puccinis-tosca\/\">The best recordings of Puccini\u2019s Tosca<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul>Musically, in Tosca<\/em> Puccini broke new ground in representing the violent actions \u2013 torture, attempted rape, murder and execution \u2013 that pervade the drama, as well as in the darker emotions that these acts both engender and feed on. In portraying these dark situations and characters \u2013 notably the unforgettable evil police chief Scarpia \u2013 in his score, Puccini opened up novel areas of harmonic and orchestral expression.<\/p>To its first audiences Tosca<\/em> represented a new kind of opera \u2013 one that was fast moving, realistic and violent, as well as deliberately shocking. Long before the term was coined, Puccini here created an operatic genre: the political thriller.<\/p>Recommended recording of Puccini\u2019s Tosca<\/em>:<\/strong>Angela Gheorghiu (soprano), Jonas Kaufmann (tenor), Bryn Terfel (bass-baritone), Lukas Jakobski (bass), Hubert Francis (tenor), ZhengZhong Zhou (baritone); Royal Opera House Chorus and Orchestra\/Antonio Pappano; dir. Jonathan Kent (Covent Garden 2011)<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hive.co.uk\/Product\/Tosca-Royal-Opera-House-Pappano\/15398939\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Buy from Hive<\/a><\/strong><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/Puccini-Tosca-Gheorghiu-Kaufmann-Terfel\/dp\/B008K7RGA2\/ref=asc_df_B008K7RGA2\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Buy from Amazon<\/a><\/strong><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/reviews\/puccini-tosca-dvd-feb-13\/\">Read full review<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul>Read our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/tag\/puccini-reviews\/\">reviews of the latest Puccini recordings here<\/a><\/strong> <\/p><h3 id=\"h-7-monteverdi-s-l-incoronazione-di-poppea-1643\">7) Monteverdi\u2019s L\u2019incoronazione di Poppea<\/em> (1643)<\/h3>Monteverdi gets to the hearts of his characters with music of spellbinding beauty and verve<\/strong><\/em><\/p>Much as <a href=\"http:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/giuseppe-verdi\">Verdi<\/strong><\/a>\u2019s Falstaff<\/em> is a compendium of a lifetime\u2019s musical interests, L\u2019incoronazione di Poppea<\/em> is a work in which a lifetime\u2019s soundworlds contrast and collide. Musicologists have debated its authenticity: the overture has been attributed to Francesco Cavalli, and the final duet, \u2018Pur ti miro\u2019, has been claimed as the work of Benedetto Ferrari or Francesco Sacrati before being returned, as it were, to Claudio Monteverdi.<\/p>Premiered in 1643, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/claudio-monteverdi\">Monteverdi<\/a><\/strong>\u2019s last opera is Venetian to the core: a morally ambiguous, multi-layered drama of court intrigues, contract killings and broken promises among the high- and low-born subjects of a psychotic emperor. When modern listeners shudder at the triumph of Cupid as Poppea is crowned, they should remember that in the wake of this apparent happy ending comes yet more violence.<\/p>From Poppea and Nero\u2019s first smouldering, post-coital duet, \u2018Signor, deh non partire\u2019, to the astringent chromatics of \u2018Non morir Seneca\u2019, the hypnotic beauty of Arnalta\u2019s ground bass lullaby, \u2018Oblivion soave\u2019, and the shattered desolation of Ottavia\u2019s \u2018Addio Roma\u2019, the writing is unfailingly psychologically acute. Add to this music of spellbinding beauty and verve, and you have one of the best operas in the canon.<\/p>Recommended recording of Monteverdi\u2019s L\u2019incoronazione di Poppea<\/em>:<\/strong>Sonya Yoncheva (Poppea), Kate Lindsay (Nerone), St\u00e9phanie d’Oustrac (Ottavia), Les Arts Florissants, William Christie, Jan Lauwers (director)<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/s?k=Monteverdi%E2%80%99s+L%E2%80%99incoronazione+di+Poppea+Sonya+Yoncheva&ref=nb_sb_noss\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Buy from Amazon<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul> Read our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/tag\/monteverdi-reviews\/\">reviews of the latest Monteverdi recordings here<\/a><\/strong> <\/p><h3 id=\"h-8-mozart-s-don-giovanni-1787\">8) Mozart’s Don Giovanni<\/em> (1787)<\/h3>An opera of perfect proportions, both thematically and musically balanced<\/strong><\/em><\/p>It was ETA Hoffmann, whose own stories were to inspire many great musical masterworks, who called Don Giovanni<\/em> \u2018the opera of all operas\u2019. It’s certainly, from a variety of standpoints, one of the best operas in the literature.