Hvorostovsky in Moscow

Contents Verdi: Gran Dio…O de ver’anni miei (from Ernani) Verdi: O Carlo, ascolta (from Don Carlo) Verdi: Morrò, ma prima in grazia (from Un Ballo in Maschera) Gounod: Avant de quitter ces lieux (from Faust) Verdi: Il Trovatore: Act 4, Confrontation scene

In June 2008, Dmitri Hvorostovsky invited Sondra Radvanovsky to be his guest star in the prestigious Moscow concert series “Hvorostovsky and Friends,” with conductor Constantine Orbelian and the Philharmonia of Russia. This glamorous occasion, captured on film for Russian television, marked these artists’ first-ever musical collaboration — and proved to be a historic event that documented for posterity one of those all-too-rare instances of magical artistic alchemy between two great opera stars. Their electrifying performance was an instant sensation, and a potent preview of the two stars’ effusively acclaimed later appearances together in Il Trovatore at Covent Garden, The Met and The San Francisco Opera. Delos recorded the live concert, to be released later as the critically-acclaimed CD, “Verdi Opera Scenes” (DE 3403). The Russian TV show, featuring their national baritone hero and his dazzling guest, was broadcast throughout the Russian Federation. Upon obtaining that film footage, Delos collaborated with California film editor Steve Scoville, who expertly synched the footage with Delos’s concert audio. The result, available for the first time on this DVD, takes the viewer/listener to Moscow’s Great Hall for the concert’s most unforgettable moments, with stunning “you are there” sonic and visual impact.