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Recommended Listening and Viewing

The following suggested recordings provided courtesy of OPERA America will enhance your knowledge about opera.

For Children and Youth

Pavarotti's Opera Made Easy - My Favorite Opera For Children. Decca, 1994.

This volume in the Pavarotti's Opera Made Easy series includes a variety of selections from operas that are accessible to children, such as Hansel and Gretel and The Magic Flute.

The Classical Child at the Opera. Classical Child, 2001.

A selection of well-known arias that will appeal to young children. Easy to follow English translations are provided and bring to life the stories of the operas and the characters who emulate them.

The World's Very Best Opera for Kids…in English. Children's Group, 2003.

A compilation of vocal and instrumental arrangements of works from well-known operas, this CD includes excerpts from Carmen, The Magic Flute, and The Marriage of Figaro, among others.

Mozart's Magic Fantasy: A Journey Through The Magic Flute. Children's Group, 1995.

This CD presents The Magic Flute in a way that is designed to be accessible for children. Shorter than the full-length musical work and translated into English, Mozart's Magic Fantasy provides an entertaining introduction to this classic opera.

Who's Afraid of Opera? Kultur Video, 1994.

Starring Dame Joan Sutherland and featuring a cast of puppet characters, this four-volume series of videotapes introduces children to both famous and lesser-known operas.

For All Audiences

Aida, by Giuseppe Verdi

Featuring Montserrat Caballé, Plácido Domingo, Fiorenza Cossotto, and the New Philharmonia Orchestra, conducted by Riccardo Muti. EMI Classics, 2001.

Featuring Maria Dragoni, Kristjan Johannsson, Barbara Dever, Mark Rucker and the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, conducted by Rico Saccani. Naxos, 1995.

The Ballad of Baby Doe, by Douglas Moore

Featuring Beverly Sills, Walter Cassel, and the New York City Opera Orchestra, conducted by Emerson Buckley. Deutsche Grammophon, 1999.

Il barbiere di Siviglia (The Barber of Seville), by Gioacchino Rossini

Featuring Agnes Baltsa, Francisco Araiza, Thomas Allen, and the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields orchestra, conducted by Sir Neville Marriner. Decca, 2002.

Featuring Roberto Servile, Sonia Ganassi, Ramon Vargas, Angelo Romero, and the Failoni Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Will Humburg. Naxos, 1994.

La bohème, by Giacomo Puccini

Featuring Luciano Pavarotti, Mirella Freni, Elizabeth Harwood, and the Berlin Philharmonic, conducted by Herbert von Karajan. Decca, 1990.

Candide, by Leonard Bernstein

1956 original Broadway cast, featuring Barbara Cook, Robert Rounseville, and Irra Pettina. Sony, 2003.

Carmen, by Georges Bizet

Featuring José van Dam, Tatiana Troyanos, Plácido Domingo, Kiri Te Kanawa, and the London Philharmonic, conducted by Sir Georg Solti. Decca, 1990.

Featuring Graciela Alperyn, Giorgio Lamberti, Ann Liebeck, Doina Palade, Danilo Rigosa, Dalia Schaechter, Alan Titus, and the Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Alexander Rahbari. Naxos, 1994.

Così fan tutte, by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Featuring Renée Fleming, Anne-Sofie von Otter, Frank Lopardo, Michele Pertusi, and the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, conducted by Sir Georg Solti. Decca, 1996.

Featuring Joanna Borowska, Priti Coles, John Dickie, Andrea Martin, and Capella Istropolitana, conducted by Johannes Wildner. Naxos, 1994.

Don Giovanni, by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Featuring Renée Fleming, Bryn Terfel, Monica Groop, Herbert Lippert, and the London Philharmonic, conducted by Sir Georg Solti. Decca, 1997.

Featuring Salvatore Baccaloni, John Brownlee, David Franklin, Luise Helletsgruber, and the Glyndebourne Festival Orchestra, conducted by Fritz Busch. Naxos, 2001.

Faust, by Charles Gounod

Featuring Plácido Domingo, Mirella Freni, Nicolai Ghiaurov, and Orchestre du Theatre National de l'Opéra de Paris, conducted by Georges Prêtre. EMI Classics, 1990.

Featuring Roger Bourdin, Georges Noré, Roger Rico, and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Thomas Beecham. Naxos, 2001.

Die Fledermaus, by Johann Strauss

Featuring Leontyne Price, Dame Joan Sutherland, Ettore Bastianini, Teresa Berganza, and the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Herbert von Karajan. Decca 2005.

Featuring John Dickie, Gabriele Fontana, Josef Hopferwieser, Brigitte Karwautz, Andrea Martin, and the Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Johannes Wildner. Naxos, 1994.

The King and I, by Richard Rodgers

1951 original Broadway cast, featuring Yul Brynner and Gertrude Lawrence. Decca, 2000.

Lucia di Lammermoor, by Gaetano Donizetti

Featuring Beverly Sills, Carlos Bergonzi, Piero Cappuccilli, and the London Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Thomas Schippers. Deutsche Grammophon, 2002.