<\/p>Mozart\u2019s art has often been compared with Shakespeare\u2019s, above all perhaps for the composer\u2019s complete and lifelike blend of the comic and tragic: their co-existence is actually the essence of all Mozart\u2019s operatic masterpieces, and Don Giovanni \u2013 aptly labelled a dramma giocosa \u2013 is the work in which they are most intimately woven together.<\/p>People\u2019s long fascination with the Don Juan legend, first made into a play by a Spanish poet-monk in the early 17th century, meant that by Mozart\u2019s time there were countless Don Juan shows around. But Mozart \u2013 whose music would have been impossible without alchemy of Da Ponte\u2019s words \u2013 gave life, as it were, to the supernatural, in the form of the Commendatore\u2019s statue.<\/p>In Leporello\u2019s Catalogue Aria he created a piece unlike anything else in all opera. The work that Rossini claimed he would most liked to have composed himself is driven from start to finish with timeless power and brilliance. It’s, simply, one of the greatest operas of all time.<\/p>Recommended recording of Mozart’s Don Giovanni<\/em>:<\/strong>Bo Skovhus, Kyle Ketelsen, Kristine Opolaise, David Bizic, Colin Balzer, Marlis Petersen, Kerstin Avemo, Anatoli Kotscherga; English Voices; Freidburg Baroque Orchestra\/Louis Langr\u00e9e; dir. Dmitri Tcherniakov (Aix-en-Provence, 2010)<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Mozart-Giovanni-Blu-ray-Bo-Skovhus\/dp\/B00CJIBC08\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Buy from Amazon<\/a><\/strong><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/reviews\/mozart-don-giovanni-dvd-nov-13\/\">Read full review<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul>Read our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/tag\/mozart-reviews\/\">reviews of the latest Mozart recordings here<\/a><\/strong><\/p><figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\"><iframe title=\"Mozart - Don Giovanni - complete (English Subtitles) - HD\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/aL2VdxseTvE?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\/><\/div><\/figure><h3 id=\"h-9-verdi-s-otello-1887\">9) Verdi\u2019s Otello<\/em> (1887)<\/h3>The Italian composer as you\u2019ve never heard him teams up with one of the opera world\u2019s sharpest librettists<\/strong><\/em><\/p>There are storms in opera and there are storms. But there is no musical storm quite so shattering as the tidal wave of sound that <a href=\"http:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/giuseppe-verdi\">Verdi<\/strong><\/a> unleashes at the start of Otello<\/em>. Is this the end of the world, with those trumpets summoning the dead from their graves?<\/p>Otello was written by a composer who was already into his seventies and who thought that he had retired. But, given the opportunity, he was also a composer who embraced the idea of renewing his musical style as confidently as a man half his age. And nowhere more so than in the Act I love duet for Otello and Desdemona.<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/article\/six-best-musical-settings-shakespeares-romeo-and-juliet\">Six of the best settings of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet<\/em><\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul>Verdi had a master librettist working with him who was also more than half in love with William Shakespeare. Arrigo Boito shaves off Act I of Shakespeare\u2019s tragedy and concentrates the action in Cyprus, so that in a good production of Otello you never look at your watch. You\u2019re on the edge of your seat as evil, in the shape of Iago, confronts flawed goodness, the Moor of Venice, and innocence is murdered. The death of Desdemona would make stones \u2013 and us \u2013 weep.