Opera Holidays

12 June 2012

5 Nights

£950 pp

Riga, population seven hundred thousand, is the largest and the most ancient city in the Baltic States. First time visitors are often surprised by the cosmopolitan ‘big city’ ambiance, unaware that Riga was the third most important industrialised port in the Tsarist empire. Governed effectively by a German elite from the days of the Teutonic knights until the Second World War, Riga has always been receptive to Western cultural fashions and its current appearance reveals a patchwork quilt of influences and styles over the centuries. On this holiday we discover the treasures of Riga, including the National Opera. Known as ‘The White House’, it is the cultural heart of the city; one of Europe’s finest opera houses, pleasantly ornate but intimate.

ASPENDOS OPERA FESTIVAL, TURKEY

19 June 2012

7 Nights

£1070 pp

Set against the backdrop of the mighty Taurus mountains, the historic city of Antalya gleams on the coastline befitting its reputation as ‘the jewel of the eastern Mediterranean. Forty kilometres inland, Aspendos dates to a Greek foundation of around 1000BC, and is world renowned for possessing the best-preserved theatre of antiquity. With a diameter of ninety-six metres, the theatre provides seating for seven thousand spectators and still offers such an incredible acoustic that no amplification is necessary.

VALERY GERGIEV AND THE MARIINSKY THEATRE ORCHESTRA

31 March and 1 April 2012

2 Nights

£360 pp

A combination that is certain to be one of the musical events of the decade; two towering feats of classical composition requiring vast forces, performed in the beautiful setting of the Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff Bay, with accommodation only minutes away at the excellent modern Future Inn.

VALENCIA

15 June 2012

3 Nights

£990 pp

A special opportunity to participate in Valencia’s mid-summer arts festival performed in Europe’s finest and most expensive modern opera house, El Palau de les Arts. Our programme features a great Verdi mid-period opera and Cherubini’s major contribution to the operatic canon, championed by Callas in the 1950s, and now being increasingly ‘rediscovered’ by opera companies. Fine international casts are led by Violeta Urmana (Medea), Jorge de Leon, Maria Agresta, Sebastian Catana and Maria Jose Montiel, with Zubin Mehta conducting.

AMSTERDAM

9 May 2012

3 Nights

£970 pp

Three nights in Amsterdam at one of the city’s finest hotels, a combination of guided tours and time for individual exploration, and two performances at the city’s opera house. Verdi’s four act version of Schiller’s Spanish tragedy performed by de Nederlandse Opera has a strong cast led by the acclaimed young American tenor Andrew Richards, supported by Sir John Tomlinson, Camilla Nylund, Christopher Maltman and the Russian bass Mikhail Petrenko.

WAGNER IN THE TYROL ERL FESTSPIELE

26 July 2012

4 Nights

£970 pp

A vision of alpine peaks, emerald green pastures, grazing cattle, the typical scattered houses of a Tyrolean village; and over the tinkling of cow bells from the curved white silhouette of the Erl Theatre floats the chorus of pilgrim voices from Wagner’s Tannhäuser. Such was the inspiration for the Austrian conductor and director, Gustav Kuhn, when he founded the Erl Festival in 1997, which has since gained international renown.

Grosvenor Travel, 8c Penhryn Avenue, Rhos-On-Sea, Conwy, LL28 4RD

Tel: (01492) 547744 - Fax: (01492) 547008 - Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

RIGA OPERA FESTIVAL

ASPENDOS OPERA FESTIVAL, TURKEY

VALERY GERGIEV AND THE MARIINSKY THEATRE ORCHESTRA

VALENCIA

AMSTERDAM

WAGNER IN THE TYROL ERL FESTSPIELE