Opera Rara
Contact information, map and directions, contact form, opening hours, services, ratings, photos, videos and announcements from Opera Rara, Charitable organisation, Studio 11, Cloisters House, 8 Battersea Park Road, London.
14/07/2026
Good afternoon Opera Lovers! We are excited to share with you that our July Album of the Month is L'assedio di Calais, Gaetano Donizetti's powerful opera of courage, sacrifice and humanity.
We'd love to hear your thoughts on this piece!
🎥 Watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cpAGukU-vNk
🛒 Purchase: https://www.warnerclassics.com/release/donizetti-three-operas
🎼 Stream: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2oefJVuAnzCedvP6cR8ann?si=089e8c945c7a4cb5
This landmark Opera Rara recording marked the opera's first performance in over 150 years, bringing back to life a work widely regarded as one of Donizetti's most visionary achievements. A pivotal score in his career, L'assedio di Calaisreveals a composer writing on an increasingly international scale, with Paris firmly in his sights. Opera Rara's rediscovery of the work has since inspired staged revivals across Italy, England and Ireland.
Set in 1347, the opera follows the siege of Calais by the English army under Edward III. As the city faces destruction, six noblemen, led by the mayor Eustachio, offer their own lives in exchange for lasting peace. Moved by their extraordinary courage, Queen Isabella persuades her husband to end the siege and spare the city. In the face of senseless violence, their selfless act of bravery saves countless lives.
Conducted by David Parry, this acclaimed recording features Christian du Plessis, Nuccia Focile, Paul Nilon, Della Jones and the Philharmonia Orchestra.
Available as part of the Donizetti in the 1830s Opera Rara Classics box set, or on all major streaming platforms.
Browse the full Opera Rara catalogue: https://opera-rara.com/shopcatalogue
Puccini's final masterpiece was never truly finished.
As he worked on Turandot, Giacomo Puccini was battling what would later be understood as undiagnosed throat cancer. With his health rapidly declining, he struggled to complete the opera, leaving its final scene unfinished at the time of his death.
In this clip from Lives in Song, Dr. Flora Willson and Dr. Ditlev Rindom explore the poignant story behind Puccini's final creative struggle, the challenges he faced in completing Turandot, and the legacy of the opera he never lived to finish.
As we build towards the final episode of our Lives in Song: Puccini series - exploring La rondine with Dr. Flora Willson and Dr. Ditlev Rindom, released on 2 October - revisit this fascinating chapter in the composer's extraordinary life.
Full Episode: https://youtu.be/kQX3bxnL-lc
Our Summer Stream Concert Series continues this week with baritone Germán Enrique Alcántara and pianist Anna Tilbrook in a fascinating recital celebrating musical discovery across continents.
🎟️ Join us this Friday at 1.00pm on YouTube. Reserve your free ticket today to receive a reminder before the concert begins, then sit back and enjoy another wonderful afternoon of music with us.
Ticket Link: https://ow.ly/pR3j50Zk4JA
Concert Programme: https://ow.ly/sxWn50Zk4Jz
Recorded live in the historic Middle Temple Hall at Temple Music Foundation, this unique programme places rarely heard songs by Donizetti alongside works by Argentinean composers Juan Pedro Esnaola, Julián Aguirre, Carlos López Buchardo, Celia Torrá, Alberto Williams and Ana Carrique. With several UK premieres, this concert shines a light on extraordinary repertoire rarely heard in the concert hall.
Support great operatic discoveries and restorations of rare and forgotten works by donating to Opera Rara: https://ow.ly/BwhO50Zk4JB
Join us on our journey by signing up to our mailing list: https://ow.ly/VXbG50Zk4Jy
This concert is presented in partnership with Temple Music Foundation and is generously made possible in part by support from the Backstage Trust.
Today at 1.00pm on YouTube, join us for Episode 2 of our Summer Stream Concert Series with a special Temple Music Foundation performance featuring Katia Ledoux and Anna Tilbrook in music by Gaetano Donizetti, including this clip from La f***e de Sainte-Hélène.
