Beethoven's Nine: Ode to Humanity

Can a work of art remain relevant 200 years after its creation? Ludwig van Beethoven’s last completed symphony proves it’s possible.

Mahler - Symphonies Nos. 4, 5 & 6

For Mahlerites, his symphonies are much more than musical performances--they can be an emotional or spiritual journey through the struggles, fears, and triumphs of life. This Sixth Symphony is a 1976 performance in the Vienna Musikvereinssaal with PCM stereo and DTS 5.1. The 2 dvd set also includes the 4th and 5th symphonies, which are performed as magnificently as the Sixth.

Rostropovich Life & Art

Released as a memorial for the great Russian cellist Mstislav Rostropovich, who passed away on 27 April 2007, this DVD contains one bonafide cello concerto, the Schumann Cello Concerto in A minor, and two tone poems with prominent cello parts, Ernest Bloch's Schelomo and Richard Strauss' Don Quixote. Rostropovich mastered the Schumann in several famous recordings. Here, conducted by Leonard Bernstein, he provides a splendid performance. Featuring his trademark powerful technique, smooth legato and crisp vibrato, the Romantic roots of the con...

Leonard Bernstein: A Genius Divided

One of the first US born conductors to receive worldwide fame, Leonard Bernstein is an exceptional composer and certainly not only due to The West Side Story. Instead of concentrating exclusively on his most famous work, Thomas von Steinaecker sets out to paint a complete picture of Bernstein. Thus, the documentary focusses on the American’s less known later works and on three compositions in particular: his Mass, the musical 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue and the great final opera A Quiet Place. The film paints a vivid picture of the multitalente...

Beethoven Piano Concertos Nos. 3, 4 & 5

Under the guidance of famed American composer and conductor Leonard Bernstein, Polish classical pianist Krystian Zimerman and the Vienna Philharmonic deliver a rousing performance of Ludwig van Beethoven's Piano Concertos nos. 3, 4 and 5. Premiered in 1808, Beethoven's fourth concerto marked the last time the composer would take the stage as a soloist with an orchestra.

Mozart: Requiem

The Unanswered Question III : Musical Semantics

This series comprised six lectures on music, which cumulatively took the title of a work by Charles Ives, The Unanswered Question. Bernstein drew analogies to other disciplines, such as poetry, aesthetics, and especially linguistics, hoping to make these lectures accessible to an audience with limited or no musical experience, while maintaining an intelligent level of discourse:Semantics is the study of meaning in language, and Bernstein's third lecture, "musical semantics", accordingly, is Bernstein's first attempt to explain meaning in mus...

Leonard Bernstein conducts Stravinsky & Bach

Debussy, Images pour orchestre

The Unanswered Question II : Musical Syntax

This series comprised six lectures on music, which cumulatively took the title of a work by Charles Ives, The Unanswered Question. Bernstein drew analogies to other disciplines, such as poetry, aesthetics, and especially linguistics, hoping to make these lectures accessible to an audience with limited or no musical experience, while maintaining an intelligent level of discourse: Syntax refers to the study of the structural organization of a sentence, or as Bernstein summarizes, "the actual structures that arise from that phonological stuff."

Joseph Haydn Mass: In Tempore belli

Tanglewood: So you want to be a conductor

In 1985, cameras take a look inside the Berkshire Music Center, the most prominent pre-professional classical music academy in the US. Seiji Ozawa, Leonard Slatkin and others work with the next generation younger conducting talent.

Tanglewood: A Place for Music

A look at the activities of the Tanglewood Music Center, America's renowned summer Academy for talented musicians, singers, composers and conductors.

Benjamin Britten: A Time There Was…

A portrait of one of England's greatest composers. Winner of the Prix Italia.

Glenn Gould: Extasis

A collection of recollections and opinions of and about Glenn Gould, interspersed with excerpts of archive footage of the great Canadian pianist speaking and playing.

Karajan: Beauty As I See It

With a career that includes a 35-year tenure as composer of the Berlin Philharmonic and record sales topping 200 million, Herbert von Karajan is one of the most legendary figures in 20th-century classical music. Comprised of archival footage, performance highlights and interviews with the likes of Anne-Sophie Mutter, Christa Ludwig and Seiji Ozawa, this retrospective chronicles the life and times of the iconic Austrian maestro.

Man of Three Worlds: Luchino Visconti

BBC television program exploring Visconti’s mastery of cinema, theater, and opera direction.