Janacek, Leos - Jenufa -Blu-ray-

Jenfa, still Leo Janáeks most successful and most often performed opera, is a musical study of social milieu. Christof Loy moves the action of Janáeks drama, revolving around the strict sacristan (the Kostelnika) who drowns her stepdaughter Jenfas illegitimate child, to a bare white room in which passage of the seasons is only hinted. It is the sacristans stark prison cell where he recounts past events, taking the spectator into the story as seen in retrospective. Michaela Kaune sings the title role of Jenfa with a warm soprano, her despair palpable in every moment, culminating finally in the discovery of her dead son. Jenfas stepmother is sung by American mezzo-soprano Jennifer Larmore, possessed of great vocal beauty and expressivity. Musical Director Donald Runnicles conducts the Orchestra of the Deutsche Oper Berlin, exhibiting perfect balance between the churning intensity and textural refinement. Jennifer Larmore as the Kostelnika ... endows the role with singing of uncommon beauty and vulnerability while never slighting its more dramatic moments. (The New York Times)