James Levine Birthday Celebration

The Met Opera radio channel on Sirius XM (channel 74) will have a special marathon this weekend in honor of James Levine's 70th birthday. Program is after the cut. Of special interest are the rarely-heard Ghosts of Versailles at noon Saturday and Idomeneo at noon on Sunday, as well as the Vespri that follows Idomeneo. It's a shame they can't get it together for Moses und Aron or Wozzeck, and it is bizarre that no Wagner is among the operas being broadcast.

Saturday, June 22, 2013

6 a.m. ET

Un Ballo in Maschera (Verdi) from January 26, 1991. Levine conducts Aprile Millo (Amelia), Luciano Pavarotti (Riccardo), Leo Nucci (Renato), Florence Quivar (Ulrica), Harolyn Blackwell (Oscar).

9 a.m. ET

Salome (Richard Strauss) from January 5, 1974. Levine conducts Grace Bumbry (Salome), Ragnar Ulfung (Herod), Regina Resnik (Herodias), Lawrence Shadur (Jochanaan), William Lewis (Narraboth).

12 p.m. ET

The Ghosts of Versailles (Corigliano) from January 4, 1992. Levine conducts Teresa Stratas (Marie Antoinette), HåkanHagegård (Beaumarchais), Gino Quilico (Figaro), Marilyn Horne (Samira), Graham Clark (Bégearss), Renée Fleming (Rosina).

3 p.m. ET

Fidelio (Beethoven) from January 6, 2001. Levine conducts Karita Mattila (Leonore), Ben Heppner (Florestan), Sergei Leiferkus (Don Pizarro), René Pape (Rocco), Hei-Kyung Hong (Marzelline), Matthew Polenzani (Jaquino).

6 p.m. ET

Falstaff (Verdi) from April 5, 1975. Levine conducts Cornell MacNeil (Sir John Falstaff), Evelyn Lear (Alice Ford), Thomas Stewart (Ford), Fedora Barbieri (Dame Quickly), Benita Valente (Nannetta), Douglas Ahlstedt (Fenton).

9 p.m. ET

Die Zauberflöte (Mozart) from February 9, 1991. Levine conducts Kathleen Battle (Pamina), Francisco Araiza (Tamino), Luciana Serra (Queen of the Night), Kurt Moll (Sarastro), Manfred Hemm (Papageno), Barbara Kilduff (Papagena).

12 a.m. ET

Pelléas et Mélisande (Debussy) from January 22, 1983. Levine conducts Dale Duesing (Pelléas), Jeannette Pilou (Mélisande), José Van Dam (Golaud), Jerome Hines (Arkel), Jocelyne Taillon (Geneviève).

Sunday, June 23, 2013

6 a.m. ET

La Forza del Destino (Verdi) from March 12, 1977. Levine conducts Leontyne Price (Leonora), Plácido Domingo (Don Alvaro), Cornell MacNeil (Don Carlo), Martti Talvela (Padre Guardiano), Rosalind Elias (Preziosilla), Renato Capecchi (Fra Melitone).

9 a.m. ET

Carmen (Bizet) from March 21, 1987. Levine conducts Agnes Baltsa (Carmen), José Carreras (Don José), Ileana Cortrubas (Micaëla), Samuel Ramey (Escamillo).

12 p.m. ET

Idomeneo (Mozart) from December 21, 1991. Levine conducts Ben Heppner (Idomeneo), Dawn Upshaw (Ilia), Susanne Mentzer (Idamante), Carol Vaness (Elettra), Peter Kazaras (Arbace).

3 p.m. ET

I Vespri Siciliani (Verdi) from March 9, 1974. Levine conducts Montserrat Caballé (Elena), Nicolai Gedda (Arrigo), Sherrill Milnes (Guido di Monforte), Justino Díaz (Giovanni da Procida).

6 p.m. ET

The Rake’s Progress (Stravinsky) from January 17, 1998. Levine conducts Jerry Hadley (Tom Rakewell), Dawn Upshaw (Anne Trulove), Samuel Ramey (Nick Shadow), Stephanie Blythe (Baba the Turk).

9 p.m. ET

The Bartered Bride (Smetana) from December 2, 1978. Levine conducts Teresa Stratas (Marenka), Nicolai Gedda (Jeník), Jon Vickers (Vasek), Martti Talvela (Kecal).

12 a.m. ET

Stiffelio (Verdi) from March 5, 1994. Levine conducts Plácido Domingo (Stiffelio), Sharon Sweet (Lina), Vladimir Chernov (Stankar), Paul Plishka (Jorg), Peter Riberi (Raffaele).