<\/p>Recommended recording of Verdi\u2019s Otello<\/em>:<\/strong>Vickers, Rysanek, Gobbi, Andreolli, Carlin, Mazzoli, Calabrese, Kerns, Pirazzini; Rome Opera Orchestra & Chorus\/Tullio Serafin<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/Verdi-Otello-Tullio-Serafin\/dp\/B01AMWKKC8\/ref=sr_1_1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Buy from Amazon<\/a><\/strong><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.arkivmusic.com\/classical\/album.jsp?album_id=2176101\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Buy from ArkivMusic<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul> Read our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/tag\/verdi-reviews\/\">reviews of the latest Verdi recordings here<\/a><\/strong> <\/p><h3 id=\"h-10-wagner-s-tristan-und-isolde-1865\">10) Wagner\u2019s Tristan und Isolde<\/em> (1865)<\/h3>A revolutionary chord heralds the start of modern opera and a new way of thinking<\/strong><\/em><\/p>Around 1857 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/richard-wagner\">Wagner<\/strong><\/a>, reaching a creative block with the Ring, decided meanwhile to compose a popular, easily performable opera on the Tristan legend. Being Wagner, what he came up with was a vastly profound psychodrama whose very opening chord challenged traditional harmony, inspiring and liberating a subsequent generation of composers. So much so, that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/guide-wagners-tristan-und-isolde\/\">Tristan und Isolde<\/a><\/strong><\/em> has been called \u2018the first modern opera\u2019, a unique watershed beyond which music changed for good. <\/p><ul><li><a class=\"standard-card-new__article-title\" href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/articles\/six-best-productions-wagners-tristan-und-isolde\/\">Six of the best… productions of Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde<\/em><\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul> Very little actually happens onstage, in the manner of Wagner\u2019s beloved Greek tragedies. But the score is vibrantly alive both with the lovers\u2019 passion and a more transcendent yearning, for surcease, rest, escape from a cruel existence. Its score intertwines motives in darkly sensuous chromatic harmonies which find resolution only in death.<\/p>It undoubtedly reflects Wagner\u2019s personal unhappiness, and his affair (probably more idealised than real) with Mathilde Wesendonck, but also his interests in Buddhism and Schopenhauer\u2019s philosophy. It\u2019s never been his most popular work, but its power is enormous, even overwhelming \u2013 which for some devotees is the point \u2013 and its greatness undeniable.<\/p>Recommended recording of Wagner\u2019s Tristan und Isolde<\/em>:<\/strong>G\u00fcnther Treptow, Ferdinand Frantz, Helena Braun, Paul Sch\u00f6ffler, Albrecht Peter, Margarete Klose, Paul Kuen, Fritz Richard Bender; Bavarian State Opera Chorus & Orchestra\/Hans Knappertsbusch<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/Wagner-Tristan-Isolde-Richard\/dp\/B0000260Q8\/ref=asc_df_B0000260Q8\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Buy from Amazon<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul>Read our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/tag\/wagner-reviews\/\">reviews of the latest Wagner recordings here<\/a><\/strong><\/p><figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-4-3 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\"><iframe title=\"Richard Wagner - "Tristan und Isolde", Prelude\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/J-qoaioG2UA?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\/><\/div><\/figure><h3 id=\"h-11-debussy-s-pelleas-et-melisande-1902\">11) Debussy\u2019s Pell\u00e9as et M\u00e9lisande<\/em> (1902)<\/h3>Debussy\u2019s five-act masterpiece steers clear of Wagner\u2019s dominant world<\/strong><\/em><\/p>Like many fin de si\u00e8cle French composers, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features.composers\/claude-debussy\">Debussy<\/a><\/strong> was at one point a fervent Wagnerian. But in his only complete opera he sought to realise his own rather different ideal of opera. Here, as in Monteverdi<\/strong>\u2019s operas of 300 years before, music would serve the text. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/introduction-debussys-pelleas-et-melisande\/\">Pell\u00e9as et Melisande<\/em><\/strong><\/a> was the remarkable result: a subdued, mysterious exploration of a fated love triangle, the antithesis of Wagner\u2019s Tristan und Isolde<\/em>.<\/p>Debussy conjures a half-lit, atmospheric dream-world, in which the dynamics rarely go above mezzo-forte and silence is as powerful as music. Maurice Maeterlinck\u2019s eponymous symbolist play of 1892 is set almost verbatim; and, like Musorgsky in his own opera Boris Godunov, Debussy eschews melody and mimics speech patterns in the vocal lines. It\u2019s one of the opera world\u2019s strangest, most spellbinding and profound achievements. And the only French entry in our list of greatest operas of all time. <\/p>Recommended recording of Debussy\u2019s Pell\u00e9as et M\u00e9lisande<\/em>: <\/strong>Camille Maurane, Janine Micheau, Michel Roux, Xavier Depraz, Annik Simon, Rita Gorr; Choeurs Elisabeth Brasseur, Orchestre des Concerts Lamoureux\/Jean Fournet.