Madama Butterfly, by Giacomo Puccini

Featuring Luciano Pavarotti, Mirella Freni, Christa Ludwig, and the Vienna Philharmonic, conducted by Herbert von Karajan. Decca, 1990.

Featuring Fredrika Brillemburg, Uwe Eikotter, Andreas Haller, Svetlana Katchour, and the Bremen State Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Gunter Neuhold. Naxos, 2002.

Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute), by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Featuring Fritz Wunderlich, Evelyn Lear, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Roberta Peters, Franz Crass, and the Berlin Philharmonic, conducted by Karl Böhm. Deutsche Grammophon, 1997.

Featuring Wilfried Gahmlich, Hellen Kwon, Lotte Leitner, Herbert Lippert, and the Failoni Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Michael Halasz. Naxos, 1994.

Le nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro), by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Featuring Kiri Te Kanawa, Lucia Popp, Frederica von Stade, Samuel Ramey, and the London Philharmonic, conducted by Sir Georg Solti. Decca, 1990.

Featuring Norman Allin, Luise Helletsgruber, Roy Henderson, Audrey Mildmay, and the Glyndebourne Festival Orchestra, conducted by Fritz Busch. Naxos, 2002.

Oklahoma!, by Richard Rodgers

1955 original cast soundtrack recording, featuring Gordon MacRae, Shirley Jones, Rod Steiger, and Gloria Grahame. EMI Angel, 2001.

Porgy and Bess, by George Gershwin

Featuring Willard White, Harolyn Blackwell, Cynthia Haymon, Gregg Baker, and the London Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Sir Simon Rattle. EMI Classics, 1997.

Rigoletto, by Giuseppe Verdi

Featuring Sherrill Milnes, Dame Joan Sutherland, Luciano Pavarotti, and the London Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Richard Bonynge. Decca, 1990.

Der Rosenkavalier, by Richard Strauss

Featuring Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Christa Ludwig, Teresa Stich-Randall,
and the Philharmonia Orchestra, conducted by Herbert von Karajan. EMI Classics, 2001.

Featuring Lotte Lehmann, Maria Olszewska, Elisabeth Schumann, Richard Mayr, and the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Robert Heger. Naxos, 2002.

The Sound of Music, by Richard Rodgers

1959 original Broadway cast, featuring Mary Martin and Theodore Bikel. Sony, 1998.

South Pacific, by Richard Rodgers

1949 original Broadway cast, featuring Mary Martin and Ezio Pinza. Sony, 1998.

Susannah, by Carlisle Floyd

Featuring Cheryl Struder, Samuel Ramey, Jerry Hadley, and the Orchestra de L'Opéra de Lyon, conducted by Kent Nagano. Virgin Classics, 1994.

Sweeney Todd, by Stephen Sondheim

1979 original Broadway cast, featuring Len Cariou, Angela Lansbury, and Edmund Lyndeck. RCA, 1990.

The Tender Land, by Aaron Copland

Featuring James Bohn, LeRoy Lehr, and the Plymouth Music Series Orchestra, conducted by Philip Brunelle. Virgin Records, 1992.

Tosca, by Giacomo Puccini

Featuring Maria Callas, Giuseppe di Stefano, Tito Gobbi, and the Orchestra e Coro del Teatro alla Scala di Milano, conducted by Victor de Sabata. EMI Classics, 1997.

Featuring Nelly Miricioiu, Giorgio Lamberti, Silvano Carroli, and the Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Alexander Rahbari. Naxos, 1994.

La traviata, by Giuseppe Verdi

Featuring Ileana Cotrubas, Plácido Domingo, Sherrill Milnes, and the Munich Bavarian State Orchestra, conducted by Carlos Kleiber. Deutsche Grammophon, 1990.

Featuring Monika Krause, Yordy Ramiro, Georg Tichy, and the Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Alexander Rahbari. Naxos, 1994.

Il trovatore (The Troubador), by Giuseppe Verdi

Featuring Maria Callas, Giuseppe di Stefano, Rolando Panerai, and the Orchestra del Teatro alla Scala di Milano, conducted by Herbert von Karajan. EMI Classics, 2004.

Featuring Maurizio Frusoni, Daniela Longhi, Irina Tschistiakova and Hungarian State Opera Orchestra, conducted by Will Humburg. Naxos, 1996.

Turandot, by Giacomo Puccini

Featuring Birgit Nilsson, Franco Corelli, Renata Scotto, and the Coro e Orchestra del Teatro dell'Opera di Roma, conducted by Francesco Molinari-Pradelli. EMI Classics, 1990.

Featuring Giovanna Casolla, Lando Bartolini, Masako Deguci, and the Malaga Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Alexander Rahbari. Naxos, 2003.

Vanessa, by Samuel Barber

Featuring Eleanor Steber, Rosalind Elias, Nicolai Gedda, and The Metropolitan Opera Chorus and Orchestra, conducted by Dmitri Mitropoulos. RCA, 1990.

West Side Story, by Leonard Bernstein

1957 original Broadway cast, featuring Chita Rivera, Carol Lawrence, and Larry Kert. Sony, 1998.