Anna Netrebko & Rolando Villazón

UNITEL and CLASSICA present

Anna Netrebko & Rolando Villazón Anna Netrebko & Rolando Villazón

“An unforgettable evening, rich in emotions, which many spectators will look back on with nostalgia one day and say: ‘I was there!” he tension is palpable at Paris‘ Théâtre des Champs-Elysées Tthis 28th of March 2007. Anna Netrebko is not only making her debut in France, but she is making it with Rolando Villazón. The “dream couple“ of the opera world is about to bring its incomparable charm and magnetism to France‘s “mélomanes.“ And the result is nothing less than phenomenal: “An unforgettable evening, rich in emotions, which many spectators will look back on with nostalgia one day and say: ‘I was there!“. No matter where they appear, Netrebko and Villazón inevitably work their magic on the audience, whether it consists of hundreds or, when broadcast on TV, of millions. For their Paris concert, the duo chose a broad selection of chieﬂy late-romantic works – the style for which their voices seem to be tailor-made. A tribute to France is offered with excerpts from Gounod‘s “Roméo et Juliette“ and the little- known “Polyeucte,“ along with the famous “duo de Saint- Sulpice“ from Massenet‘s “Manon.“ Not surprisingly, Russian composers also grace the Conductor Emmanuel Villaume program: Tchaikovsky‘s “Eugene Onegin“ and “Iolantha“ as Orchestra Orchestre National de Belgique well as Rachmaninov‘s “Twelve Songs,“ sung superbly by Netrebko and one of the highlights of the program. Villazón‘s Soprano Anna Netrebko Latin blood heats up Spanish songs by Sotullo-Otero, Vert, Tenor Rolando Villazón Moreno-Torroba and Penella. But it‘s in the Italian repertoire Directed by Olivier Simmonet that the couple reaches heights of artistry, lyricism and passion. In duets from “La Traviata,“ the couple‘s breakout Length 105' vehicle of 2005, but also in pieces by Ponchielli, Catalani

and Puccini, including the ever-popular “O soave fanciulla“ from “La Bohème.“ Villazón triumphs here as a warm and compelling Rodolphe. A production of Unitel The singers, accompanied by the Orchestre National de and Bel Air Media Paris Belgique under Emmanuel Villaume, conclude their program in co-production with Arte, with three rousing encores, Penella‘s “El Gato Montés,“ France 2 and Classica “Tonight“ from Bernstein‘s “West Side Story“ and the Violetta/ Alfredo duet “Libiamo“ from “La Traviata.“ Despite its thorough shot in HDTV 1080 planning and perfect coordination, the Paris Concert is like a Cat. no. A01502669 get-together of two friends, whose naturalness and sincerity are light years away from the posing and attitudes of many of today‘s divas!

(Bel Air Media Paris)