Great Performances: Renee Fleming & Dmitri Hvorostovsky - A Musical Odyssey in St. Petersburg (2010) DVD

Comments about PBS Great Performances: Renee Fleming & Dmitri Hvorostovsky - A Musical Odyssey in St. Petersburg (2010) DVD:

The performance by these two opera superstars is outstanding, with real artistry in both their singing and in their presentation, and the accompanying orchestra is excellent. I found the scenes of St. Petersburg gorgeous and the history of the city that Renée tells about, fascinating.

Comments about PBS Great Performances: Renee Fleming & Dmitri Hvorostovsky - A Musical Odyssey in St. Petersburg (2010) DVD:

HAVING BEEN THERE A FEW YEARS AGO THIS SITE IN ITSELF BROUGHT BACK PLEASENT MEMORIES; HOWEVER, THE PERFORMANCE WAS OUTSTANDING IN EVERY WAY.

Comments about PBS Great Performances: Renee Fleming & Dmitri Hvorostovsky - A Musical Odyssey in St. Petersburg (2010) DVD:

I knew about the making of this amazing film when I was in St. Petersburg during the summer of 2009. I thought that I saw Renee Fleming and Dmitri Hvorostovsky on Palace Square as I was hurried through with my tour group to the extraordinary Hermitage Museum. I was right!

I was thrilled when later in the year I saw that this feast for the ears and eyes was going to be broadcast on GREAT PERFORMANCES! I am an avid Opera buff and try to see and hear everything that these two Operatic superstars do - thanks to the MET Broadcasts and simulcasts from european theaters, it's possible to experience true high art for the first time in our home town.

With the expert conductor - collaborator Constantine Orbelian at the helm of the Hermitage Orchestra, we have the perfect (and I do mean perfect in every way) duet singing what are possibly the greatest duets in Opera- The glorious and moving recognition scene from Simon Boccanegra, the treacherous and demonic duet from Act 4 of Trovatore and of course the anguish of lost love in the final scene from Eugene Onegin.

The music is a treasure and this is not something that you'll ever experience on the concert stage. I did some research and found that Fleming doesn't sing Trovatore nor does she sing Boccanegra in the Opera houses, so, this is the ONLY time you'll hear her in these gorgeous gems.

If you missed the GREAT PERFORMANCES broadcast, then by all means get this film and watch it yourself and with your friends. Even if you watched the PBS Broadcast, buy the DVD for your own library and give it to your friends!

This is NOT to be missed! I read in the notes that this film was produced by Constantine Orbelian- the American Conductor. You can tell that he loves what he does and knows how to treat a singer. All I can say is kudos to all who were involved in this historic and monumental film production. Let's hope that there will be more.

Comments about PBS Great Performances: Renee Fleming & Dmitri Hvorostovsky - A Musical Odyssey in St. Petersburg (2010) DVD:

I've scheduled an "in home" concert party so that my friends can be enriched by this beautifully rendered documentary!