<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/Pelleas-Melisande-claude-Debussy\/dp\/B0009WPD9M\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Buy from Amazon<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul>Read our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/tag\/debussy-reviews\/\">reviews of the latest Debussy recordings here<\/a><\/strong><\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/introduction-debussys-pelleas-et-melisande\/\">An introduction to Debussy’s Pell\u00e9as et M\u00e9lisande<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul><h3 id=\"h-12-verdi-s-la-traviata-1853\">12) Verdi\u2019s La traviata<\/em> (1853)<\/h3>Verdi reserves his greatest melodies and richest harmonies for this tale of love and duty<\/strong><\/em><\/p>Now the most-performed opera in the world, it\u2019s hard to believe that during Verdi\u2019s lifetime La traviata<\/em> was seen as a bit of a disappointment after the epic historic operas of Il trovatore<\/em> and Rigoletto<\/em>. The secret of its longevity popularity is surely Verdi\u2019s intricate, three-dimensional characters, whom he brings to life with soaring melodies and heart-rending swells of harmony.<\/p>Most compelling of all is the \u2018fallen woman\u2019 of the title, Violetta, who is forced to choose between love and honour. Ultimately, she proves her goodness by sacrificing her own happiness for that of a woman she does not know. Succumbing to consumption, she bids life, her lover Alfredo and a usually weepy audience farewell with the achingly beautiful aria \u2018Addio del passato\u2019, \u2018Farewell past happy dreams\u2019.<\/p>Recommended recording of Verdi’s La traviata<\/em>:<\/strong>Natalie Dessay, Charles Castronovo, Ludovic T\u00e9zier; LSO\/Louis Langr\u00e9e; Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir\/Mikk \u00dcleoja; dir Jean-Fran\u00e7ois Sivadier<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/Natalie-Charles-Castronovo-Jean-Francois-Sivadier\/dp\/B006LPI0KU\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Buy from Amazon<\/a><\/strong><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/reviews\/dvd-blu-ray\/verdi-174\/\">Read full review<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul>Read our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/tag\/verdi-reviews\/\">reviews of the latest Verdi recordings here<\/a><\/strong><\/p><figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\"><iframe title=\"Verdi's La traviata | English National Opera\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/GfdwG5sTcBk?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\/><\/div><\/figure><h3 id=\"h-13-tchaikovsky-s-eugene-onegin-1879\">13) Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin<\/em> (1879)<\/h3>A Russian masterpiece that probes its tale\u2019s characters with musical insight and nuance<\/strong><\/em><\/p>Eschewing a conventional through-narrative, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/pyotr-ilyich-tchaikovsky\">Tchaikovsky<\/a><\/strong>\u2019s Eugene Onegin<\/em> is a series of \u2018lyrical scenes\u2019 from Pushkin\u2019s iconic novel. At the heart of the story is the definitive arrogant aristocrat, Onegin, who rejects the un-bound adoration of country-girl Tatanya. His thoughtless behaviour leads to the death of Lensky, his greatest friend, though not before Lensky delivers the dark and despondent \u2018Faint echo of my heart\u2019.<\/p>An opera of opposites, Tchaikovsky pits Tatyana\u2019s rustic and open-hearted musical language against Onegin\u2019s starkly cynical one. Later, when the tables are turned, Onegin\u2019s change of heart is made plain in his sudden harmonic shift to the romantic figure he should always have been, while Tatyana is now stuck in a removed minor key. His realisation has come too late, and the damage he caused cannot be undone.<\/p>Desolate – and, with it, one of the greatest operas of all time.