The Poisoner of Bengal

Rodelinda is a tale of unrequited love steeped in jealousy, treachery and grief. Jean-Marie Villegier's stylish production of Rodelinda sets Handel's tale of royal exile and fidelity in this silent movie era. The composer's ravishing music is perfectly set off by the sophisticated glamour and visual daring that characterized the birth of cinema.

A surprising fact from the musicological realm is that Haydn wrote about the same number of operas as Mozart–though it's true that some of them were written for the marionette theater at Esterhaza, rather than the opera house. In other words, old "Gius[eppe] Haydn"–as the title page of this opera refers to him–was a master. Better known to some by its alternate title, L'anima del filosofo, Haydn's Orfeo ed Euridice was written in 1791 for the King's Theater, Haymarket, during the composer's first English sojourn, but went unperformed there or anywhere else until 1950. The libretto, by Carlo Francesco Badini, is based on Ovid's Metamorphoses, with its decidedly unhappy ending to the story (Euridice dies a second time, Orpheus is poisoned, and the Bacchantes perish in a storm).

Recorded in 1995, this Esther was first issued as Collins Classics 7040-2 early the following year. Like Hogwood, Harry Christophers recorded the original 1718 version of what has gone down in history as Handel’s first English oratorio.
In point of fact, the complex and still largely unresolved history of Esther suggests that it was not originally composed as an oratorio at all, but rather as a staged work that would have formed a companion to the near-contemporary Acis and Galatea.

The Flight Of Sleipnir is an American band formed in the winter of 2007 by David Csicsely (Acheronian Dirge, Nexhymn, ex-Throcult) and Clayton Cushman (Acheronian Dirge, ex-Throcult). The project stemmed from a desire to explore ethereal and progressive sounds with lyrics that explore the rich literature of ancient Scandinavia.
Don't let that Electric Wizard or The Sword-like cover art and font lettering on the album cover fool you, this album is not true stoner/doom metal. There's a guitar solo in the first song (and in a couple other places too) that is pretty doom metal-ish but that's about it as Lore by The Flight of Sleipnir is more a down tempo-ed progressive folk rock/metal album that draws strong influence from High on Fire, Ulver, Moonsorrow and latter Enslaved… with a catch. That's a pretty interesting draw and it works…

With their eighth studio album, Simple Things, THE BAND OF HEATHENS came home-geographically, as they returned to their longtime base of Austin for the recording; sonically, in an embrace of the rootsy, guitar-based rock with which they made their name; and thematically, with lyrics that speak to appreciating friends and family and our limited time on this planet.