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This recording represents the peak of René Jacobs's Mozartian enterprise: after showing us an alternative way of looking at the Da Ponte trilogy and taking a profoundly innovative approach to the two great opere serie (Idomeneo and La clemenza di Tito), he has now sets out to harmonise and clarify the myriad viewpoints exposed in Die Zauberflöte, ranging far beyond its Masonic rituals and mixture of dramatic genres. As a result, Mozart's most 'nocturnal' work is illuminated as if by . . . magic.

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It’s hard to find a version of Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte that’s as well sung as this 2003 Covent Garden production. Led by the eminent Mozartian, Sir Colin Davis, orchestra and singers present a warm, often intense vision of the opera, not as the fairy tale it’s often taken for, but as a human drama of the passage from misguided beliefs to mature knowledge of self...

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Genre: Classic/Opera | Size: 210mb | Format: mp3 | Bitrate: 192kb/s

Mozart wrote "The Magic Flute" in 1791, just after the French Revolution and just before he died. Haydn had introduced Mozart to Freemasonry, and the opera is full of the ideas (the autonomy of the individual, self-determination, appalling sexism), the ideals (power, wisdom, beauty), and the symbols (aprons, hammers, compasses, a pyramid with an all-seeing eye) of the Masons. Rituals, tests, initiations come into play.
Out of all operas I love Mozart's "The Magic Flute" the best. The opera seems a miracle in itself and one of the greatest blessings to the world of music. Everything is so perfect...

Based on the 1791 opera "Die Zauberflöte" by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , this 2006 version that is conceived and directed by Kenneth Branagh features an English-language libretto by comedian Stephen Fry. The story itself is updated to the eve of a World War 1 battle, with a young soldier named Tamino entering into a “twilight dream world” while in pursuite of love, light and peace in a world afflicted by darkness, death and destruction. It features conductor James Conlon leading the Chamber Orchestra of Europe and a spate of young singers in the lead roles, including tenor Joseph Kaiser as Tamino, Amy Carson as Pamina and Ben Davis as Papageno. René Pape will play Sarastro and Lyubov Petrova is to sing the Queen of the Night.

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The number and variety of Magic Flute arrangements is especially great. They take up nearly two full pages in the seventh edition of the Kochel catalogue - and the list is incomplete. In addition to the obligatory arrangements for wind band, there are adaptations for string sextet, piano quintet, string quartet and flute quartet as well as duos for flutes, violins or cellos....

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The Arthaus Musik DVD is a live performance by the Glyndebourne Opera in 1978. It was directed by John Cox and designed by David Hockney. During the overture, first one sees Hockney and his assistants creating the design, then the cast is identified when Cox directs them, and finally the conductor, Bernard Haitink and the orchestra are shown. Hockney’s design is brilliant and faithful to both the magical theme and the ancient Egyptian motif of the opera. Most notable are the colorful sets and the design for the animals. When the Queen of the Night enters, the background changes to a starry sky. The antics of the animals when Tamino plays his flute to entice them are visually delightful. During the trial scene, Pamina and Tamino first walk back into fire and then into rolling waves of water... Bob Rose, FANFARE

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