Figaro

This is a phenomenal opera recording. Everyone is wonderful in their roles, especially Kathleen Battle and Anne Murray, who makes a heart-rending Cherubino.
Figaro is truly a special opera, perhaps the best yet written (and that will ever be written). In my opinion, this is the best you could purchase in the way of recordings.

It is an oft-repeated saw, about life in the heavenly spheres, that the angels revere Bach but listen to Mozart. If they have DVD players, you can bet they're now watching this stunning production of Le Nozze di Figaro ("The Marriage of Figaro"), which comes about as close to Mozartian perfection as one could possibly hope to get. The faultlessly cast youthful performers bubble with infectious energy. Alison Hagley is a sprightly Susanna with a voice as clear as a bell, and brilliantly matched by a 28-year-old Bryn Terfel both acting and sounding in fine form. Hillevi Martinpelto demonstrates why she is one of the world's favourite Mozart singers with her melting tones, richly coloured voice and generous stage presence, and Rodney Gilfry gives a muscular, wonderfully controlled performance as the Count.

Le nozze di Figaro, ossia la folle giornata (The Marriage of Figaro, or the Day of Madness), K. 492, is an opera buffa (comic opera) in four acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte, based on a stage comedy by Pierre Beaumarchais, La folle journée, ou le Mariage de Figaro (1784)…

Charming, lighthearted and fizzing with subversive wit, Neil Armfield's sparkling production of The Marriage of Figaro masterfully captures Mozart's most popular comedic opera. In this classic performance, recorded live at the Sydney Opera House, Patrick Summers conducts an energetic fresh-voiced cast, headed up by baritone Teddy Tahu Rhodes and Taryn Feibig who make a vivacious, appealing pairing as Figaro and Susanna, while Peter Coleman-Wright triumphs as the lascivious Count Almaviva.