Samuel Ramey

The source material for this week’s Sunday Opera (3/29 3:00 p.m.) has been used in well over 70 different projects. In the past, we heard one treatment by Giovanni Simone Mayr in his opera “Ginevra di Scozia,” but this time, we’re turning to one of Handel’s “Italian operas” that he wrote for London in 1735, “Ariodante.” Our recording comes from 1978 and features a stellar cast in this opera that is a tale of love, betrayal, and redemption, and it explores themes of jealousy, deception, and the triumph of good over evil.

This week's Sunday Opera feature Thomas' adaptation of Shakespeare's masterwork, but this one has a moderately happy ending. The opera features Thomas Hampson, June Anderson, and Samuel Ramey. After the opera, we'll hear Thomas' String Quartet No. 1 in E.

This week's Sunday Opera feature's Rossini's 1815 opera which is most widely known for its overture and little else. With its happy ending, it's a perfect antidote for the winter doldrums.

This week, we'll hear a 1991 recording of "The Tales of Hoffmann" that features Francisco Araiza, Samuel Ramey, Eva Lind, Jessye Norman, Cheryl Studer, Felicity Palmer, and Anne Sofie von Otter.

Toquato Tasso’s poem “Jerusalem Delivered” has been used as the basis for many classical pieces, most notably the operas “Armida” by Rossini and “Rinaldo”…