Claudio Abbado conducts the Berlin Philharmonic in this gala New Year's Eve performance, organized to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Giuseppe Verdi's death. Recorded in 2000, the program includes excerpts from the composer's "La Traviata," "Falstaff," "Rigoletto," "Don Carlos" and "Un Ballo in Maschera," with solos by Andrea Rost (soprano), Ramon Vargas (tenor), Alan Titus (baritone) and Lucio Gallo (bass-baritone).

The annual New Year’s Eve Concert is one of the highlights in the calendar of every classical music fan in Berlin and beyond. On New Year‘s Eve, the Berliner Philharmoniker invite an exceptional soloist for a festive gala. Together, the musicians bid farewell to the old year and welcome the new. The 2000 concert was conducted by Claudio Abbado and featured Andrea Rost (soprano), Alan Titus (baritone), Ramón Vargas (tenor), and the Prague Radio Choir. On the programme: Giuseppe Verdi: Un ballo in maschera (Excerpts), Don Carlos (Excerpts), Rigoletto (Excerpts), La Traviata (Excerpts), Falstaff (Excerpts), Johann Strauss: Maskenfest – Quadrille.

Johann Strauss Gala - An Evening of Polka, Waltz, and Operetta

Paris Opera, October 1996. New production Jérôme Savary

Rigoletto is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi. The Italian libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on the play Le roi s'amuse by Victor Hugo. Despite serious initial problems with the Austrian censors who had control over northern Italian theatres at the time, the opera had a triumphant premiere at La Fenice in Venice on 11 March 1851. This 1994 recording, directed by Riccardo Muti, stars Roberto Alagna, Renato Bruson and Andrea Rost.

Live performance from Cologne Opera. Conlon conducts a skittishly dynamic performance of Don Giovanni. He relies on Thomas Allen’s tough Don to give the work much of its dark menace and on Holle’s terrifying Commendatore to provide the moral outrage – his job is to keep things moving, and he does. The exteriors – blank city spaces reminiscent of the paintings of Giorgio De Chirico – and moodily claustrophobic interiors mirror effectively the anguish of the orphaned Anna and the abandoned Elvira; this is a performance in which the two women victims of the Don function effectively as correctives to his libertine charm. Andrea Rost as Zerlina brings real delicacy to her role, reminding us that “La ci darem la mano” is a duet about her flirtation with Don Giovanni and not just a famous stand-alone moment. This is an admirable presentation of a fine performance.