(PR) Due to overwhelming demand by her devoted fans, Manhattan Records will make a CD/DVD of Sarah Brightman's PBS special Symphony - Live in Vienna, available at retail for the first time on March 10, 2009. The package features the best-selling British soprano's spine-tingling performance at Vienna's magnificent Stephansdome Cathedral on January 16th, 2008, in both audio and visual formats. The Symphony - Live in Vienna television special debuted on PBS in March 2008 during the network's spring pledge drive and aired throughout the month.
Brightman chose one of Europe's most majestic settings for this milestone concert event. Consecrated in 1147, Stephansdom Cathedral is renowned for its awe-inspiring Gothic architecture, which, along with the production's lavish light show, lends a dramatic and mystical feel to the musical proceedings, which were recorded in 5.1 Surround Sound.
"It's a very special place," Brightman says of the cathedral. "There's a dark romanticism and fairy-tale feeling within it. When you walk in, it envelops you. It's large, but at the same time you feel very at home there and quite cozy. I wanted an architectural setting that suggested faith. I think of all the cathedrals in the world, this is one of my favorites, which is why it was important to me to perform this concert there."
Backed by a live rock band and a full orchestra, Brightman delivers passionate performances of songs from her 2008 chart-topping album Symphony, as well as such fan favorites as "Phantom of the Opera," "Time to Say Goodbye," and "Ave Maria." Brightman also welcomes several special guests for duets, including Italian tenor Alessandro Safina, Argentinean countertenor Fernando Lima, and British singer Chris Thompson of Mannfred Mann's Earth Band.
The package will be sold as a stand-alone CD as well as bundled in a CD/DVD format. The latter features more than 45 minutes of bonus material, including interview commentary by Brightman, an eight-page glossy color booklet, and an exclusive bonus audio track, "Vide Cor Meum."
The track-listing for Symphony - Live in Vienna is as follows:
Pie Jesu / Fleurs du Mal / Symphony / Sanvean / Canto Della Terra (Duet with Alessandro Safina) / Sarai Qui (Duet with Alessandro Safina) / Attesa / I Will Be With You (Where the Lost Ones Go) (Duet with Chris Thompson) / Storia D'amore / Pasión (Duet with Fernando Lima) / Running / Let It Rain / The Phantom of the Opera (Duet with Chris Thompson) / Time to Say Goodbye / Ave Maria
CD Extra: "Vide Cor Meum"
DVD Extras:
The Production - Interview with Sarah Brightman
The Songs - Interview with Sarah Brightman
The Location - Interview with Father Anthony Faber and Historian Elisabeth Lloyd-Davis
Photo Gallery