José Montes-Baquer
1935 - 2010Don Giovanni
Michael Hampe, José Montes-Baquer
Thomas Allen, Carolyn James
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.
Don Giovanni
Impressions de la Haute Mongolie
Salvador Dalí, José Montes-Baquer
Salvador Dalí, Gala Dalí
The genius Spanish painter Salvador Dalí undertakes an amazing journey through the unknown mental territories of Upper Mongolia in search of a giant hallucinogenic mushroom while paying an experimental tribute to the French poet Raymond Roussel (1877-1933), a visionary and eccentric writer, precursor of the surrealists and much admired by them.
Impressions of Upper Mongolia
Stravinsky: Pulcinella
José Montes-Baquer
Sheldon Schwartz, Amanda Bennett
Sir Neville Marriner conducts the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields chamber orchestra and Sheldon Schwartz dances the title role in this 1980 production of Stravinski's one-act ballet, choreographed by Heinz Spoerli. The story centers on Naples man-about-town Pulcinella (Schwartz), who woos all the local maidens and fakes his own death to escape an army of angry suitors. This production also stars dancers Amanda Bennett and Loya Molloy.
Stravinsky: Pulcinella