👉 Watch here at 1.00pm and be part of our summer of 10 free concerts: https://www.ticketsource.com/opera-rara/t-gljpqgd
Concert Programme: https://tinyurl.com/45x74apk
Support great operatic discoveries and restorations of rare and forgotten works by donating to Opera Rara: https://opera-rara.com/support
Join us on our journey by signing up to our mailing list: https://opera-rara.com/mailing
This concert is presented in partnership with Temple Music Foundation and is generously made possible by Temple Music supporter Katie Bradford.
PROGRAMME:
GAETANO DONIZETTI (1797-1848)
Faut-il renfermer dans mon âme
L’Étrangère
La Fiancée du timbalier
HECTOR BERLIOZ (1803-1869)
Le spectre de la rose
CÉCILE CHAMINADE (1857-1944)
Je voudrais
GEORGES BIZET (1838-1875)
Adieux de l’hôtesse arabe
GAETANO DONIZETTI
La F***e de S.te Hélène
GIOACHINO ROSSINI (1792-1868)
Adieux à la vie
PAULINE VIARDOT (1821-1910)
Lamento
CLÉMENCE DE GRANDVAL (1828-1907)
Le galop
Following her Royal Opera House debut in Andrea Chénier conducted by Antonio Pappano, mezzo-soprano Katia Ledoux joins pianist Anna Tilbrook for a recital presented by Opera Rara and the Temple Music Foundation. Taking place within the Inner Temple Parliament Chamber, the programme centres on the Parisian salons of the 19th century. Featuring newly-restored, rarely – if ever – performed songs by Donizetti from his years in Paris, the programme is completed with selections by Donizetti’s contemporaries. Including several songs composed by women, Ledoux and Tilbrook recreate the experience of a musical soirée.
Katia Ledoux, who frequently performs at opera houses across Europe, made her recording and London concert debut with Opera Rara and the London Philharmonic Orchestra in 2022 in a concert of Offenbach’s La Princesse de Trébizonde. The subsequent recording was chosen as Recording of the Year in the 2024 OPER! Awards in Amsterdam. Anna Tilbrook, a British pianist and frequent collaborator with some of the world’s top artists, is frequently featured in Europe’s major concert halls and festivals.
This second broadcast marks the continuation of our Summer Stream Concert Series, celebrating the culmination of the Donizetti Song Project.
Across the summer, we bring you performances from leading artists including Katia Ledoux, Ermonela Jaho, Rosa Feola, Soraya Mafi, Nicola Alaimo, Germán Enrique Alcántara, Joanna Harries, Lluís Calvet i Pey and Julieth Lozano Rolong, alongside pianists Carlo Rizzi, Anna Tilbrook, Marco Rizzi, James Southall, Robert Lewis and Hetty Snell.
📅 Full schedule:
• 26 June–2 July: Cadogan Hall (Spyres / Lemieux / Zappa)
• 3–5 July: Katia Ledoux & Anna Tilbrook
• 10–12 July: Joanna Harries & Anna Tilbrook
• 17–19 July: Germán Enrique Alcántara & Anna Tilbrook
• 24–26 July: Ermonela Jaho, Carlo Rizzi & Marco Rizzi
• 31 July–1 August: Lluís Calvet i Pey & James Southall
• 7–9 August: Rosa Feola, Carlo Rizzi & Sally Pryce
• 14–16 August: Soraya Mafi, Robert Lewis & Anna Tilbrook
• 21–23 August: Julieth Lozano Rolong & Anna Tilbrook
• 28–30 August: Nicola Alaimo, Carlo Rizzi & Hetty Snell
🎧 Free on YouTube every Friday at 1.00pm - subscribe and join us all summer.
Click here to claim your Sponsored Listing.
Category
Contact the organisation
Telephone
Website
Address
Studio 11, Cloisters House, 8 Battersea Park Road
London
SW84BG
Opening Hours
| Monday | 9:30am - 5:30pm |
| Tuesday | 9:30am - 5:30pm |
| Wednesday | 9:30am - 5:30pm |
| Thursday | 9:30am - 5:30pm |
| Friday | 9:30am - 5:30pm |