<\/p>Recommended recording of Tchaikovsky\u2019s Eugene Onegin<\/em>:<\/strong>Simon Keenlyside, Krassimira Stoyanova, Pavol Breslik, Peter Rose; Royal Opera House\/Robin Ticciati; dir. Kasper Holten<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/Tchaikovsky-Krasssimira-Stoyanova-Keenlyside-Maximova\/dp\/B00E1C4RE8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Buy from Amazon<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul><h3 id=\"h-14-janacek-s-jenufa-1904\">14) Jan\u00e1\u010dek\u2019s Jen\u016ffa<\/em> (1904)<\/h3>A harrowing slice of realism told with impressive musical and dramatic imagination<\/strong><\/em><\/p>A rapidly repeated rhythm on the xylophone, representing a water wheel, sets <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/leos-janacek\">Jan\u00e1\u010dek<\/strong><\/a>\u2019s masterpiece into motion, and so begins a devastatingly poignant tale of love, jealousy and misguided morality in rural Moravia. The stream that feeds the mill can be felt throughout a fast-flowing, chromatic score that sweeps the action along at pace \u2013 at just two hours, Jen\u016ffa<\/em> is a masterpiece of concision, and one of the most consistently gripping operas of all time.<\/p>And then there is the brilliantly drawn cast of complex characters. The stoic, self-effacing Jen\u016ffa is as easy to admire as her dissolute lover, Steva, is to revile. But how do we judge her desperate would-be partner Laca and, above all, Jen\u016ffa\u2019s stepmother, the Kostelnicka? Both carry out appalling acts, but out of loyalty and love\u2026<\/p>Jan\u00e1\u010dek\u2019s most accomplished opera, and one of the greatest operas of all time.<\/p>Recommended recording of Jan\u00e1\u010dek\u2019s Jen\u016ffa<\/em>:<\/strong>Brno Jan\u00e1cek Opera Chorus & Orchestra\/Frantisek J\u00edlek<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/Jan%C3%A1cek-Jenufa-Leos\/dp\/B000023YXH\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Buy from Amazon<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul><h3 id=\"h-15-verdi-s-don-carlos-1867\">15) Verdi\u2019s Don Carlos<\/em> (1867)<\/h3>Verdi\u2019s grandest opera combines spectacle with moments of exquisite intimacy<\/strong><\/em><\/p>Never let the facts get in the way of a good opera. In Verdi\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/recordings\/don-carlos-the-best-recordings-of-giuseppe-verdis-greatest-opera\/\">Don Carlos<\/a><\/strong><\/em>, based on a Schiller poem, the eponymous hero is an admirable, steadfast prince who champions the oppressed people of Flanders; in reality, the son of Philip II of Spain was an odious, unbalanced character with infamously sadistic tendencies.<\/p>Nonetheless, this is Verdi\u2019s grand opera par excellence, whether enjoyed in its original five-act French version or as Don Carlo, the later four-act Italian incarnation. Set against the sinister backdrop of the Spanish Inquisition, it is unmatched for spectacle and drama \u2013 not least in the auto da fe of Act III \u2013 while Verdi lets his musical imagination run riot with moments such as the monks\u2019 haunting prayer early in Act II.<\/p>Recommended recording of Verdi’s Don Carlos<\/em>:<\/strong>Cesare Siepi, Jussi Bj\u00f6rling, Robert Merrill, Jerome Hines; Metropolitan Opera Chorus & Orchestra\/Fritz Stiedry<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Verdi-Carlo-Registazione-Vivo-6-11-1950\/dp\/B004LPDMUA\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Buy from Amazon<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul>Read our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/tag\/verdi-reviews\/\">reviews of the latest Verdi recordings here<\/a><\/strong><\/p><figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\"><iframe title=\"Don Carlo excerpts (Verdi)\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/1eLXwQrCd88?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\/><\/div><\/figure><h3 id=\"h-16-wagner-s-die-meistersinger-von-nurnberg-1868\">16) Wagner\u2019s Die Meistersinger von N\u00fcrnberg<\/em> (1868)<\/h3>This consummately beautiful comic opera explores the heart of the human soul<\/strong><\/em><\/p>Wagner\u2019s<\/strong> description of his only comic opera as \u2018something lighter\u2019 belies the brilliance of the composer\u2019s insights into the complications of life, love and tradition within the context of a singing competition in a medieval German town.<\/p>At just over four hours, Wagner\u2019s score was his longest yet, but unlike Tristan und Isolde<\/em>\u2019s musical and dramatic stases (see No. 10), the dynamic Meistersinger<\/em> score constantly shifts with melodies in plentiful supply, the charming plot at once comic, romantic and philosophical.