Two great Wagner anniversary concerts on ARTE

Jonas Kaufmann and Christian Thielemann in front of the Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden.

Last week the French/German ARTE channel broadcast two Wagner anniversary concerts, both conducted by the great Christian Thielemann. 

I must admit that I have never been a very dedicated "Wagnerian" - operas lasting five or six hours are a little too much for me. However, the incomparable Thielemann certainly inspired me - and probably thousands of other viewers - to find out more about Wagner's beautiful music. Also, I think that the concert format is very suitable for this kind of exploration. 

The Semperoper is one of the most beautiful opera houses in the world.

The two broadcasts, the first one from the Bayreuther Festspielhaus and the second one from Dresden's beautiful Semperoper, also were technically top notch. Modern High Definition technology makes viewing so much more enjoyable!

Jonas Kaufmann - a great singer.

If I would have to choose between the two anniversary broadcasts, I would probably go for the one from the Semperoper. The combination of Thielemann, the Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden and tenor Jonas Kaufmann is irresistible. Kaufmann's rendition of  Lohengrin's "Gralerzählung" was utterly moving. 

Christian Thielemann again created musical magic.

It is always a joy to listen to and watch the Staatskapelle Dresden's highly concentrated musicians.