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Long before his big stage breakthrough in 1973 in Hamburg, and 4.4 million records sold, the rock musician Udo Lindenberg from the Westphalian province, the man with the long hair and the hat, had many adventures. Before it all started, he moved from the remoteness of Gronau to Hamburg, where he met Paula, who was not his great love, but was quite a hottie. When the team of three was complete with Steffi Stephan, the idea of founding a band developed. But the road to get there was a long one: he drummed as a jazz drummer in bands, had a highly dangerous performance in a US military base in the middle of the Libyan desert and always believed in making it to the very top.

To celebrate the tercentenary of Vivaldi's Four Seasons, five choreographers - Franck Chartier, Bobbi Jene Smith, Or Schraiber, Imre & Marne Van Opstal and Emilie Leriche - take inspiration from Max Richter's masterful recomposition of this great work.

A portrait of Jan "Monchi" Gorkow, front man for the punk band Feine Sahne Fischfilet, and his campaign against racism and right-wing extremism.

Nancy Shade is persuasive as the awkward adolescent Marie, whose naiveté leads relentlessly to her downfall. Michael Ebbecke is sympathetic as Stolzius, her jilted lover and avenger, while William Cochran is properly brutish as Desportes, the officer who initiates her spiral of decline. Bernhard Kontarsky gets a dedicated response from his Stuttgart Opera forces, who perform with belief in this often excessive but always engrossing work. Recorded at the Staatsoper Stuttgart, 1989.

A series of attacks terrorize Munich. Max, having survived the first shots fired at the audience in the electro club Beats, hides in a storage room with his new friend Sefi and other party attendees. The immediate danger puts the humanity of all trapped people to the test and Max has to decide whether he wants to save himself or try to save a stranger, as well. Shortly before arriving at home, Alexa hears of the attack on the club she left her brother Max at. She decides to go back, accompanied by her boyfriend Raphik, who joins her in the end despite his misgivings.

A romance between two temperamental singing stars. Highlights include a lengthy selection from Faust, with Gigli making a most impressive Mephistopheles. The plot takes a melodramatic turn towards the climax, with the lives of the characters mirrored in their on-stage behavior. Director Carmine Gallone was something of an expert in the field of filmed opera, as witness his Tosca, Rigoletto and Il Trovatore.

Forgotten by all, an elderly jazz singer lives through the fragments of her past. Inspired by the true story of Giuli Chokheli, the most famous female Georgian jazz singer of her time, sometimes referred to as the Georgian Ella Fitzgerald. In this movie, Giuli Chokheli plays herself at the age of 87.

A global television broadcast of the event in which former Pink Floyd leader singer and composer Roger Waters led an all-star cast in a mammoth benefit performance of his acclaimed concept album, The Wall. Set in Berlin, Germany less than a year after the destruction of the hated Berlin Wall, Waters was accompanied by disparate talents such as Cyndi Lauper, James Galway, Joni Mitchell and Albert Finney in the classic dark musical tale of a rock star's descent into madness and back.

In search of her friends, an old lady enters the 'Amazing Kitsuverse' – a virtual paradise where anything is possible with a simple clap of the hands. There she meets the guardian of the realm: a clever little fox.

The Queen of the Night enlists a handsome prince named Tamino to rescue her beautiful kidnapped daughter, Princess Pamina. Aided by the lovelorn bird hunter Papageno and a magical flute that holds the power to change the hearts of men, young Tamino embarks on a quest for true love, leading to the evil Sarastro's temple where Pamina is held captive.

German director Werner Schroeter invited his favourite opera singers to a 13th century abbey near Paris. There was no pre-planned action. There was no script, no continuity. On the other hand, there were precise constraints that provided the rules of the game: the setting, the Abbey of Royaumont, and the chosen participants. Each singer came accompanied by a person of his or her choice, and worked on an aria chosen by the director.

Comedian Harmonists tells the story of a famous, German male sextet, five vocals and piano, the "Comedian Harmonists", from the day they meet first in 1927 to the day in 1934, when they become banned by the upcoming Nazis, because three of them are Jewish.