<\/p>The glorious music, arresting from the start, mirrors the opera\u2019s conceit of tradition\u2019s renewal through innovation and acceptance of outside influence \u2013 Wagner\u2019s use of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/articles\/baroque-music-guide\/\">Baroque<\/strong><\/a> counterpoint and Lutheran chorales are perfumed by judicious use of daring chromatic harmony.<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/article\/best-pieces-music-inspired-american-folk-tunes\">Six of the best pieces of music inspired by American folk tunes<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul>Recommended recording of Wagner\u2019s Die Meistersinger von N\u00fcrnberg<\/em>:<\/strong>Adam, Evans, Kollo, Donath; Staatskapelle Dresden\/Karajan<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/Richard-Wagner-Meistersinger-PERFORMANCE-Staatskapelle\/dp\/B00H5QNDII\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Buy from Amazon<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul> Read our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/tag\/wagner-reviews\/\">reviews of the latest Wagner recordings here<\/a><\/strong> <\/p><h3 id=\"h-17-monteverdi-s-l-orfeo-1607\">17) Monteverdi\u2019s L\u2019Orfeo<\/em> (1607)<\/h3>An extraordinary creation that sets its glittering music at the service of the text<\/strong><\/em><\/p>L’Orfeo <\/em>was not the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/articles\/what-was-the-first-opera-ever-written\">first opera ever written<\/a><\/strong>, but it was the first great opera. Here, in this vivid retelling of the classical myth of Orpheus, is the first example of a drama throughout which music consistently heightens the text and fully expresses its emotions. <\/p><ul><li><a class=\"standard-card-newarticle-title\" href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/recordings\/best-recordings-monteverdi\/\">The best recordings of Monteverdi<\/a><\/strong><\/li><li><a class=\"standard-card-newarticle-title\" href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/composers\/top-10-baroque-composers\/\">Top 10 Baroque composers<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul> Monteverdi<\/strong> draws on his rich compositional palette to superb effect: instruments group around bright strings to depict pastoral Thrace, while sombre brass, particularly trombones, colour the Underworld. In his vocal writing, Monteverdi gave his singers a new freedom. And if music is the servant of the text, it\u2019s also its subject. For at its heart, this is an opera about music\u2019s power to uplift our souls and heal our sorrows. One the most life-affirming and greatest operas of all time.<\/p>Recommended recording of Monterverdi’s L’Orfeo<\/em>: <\/strong> Cyril Auvity, Hannah Morrison, Paul Agnew, Miriam Allan, Lea Desandre, Carlo Vistoli, Sean Clayton, Zachary Wilder; Les Arts Florissants\/Paul Agnew; dir. Paul Agnew (Caen, 2017) <\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/Lorfeo-Florissants-Blu-ray-Claudio-Monteverdi\/dp\/B075B2DW6S\/ref=sr_1_1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Buy from Amazon<\/a><\/strong><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.arkivmusic.com\/classical\/album.jsp?album_id=2262566\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Buy from ArkivMusic<\/a><\/strong><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/reviews\/opera\/paul-agnew-directs-monteverdis-l-orfeo\/\">Read full review<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul>Read our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/tag\/monteverdi-reviews\/\">reviews of the latest Monteverdi recordings here<\/a><\/strong><\/p><figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\"><iframe title=\"L' ORFEO: Favola in Musica (Claudio Monteverdi) - Representaci\u00f3n de Jordi Savall\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/0mD16EVxNOM?start=10&feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\/><\/div><\/figure><h3 id=\"h-18-verdi-s-falstaff-1893\">18)<\/strong> Verdi\u2019s Falstaff<\/em> (1893)<\/h3>Verdi at his most inventive, proving himself a genius of comedic characterisation<\/strong><\/em><\/p>Everything about Verdi\u2019s late comic opera about a plump, arrogant, cowardly knight leaps from the stage: its ingenious libretto by the composer\u2019s long-term collaborator, Arrigo Boito, combining elements of three Shakespeare plays, The Merry Wives of Windsor<\/em> and both parts of Henry IV<\/em>; the detail of the orchestrations over which Verdi laboured, changing and revising right up to the day of the premiere; and its sheer wit, often displayed through Verdi\u2019s sudden and rapid changes of musical pace and direction.