Vincenzo Bellini I PuritaniMetropolitan Opera, New York Fabrizio Della Seta BelliniTranslated by James Chater448pp. Oxford University Press. £29.99. As rehearsals began in Paris in 1834 for Vincenzo B

Kammerorchester Basel/Giovanni Antonini Alpha ALPHA1092 76:29 mins The most familiar of the symphonies here, if only because it has a nickname, is No. 55, whose ‘Schoolmaster’ title arises out of the

Catapult Opera; Talea Ensemble/Neal Goren Pentatone PTC5187492 99:63 mins The history of Nadia Boulanger’s only full-length opera is a tortuous as Gabriele D’Annunzio’s libretto, in which Alexandre an

Works by Bach, Vivaldi and Marcello Amandine Beyer (violin); Gli Incogniti Harmonia Mundi HMM90276970 134 mins The communicative warmth and infectious vitality of Amandine Beyer’s performances will ha

Verdi’s dramatic operas are among the most popular, but grief nearly halted his output and the Italian composer and countryman only returned to creativity after finding solace on his farm, reports Henrietta Bredin

Why we need orchestras