Offenbach: Les Contes d'Hoffman - Alagna, van Dam, Dessay, Nagano (3 CDs)

Offenbach: Les Contes d'Hoffmann
Roberto Alagna (Hoffmann), José Van Dam (Lindorf / Coppélius / Dapertutto / Dr Miracle), Natalie Dessay (Olympia), Sumi Jo (Giulietta), Leontina Vaduva (Antonia), Juanita Lascarro (Stella), Catherine Dubosc (Nicklausse / La Muse), Michel Sénéchal (Spalanzani), Gabriel Bacquier (Crespel), Ludovic Tézier (Schlemil), Gilles Ragon (Andrès / Cochenille / Pitichinaccio / Frantz) & Jean-Marie Frémeau (Luther)
Choeur et Orchestre de l’Opéra National de Lyon, Kent Nagano

Roberto Alagna, superbly stylish in French, embodies the poet Hoffmann, whose dreams of love are repeatedly shattered by José van Dam, inimitable as the four villains of the piece. Natalie Dessay conquered the world as the mechanical doll Olympia, while Sumi Jo seduces as Giulietta and Leontina Vaduva wrings the heart as Antonia. Conducting Michael Kaye’s comprehensive edition of the episodic score (left incomplete at Offenbach’s death), Kent Nagano brilliantly fuses the diverse elements of Les Contes d’Hoffmann.