<\/p>But it\u2019s the craftsmanship of the music that most impresses \u2013 Verdi rarely uses instruments simply to double his singers, instead employing them for an extraordinarily wide colour palette. The demands on singers and players are considerable, but the result is a glorious work of unbridled joy, and one of the great operas of all time.<\/p>Recommended recording of Verdi’s Falstaff<\/em>:<\/strong>Ambrogio Maestri, Barbara Frittoli, Roberto Frontali, Juan Diego Fl\u00f3rez; La Scala Chorus & Orchestra\/Riccardo Muti; dir. Ruggero Cappuccio (Teatro Verdi, Busseto, 2001)<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Verdi-Falstaff-Frittoli-Frontali-Antonacci\/dp\/B0000TWMPC\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Buy from Amazon<\/a><\/strong><\/li><li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.arkivmusic.com\/classical\/album.jsp?album_id=79565\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Buy from ArkivMusic<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul><h3 id=\"h-19-handel-s-giulio-cesare-1724\">19) Handel\u2019s Giulio Cesare<\/em> (1724)<\/h3>A vast, rich score that displays the composer\u2019s sharply honed instinct for dramatic pace<\/strong><\/em><\/p>At almost three-and-a-half hours, Giulio Cesare in Egitto<\/em> is one of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/composers\/george-frideric-handel\">Handel<\/strong><\/a>\u2019s longest and most elaborate creations (longer than Wagner\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/guide-wagners-parsifal\/\">Parsifal<\/em><\/a><\/strong>), and yet this seemingly unwieldy opera is actually delicately balanced, beautifully proportioned and always engaging. Da capo <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/articles\/what-aria\/\">arias<\/a><\/strong> are exquisitely paced, with Handel\u2019s understanding of the expressive power of the human voice unrivalled in Baroque music.<\/p>The intricate plot, placing the relationship between Caesar and Cleopatra at its centre, never loses its focus, thanks partly to Nicola Francesco Haym\u2019s brilliant libretto, but also to Handel\u2019s dazzlingly original recitative work whose striking modulations constantly surprise and delight. In terms of orchestration, Handel is at the very height of his considerable powers. <\/p>All of which makes Giulio Cesare<\/em> one of the greatest operas of all time. <\/p>Recommended recording of Handel’s Giulio Cesare<\/em>:<\/strong>Milena Storti (mezzo-sopranos), Marie-Nicole Lemieux (contralto), Filippo Mineccia (countertenor), Johannes Weisser (baritone), Gianluca Buratto (bass); Il Complesso Barocco\/Alan Curtis<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/Handel-Giulio-Cesare-Marie-Nicole-Lemieux\/dp\/B008R5OJXE\/ref=sr_1_1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Buy from Amazon<\/a><\/strong><\/li><li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.arkivmusic.com\/classical\/album.jsp?album_id=813035\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Buy from ArkivMusic<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul><h3 id=\"h-20-wagner-s-die-walkure-1870\">20) Wagner\u2019s Die Walk\u00fcre<\/em> (1870)<\/h3>The second instalment of the colossal Ring tetralogy is packed full of musical wonders<\/em><\/strong><\/p>With his <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/what-does-wagners-ring-cycle-mean\">Ring Cycle<\/a><\/strong>, Wagner redefined the scope and scale of music drama. Composed over 26 years, the cycle embodies his ideal of the \u2018Gesamtkunstwerk\u2019 (total art work) in which poetry, drama, music and staging unite with a common purpose. Wagner\u2019s achievement is overwhelming, his ambition unsurpassed.<\/p>Yet only one of the four Ring operas has made it into our top 20. So, why <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/articles\/guide-wagners-die-walkure\">Die Walk\u00fcre<\/a><\/strong><\/em>? What makes this particular instalment (the second), the best of the Ring, and one of the best operas in the repertoire? For a start, it contains perhaps Wagner\u2019s best-known music: the exhilarating \u2018Ride of the Valkyries\u2019, which opens Act III. And there are many other highlights \u2013 the visceral opening storm; Siegmund\u2019s hymn to the spring; Wotan\u2019s Farewell; the Magic Fire Music. Die Walk\u00fcre<\/em> also stands alone as a coherent, compelling opera, an emotional rollercoaster of love, incest, grief, sacrifice and betrayal.