The opera singer Maddalena had been cast out by her family after they learned she was to bear the child of a banker, von Keller, who had seduced and abandoned her. Her return to her native city has her father warn her to remain away, because she is a threat to her family, and her sister Marie's wedding. However, von Keller threatens the reputation of her family with an underhanded banking scheme. He commits suicide, and Maddalena is reconciled with her family.

In memory of the countless victims of armed conflict, Patricia Kopatchinskaja presents a concert conceived as a mosaic of deeply moving music and texts from a wide variety of sources and authors. The violinist breaks down the traditional barrier between the stage and the audience.

The Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, conducted by Omer Meir Wellber, takes over Neuschwanstein Castle in southern Germany for a lyrical concert featuring soprano Golda Schultz, tenor Rolando Villazón, and baritone Ludovic Tézier. In this grandiose building constructed by Ludwig II of Bavaria, the prestigious trio performs works by Mozart, Verdi, and Lehár.

In Vienna, at the Schönbrunn Palace Theater, director Nikolaus Habjan, in collaboration with conductor Hannah Eisendle, presents the operetta “Wiener Blut,” based on waltzes by Johann Strauss Jr.

When everyone in town falls under the spell of charismatic cosmetic surgeon Doctor Coppelius, feisty Swan must act to save her sweetheart Franz, before his heart is used to spark life into Coppelia – the ‘perfect’ robot-woman the Doctor has created.

Take a perfect cast, a great conductor and a groundbreaking staging in-out makes a 'Tristan' for eternity. The 1983 performance in Bayreuth was a great moment for the world of opera. The ensemble performance of René Kollo, Johanna Meier and Matti Salminen with, then as now the Wagner admirer, Daniel Barenboim conducting the Bayreuth orchestra inspired singers and instrumentalists to peak performance. Jean-Pierre Ponnelle created a dream-beautiful stage.

He's known as "Tyrol's Zappa" and a "real anarchist." Whether folk music, jazz or what's known as serious music, Werner "Preisegott" Pirchner has in a creative way greatly expanded upon the limited acoustic range of his homeland, enriching it with some unfamiliar sounds from around the globe. Whoever comes into contact with him, such as Josef Hader and Tobias Moretti, can sense the power of his music, lets it carry them away, and embraces it wholeheartedly.

As the leader of the Il Gardellino ensemble, harpsichordist Alexander Grychtolik performs and conducts Bach’s “Passion Oratorio,” a project that had been abandoned by the cantor. Based on the libretto written by the poet Picander, the musician conducted extensive research to reconstruct the score, parts of which were later incorporated into the “St. Matthew Passion.”

The 1998 version of Carmen is an opera performance directed by Herbert von Karajan, which was produced in Switzerland. The performance is based on the famous opera by Georges Bizet and was realized by the production company Cosmotel in Switzerland. The actress playing the title role, Carmen, is Mirella Freni, and the production was carried out by the renowned production company Cosmotel.

The director turns the diary of his sexual adventures into a serial narrative in the style of “One Thousand and One Nights”. This polyamorously-minded queer musical applies the same playful approach to folk tales as it does to Egyptian pop music.

Haydn's oratario "The Creation", by La Fura dels Baus company. Recorded at the Seine Musicale.

“As I child, I always had music in my head. I thought everybody did,” the legendary conductor Sir Simon Rattle recalls. His charming and humorous reflections on the unifying magic of conducting are complemented by interviews with well-known contemporaries and accompanied by thrilling concert footage. His music is a joy to all those who listen to it!

A poor composer who should buy a property for his ambitious father-in-law finances with the money, nevertheless, an opera. Together with his friend who must play a husband to his strict rich aunt, he makes to himself a fun from the mistakes which cause her feints.

Sándor Barinkay joins the gypsies en route to his home village hiding his real identity as an Hungarian nobleman, whose parents were sent to exile. He claims his former properties, now taken by a pig merchant who plays the fool to the villagers' delight. Yet this man has an interesting daughter, and there's also the beautiful gypsy Saffi to consider. And a family hidden treasure to be found.

