Notable DVD and CD releases for the month of October

The month of October sees the release of many new DVDs and CDs including two Toscas and more early Verdi to celebrate his 199th birthday.

A second DVD of Un Giorno di Regno is released with a cast that includes Anna Caterina Antonacci, Bruno 

Practico, Paolo Coni, and Cecilia Gasdia.The production from 1997 is directed by Pier Luigi Pizzi and conudcted by Maurizio Benini.   

Daniel Catan's contemporary opera based on the movie Il Postino comes to DVD with Placido Domingo as Pablo Neruda and Charles Castronovo in one of the most acclaimed LA Opera productions to date. The cast also includes Christina Gallardo Domas, Nancy Fabiola Herrera and legendary baritone Vladimir Chernov. 

The first of two Toscas will be released on EMI with an all star cast. Angela Gheorghiu takes on the demanding Diva while Jonas Kaufmann releases his second Cavaradossi. Bryn Terfel plays the villainous Scarpia and Antonio Pappano conducts the Royal Opera House Orchestra in one of the finest nights in contemporary opera history.

The Tutto Verdi series continues to be unveiled by C major with the release of three operas. The first is I Due Foscari starring Leo Nucci, rising star Roberto De Biasio and Tatiana Serjan. Donato Renzetti conducts from Parma in a production by Joseph Franconi Lee. 

The release of Verdi's fifth opera is also seen with Ernani starring Marco Berti, Carlo Guelfi and Giacomo Prestia. Antonello Allemandi conducts a production by Peirre Alli.

The rarely staged I Lombardi gets an extraordinary cast that includes Francesco Meli, Roberto De Biasio, Michele Pertusi, and Dimitra Theodossiou. Danielle Callegari conducts from the Teatro regio in Parma. 

The new company Electric Pictures will release its first opera Arabella with Emily Magee in the title role. The production form the Vienna State Opera is conducted by Franz Welser-Moist.

Puccini's Suor Angelica will get a release with star Kristine Opolais. Mojca Erdmann also joins the cast. Orfeo releases the CD conducted by Opolais' husband Andris Nelsons. 

BelAir will release Berg's Wozzeck with George Nigl and Mardi Byers. The production is directed by Dimitri Tcherniakov and conducted by Teodor Currentzis.

ArtHaus and Kultur collaborate for release the new Barber of Seville starring Luca Salsi, Dimtry Korchak Giovanni Furlanetto and Bruno Practico.  The opera was recorded live from the Teatro Regio di Parma.

A new double bill is released from the Teatro Real of Madrid. Tchakovsky's Iolanta and Stravinsky's Persephone star Ekaterina Scherbachenko and Paul Groves. 

The second Tosca stars real life married couple Daniela Dessi and Fabio Armiliato. ArtHaus releases the new Tosca from La Fenice. The opera also stars Claudio Sgura as Scarpia.  

The Metropolitan Opera releases yet another one of Renee Fleming's HD performances. Fleming stars as Rodelinda alongside countertenor Andreas Scholl, Joseph Kaiser, Stephanie Blythe and Shengyang. The opera directed by Stephen Wadsworth is conducted by baroque specialist Harry Bicket. 

The overly delayed Kongskinder finally gets released. Announced back in February, Decca delayed the release after the announcement of Adriana Lecouvreur. Now the 2009 production will make it to the market  with Jonas Kaufmann in the title role alongside Spanish star Isabel Rey.