<\/p>Head elsewhere on our site for detailed guides to the other three parts of Wagner’s Ring Cycle: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/guide-wagners-das-rheingold\">Das Rheingold<\/a><\/strong><\/em>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/guide-wagners-siegfried\">Siegfried<\/a><\/em><\/strong>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/guide-wagners-gotterdammerung\">G\u00f6tterd\u00e4mmerung<\/a><\/em><\/strong>.<\/p>Recommended recording of Wagner’s Die Walk\u00fcre<\/em>:<\/strong>Nina Stemme, John Lundgren, et al; Orchestra of the Royal Opera House Covent Garden\/Antonio Pappano (Opus Arte \/ DVD)<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/Wagner-Walkure-Antonio-Pappano-OABD7270D\/dp\/B0849YM96S\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Buy from Amazon<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul>Read our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/tag\/wagner-reviews\/\">reviews of the latest Wagner recordings here<\/a><\/strong><\/p><ul><li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/article\/six-great-contemporary-operas\">Six great contemporary operas<\/a><\/strong><\/li><li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/article\/20-greatest-sopranos-all-time\">The 20 Greatest Sopranos of all time<\/a><\/strong><\/li><li><a class=\"standard-card-new__article-title\" href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/articles\/why-do-opera-singers-use-so-much-vibrato\/\">Why do opera singers use so much vibrato?<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul>Words by: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/author\/johnallison\/\">John Allison<\/strong><\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/author\/oliver-condy\/\">Oliver Condy<\/strong><\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/author\/christophercook\/\">Christopher Cook<\/strong><\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/author\/elinorcooper\/\">Elinor Cooper<\/strong><\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/author\/rebeccafranks\/\">Rebecca Franks<\/strong><\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/author\/georgehall\/\">George Hall<\/a><\/strong>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/author\/danieljaffe\/\">Daniel Jaff\u00e9<\/a><\/strong>, David Nice<\/strong>, Anna Picard, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/author\/jeremypound\/\">Jeremy Pound<\/strong><\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/author\/stephpower\/\">Steph Power<\/strong><\/a>. <\/em><\/p> <\/body><\/html>\n<hr class=\"no-tts wp-block-separator\"\/>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By BBC Music Magazine Published: Thursday, 14 December 2023 at 10:40 AM Selecting the very best operas of all time is quite the task. After all, the opera form has branched off in many different styles and tangents since Monteverdi’s L’Orfeo of 1607, the earliest opera still seeing regular performances to this day. What are […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":36460,"template":"","categories":[1,17],"acf":{"readingTimeMinutes":"23"},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2023\/12\/the-20-best-operas-of-all-time.png",1204,934,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2023\/12\/the-20-best-operas-of-all-time-150x150.png",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2023\/12\/the-20-best-operas-of-all-time-300x233.png",300,233,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2023\/12\/the-20-best-operas-of-all-time-768x596.png",768,596,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2023\/12\/the-20-best-operas-of-all-time-1024x794.png",800,620,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2023\/12\/the-20-best-operas-of-all-time.png",1204,934,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2023\/12\/the-20-best-operas-of-all-time.png",1204,934,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"By BBC Music Magazine Published: Thursday, 14 December 2023 at 10:40 AM Selecting the very best operas of all time is quite the task. After all, the opera form has branched off in many different styles and tangents since Monteverdi’s L’Orfeo of 1607, the earliest opera still seeing regular performances to this day. What are…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/36459"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36460"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36459"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36459"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}