A Laser Discography

T here are more than 100 classical laser video-audio discs available. The overwhelming majority are produced by Pioneer Artists-LaserDisc Corp. of America and PolyGram. Most cost less than $35 a disc. PolyGram opera releases cost about $40 a disc and $60 for a double-disc set.

Opera

There are more than 50 laser video operas available and the video catalogue is already cluttered with several versions of familiar operas. There are three videos of Puccini’s “La Boheme” (The 1965 Franco Zeffirelli-La Scala film with Mirella Freni and Gianni Raimondi, Herbert von Karajan conducting, Deutsche Grammophon 072 205-1; Zeffirelli’s Met production with Teresa Stratas and Jose Carreras, James Levine conducting, Pioneer Artists 85-135; and Ileana Cotrubas and Neil Shicoff at Covent Garden, Lamberto Gardelli conducting, Pioneer Artists 82-028); three versions of Verdi’s “Otello” (Jon Vickers, Freni and Peter Glossop under Karajan in Salzburg, Deutsche Grammophon, 072 501-1; Zeffirelli’s recent film version with Placido Domingo, Katia Ricciarelli and Justino Diaz, Lorin Maazel conducting, Image Entertainment 5152, and an Italian edition with Vladimir Atlantov, Kiri Te Kanawa and Piero Cappuccilli, Zoltan Pesko conducting, Pioneer Artists 83-054).

Other duplicated video disc productions include Humperdinck’s “Hansel und Gretel” (in English at the Met with Frederica von Stade and Judith Blegen, Thomas Fulton conducting, Pioneer Artists 85-136; Brigitte Fassbander and Edita Gruberova in Munich, Sir Georg Solti conducting, London 071 202-1); Puccini’s “Tosca” (Raina Kabaivanska, Domingo and Sherrill Milnes, Bruno Bartoletti conducting, London 071 502-1, and Hildegard Behrens, Domingo and Cornell MacNeil, Giuseppe Sinopoli conducting in his Metropolitan Opera debut, Pioneer Artists 86-158); J. Strauss’ “Die Fledermaus” (Te Kanawa, Hermann Prey, Benjamin Luxon, Domingo conducting, Pioneer Artists 84-099, and Fassbander, Eberhard Wachter, Carlos Kleiber conducting, Deutsche Grammophon 072 500-1); R. Strauss’ “Der Rosenkavalier” (from London with Te Kanawa, Ann Howells, Solti conducting, Pioneer Artists 86-172 and from Munich with Gwyneth Jones, Lucia Popp, Kleiber conducting, Deutsche Grammophon 072 505-1); Verdi’s “Falstaff” (The Los Angeles-Covent Garcen production with Renato Bruson, Carlo Maria Giulini conducting, Pioneer Artists 84-064, and via Unitel with Gabriel Bacquier, Solti conducting, London 071 503-1).

Placido Domingo is the most prolific video tenor. Besides the operas mentioned above, he is also featured on Offenbach’s “Les Contes d’Hoffhamn” (Pioneer Artists 81-006), Verdi’s “Don Carlo” (Pioneer Artists 84-075), Verdi’s “La Traviata” (MCA 40048), Bizet’s “Carmen” (RCA/Columbia Pictures 30487), two versions of Puccini’s “Manon Lescaut” (one with Renata Scotto, Pioneer Artists 88-215, and one with Te Kanawa, 84-072), Verdi’s “Ernani” (Pioneer Artists 83-060), Puccini’s “La Fanciulla del West” (Pioneer Artists 83-056), Berlioz’s “Les Troyens” (Pioneer Artists 85-137), Leoncavallo’s “Pagliacci” (Philips 070 204-1), Mascagni’s “Cavalleria Rusticana” (Philips 070 203-1), Zandonai’s “Francesca da Rimini” (Pioneer Artists 87-180) and a recital album, “Hommage a Sevilla” (Deutsche Grammophon 072 210-1).

Ballet

There are two versions of “Giselle,” one featuring the Kirov Ballet (Pioneer Artists 85-103), the other Carla Fracci and Erik Bruhn and members of American Ballet Theatre in a film produced by choreographer David Blair (Philips 070 202-1), and two versions of “Swan Lake” (Natalia Makarova and Anthony Dowell at the Royal Ballet, Pioneer Artists 82-018 and Rudolf Nureyev and Margot Fonteyn in a 1966 production, Philips 070 201-1).

Other ballets include “The Sleeping Beauty” (Kirov Ballet, Pioneer Artists 83-055), “The Nutcracker” (Mikhail Baryshnikov, Pioneer Artists 82-032), “Don Quixote” (Baryshnikov and Cynthia Harvey, Pioneer Artists 84-082), “La Fille mal Gardee” (Lesley Collier, Pioneer Artists 81-007), “Manon” (Dowell, Jennifer Penney, Pioneer Artists 83-047), “Romeo and Juliet” (Alessandra Ferri, Wayne Eagling, Pioneer Artists 86-1170), “Davidsbundlertanze” (New York City Ballet company with George Balanchine choreography, Pioneer Artists 88-214).

Orchestral

Leonard Bernstein conducts Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 (with the London Symphony Orchestra, Deustche Grammophon 072 200-1), Beethoven with the Vienna Philharmonic (Symphonies Nos. 5 and 6, Deustche Grammophon 072 201-1 and No. 9, Deutsche Grammophon 072 208-1), Brahms’ violin concerto and double concerto with Gidon Kremer and Mischa Maisky and the Vienna Philharmonic (Deutsche Grammophon 072 203-1) and Brahms piano concertos with Krystian Zimerman (Deustche Grammophon 072 207-1). The maestro also oversees “ ‘West Side Story’ : the Making of the Recording,” (Deutsche Grammophon 072 206-1).

Sir Georg Solti conducts Berlioz and Wagner (London 071 201-1), Bruckner’s Symphony No. 7 (London 071 205-1), Mendelssohn’s Symphonies Nos. 3-4 and the violin concerto with Kyung-Wha Chung (London 071 210-1).

Soloists include Vladimir Horowitz (“In London,” Pioneer Artists 82-031, “In Moscow,” 87-179 and “The Last Romantic,” 87-193); Maurizio Pollini with conductor Karl Bohm playing Mozart piano concertos Nos. 19 and 23 (Deutsche Grammophon 072 202-1); “Artur Rubinstein in Concert” (playing concertos by Chopin, Grieg and Saint-Saens with Andre Previn and the London Symphony Orchestra, London 071 200-1); Itzhak Perlman with Carlo Maria Giulini playing the Beethoven Violin Concerto (Pioneer Artists 83-042); Isaac Stern with Perlman, Pinchas Zukerman and Shlomo Mintz playing Vivaldi’s “Four Seasons” in the Huberman Festival, Vol. 1, Pioneer Artists 84-073); Mstislav Rostropovich playing Dvorak and Saint-Saens’ Cello Concertos (Pioneer Artists 82-024).