Masterpieces Of Opera: Der Rosenkavalier/ Nabucco/ Tannhauser (1998) Rating: Starring: Monica Bacelli, Pietro Ballo, Ludwig Baumann, Nikolov Bojidar, Renato Brunson, Carlo Colombara, Lauren Flanigan, Maurizio Frusoni, Ildiko Komlosi, Ivan Konsulov, Gertrud Ottenthal, Marianna Pentcheva, David Pittman-Jennings Director: Fabio Sparvoli Category: Music, Special Interest Studio: Image Ent. Subtitles: English Length: 520 mins     Richard Strauss: Der Rosenkavalier Der Rosenkavalier (The Cavalier of the Rose) is the most important opera by Richard Strauss, as well as one of his most enduring and light-hearted.Matched with Strauss's glorious music is Hugo Von Hofmannsthal's libretto, considered a literary masterpiece because of his great ability to create characters in amazing detail.This sublime comedy, which debuted in Dresden in 1911, features the ecstasy and agony of young love, amorous scheming and hilarious sexual confusion in a bygone Vienna.This excellent production features one of the world's greatest opera directors, Pier Luigi Pizzi, and a German cast that includes the renowned Ildiko Komlosi in the title role. Giuseppe Verdi: Nabucco Nabucco is opera on a vast scale sung by a chorus with libretto by Temistocle Solera.The debut in Milan at the Theatre of La Scala on March 9th 1842 was a great success and marked the beginning of a long tour in many Italian and European theaters.According to critics, Nabucco revealed Verdi's passionate personality, its success deriving from the grandiose evocative power of the "Va, Pensiero," one of the most famous melodies in the world, lamenting the Hebrews' martydom.The Italians during the nineteenth century, still not united as a nation and still dominated by the Austrians and Spanish, felt it was their national song, an anthem of people longing to see their land free from enemies and united once again. Richard Wagner: Tannhauser The original title, "Tannhauser und der Sangerkrieg auf Wartburg," reveals the real nature of the opera, born by a fusion of two traditional sagas and dedicated to the dualism of spirituality and sensuality and the possibility of redemption through love.Composed between 1843 and 1845 when Wagner was just over 30, Tannhauser has a tormented musical theme, made up of constant variations.Just before the opera's 1845 debut in Dresden, Wagner enhanced its power by strengthening the finale.