Porgy and Bess (Glyndebourne album)

Porgy and Bess is a recording of the Glyndebourne Festival Opera version of the George Gershwin opera of the same name. The cast were accompanied by the London Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of Simon Rattle. The recording took place in February 1988 in No.1 Studio of Abbey Road in London. It was released in 1989.

Porgy and Bess
Studio album by
various
Released1989
RecordedFebruary 1988
GenreOpera
Length189:00
LabelEMI Classics
ProducerDavid R. Murray

The 1993 TV adaptation [1] of Porgy and Bess used this recording as its soundtrack, and featured most of the original cast of the Glyndebourne production. Bruce Hubbard, who had died in 1991, did not appear, although his singing voice was heard as Jake, while Gordon Hawkins played the role onscreen. Likewise, soprano Harolyn Blackwell's voice was heard as Clara, although Paula Ingram played the role.

In the opinion of many critics, this version, along with the 1977 Houston Grand Opera recording, comes closest to the original opera as conceived by Gershwin, before the cuts made prior to the Broadway premiere.

Cast

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Originally released as EMI #7-49568-2, it was reissued as EMI #7243-5-56220-2-0 in 1997. A one CD highlights version is available as EMI #0777-7-54325-2-7.

Awards

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References

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  1. ^ "American Playhouse" Porgy and Bess (TV episode 1993) - IMDb
  2. ^ "1989 Gramophone Awards —". Infoplease.com. Retrieved 2012-06-02.
  3. ^ "Catalogue". 2004-11-16. Archived from the original on 2004-11-16. Retrieved 2012-06-02.
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