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On Igor Levit’s double album “Tristan” the pianist explores nocturnal themes of love and death, fear, ecstasy, loneliness & redemption in the music of Richard Wagner, Franz Liszt, Gustav Mahler & Hans Werner Henze. It includes Levit’s first concerto recording with the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig under Franz Welser-Möst with the album’s central work Henze’s “Tristan” for piano, electronic tapes and orchestra.

This stylish and beautifully sung and acted 2006 performance of Don Giovanni from the Zurich Opera House should be of strong interest to anyone who loves the opera. The production, directed by Sven-Eric Bechtolf with costumes by Marianne Glittenberg and particularly striking sets by Rolf Glittenberg, is visually and dramatically dazzling. The timeframe is contemporary, but the clever trompe l'oeil set suggests the infinitely receding stage depth that flourished in 18th century scenic design. Don Giovanni's palace is a cosmopolitan playboy's penthouse, and the costumes clearly define the social standing of the characters in modern terms.

Seen by millions on TV worldwide, the yearly traditional Wiener Philharmoniker’s New Year's Concert from Vienna is one of the best-known classical events in the world. The New Year's Concert, presented in the glittering Musikverein, features a charming programme that offers perennial favourites alongside some intriguing Strauss premieres. The 2011 concert is conducted by Austrian-born Franz Welser-Möst - newly installed as the music director of the Vienna State Opera and a favourite with Viennese concertgoers.

La Traviata, Giuseppe Verdi very personal opera, was premiered in 1853 at the Teatro La Fenice in Venice. The first night was a fiasco, but after a few revisions the opera set out to conquer the world. La Traviata offers no scope for grandiose crowd scenes or historical pomp. In keeping with the intimate nature of the action, Verdi’s music reflects the inner feelings of the protagonists. The heroine, whose emotional state is determined by external circumstances, is in the centre of the story of emotional upheavals. Jürgen Flimm haunting staging stays close to Verdi’s intent. He focuses on the protagonists, showing their shakiness, emotions, despair, love, sacrifice and tragedy rather than concentrating on the abysses of the Parisian demi-monde. Eva Mei and Piotr Beczala are a perfectly matched couple. Her soft and flexible soprano and his lyrical tenor, marked by excellent diction, work very well together, joined by the “golden” voice of outstanding Thomas Hampson.