Album insights
Deutsche Grammophon's cycle of Mozart's mature operas reaches its sixth title with "Die Zauberflöte." The live recording, released on August 2, 2019, continues the monumental project of the Yellow Label with the Festspielhaus Baden-Baden, the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, and conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin. The cast includes Rolando Villazón as Papageno, Klaus Florian Vogt as Tamino, Christiane Karg as Pamina, Regula Mühlemann as Papagena, Albina Shagimuratova as the Queen of the Night, and Franz-Josef Selig as Sarastro. Villazón, the driving force behind the series, expresses that this project is his most ambitious yet, remarking, "I have never been so in love with a composer before!" Over the past eight years, Villazón has participated in each production, taking on significant tenor roles from Ferrando in "Così fan tutte" to the lead role in "La clemenza di Tito."