A production of Strauss' opera 'Der Rosenkavalier' performed at the Saltzburg Festival in 1984. Includes the Vienna State Opera Choir, the Philharmonic Orchestra with singers Wilma Lipp, Anna Tomowa-Sintow and Agnes Baltsa. Conducted by Herbert Von Karaja

Wim Wenders looks at the dramatic tension in the blues between the sacred and the profane by exploring the music and lives of three of his favorite blues artists: Skip James, Blind Willie Johnson and J. B. Lenoir. Part history, part personal pilgrimage, the film tells the story of these lives in music through an extended fictional film sequence (recreations of '20s and '30s events - shot in silent-film, hand-crank style), rare archival footage, present-day documentary scenes and covers of their songs by contemporary musicians such as Shemekia Copeland, Alvin Youngblood Hart, Garland Jeffreys, Chris Thomas King, Cassandra Wilson, Nick Cave, Los Lobos, Eagle Eye Cherry, Vernon Reid, James "Blood" Ulmer, Lou Reed, Bonnie Raitt, Marc Ribot, The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Lucinda Williams and T-Bone Burnett.

1847. Franz Liszt meets the beautiful princess Caroline von Sayn-Wittgenstein in Kiev. The two fall in love, but the princess is forced to marry an elderly general. When the revolution breaks out in Hungary, she flees with Franz Liszt to Weimar. They also ask the Pope to annul Caroline's unhappy marriage, a question that remains unanswered for the time being. Can Liszt and his princess stay together for long?

Fifty years after the death of Dmitri Shostakovich, the Gewandhaus in Leipzig is paying tribute to one of the most played composers of the 20th century with a festival entirely dedicated to him. The programme for the opening concert in the futuristic setting of the Great Hall includes the Piano Concerto No. 2 in F major, with Daniil Trifonov as soloist, and the Symphony No. 4 in C minor.

Two-time Golden Globe and 22-time Grammy Award-winning U2 perform some of their biggest hits, alongside brand new tracks from their forthcoming album, Songs of Experience, as well as chatting about their lives to date at the legendary Abbey Road Studios. Presented by Cat Deeley.

Head waiter Leopold has been secretly in love with the hostess Josepha for a long time, but she only has eyes for Dr. Siedler, a guest in the White Horse Inn. Leopold tries to get Dr. Siedler interested in the daughter of Industrialist Giesecke, who would rather see his daughter married to Sigismund.

At the Saarland Modern Galerie in Saarbrücken, Germany, songs from Unfurl, Asaf Avidan's new album, blend with masterpieces from a contemporary art collection that is as socially conscious as it is inspiring.

Because the muse doesn't want to kiss them in the city, musicians Theo and Bert jet out into the countryside. A bell-like voice from the stables promptly catches their attention. But instead of a fair beauty, they find a dirty stable boy. Amused, they choose him as their servant. The boys have no idea that the boy is Liesel, the charcoal-burner's daughter in disguise.

Elli works as a techno DJ and loves electronic music. She has a daughter named Toni, who mostly grows up with her father. The 9-year-old girl is only with her on weekends. They have planned a mother-daughter weekend, but suddenly Elli is offered an important gig at an electronic music festival. Finally playing in front of a big audience again, feeling the ecstasy and intoxication of the night. Through the music she escapes the stagnation, the desolation, the role model of the conventional mother and the narrowness of the provincial town. Torn between maternal missing her and asserting herself in her life, Elli tries to be there for Toni and at the same time to live her dreams without restrictions.

Four female cons who have formed a band in prison get a chance to play at a police ball outside the walls. They take the chance to escape. Being on the run from the law they even make it to sell their music and become famous outlaws.

a music movie by Heinz Paul

Hum lives in a refugee camp near Hamburg. He loves films and finances his visits to the cinema by selling lost properties from cinema visits in the refugee camp. One day he meets Anna and her friend Ida. At a dinner together in the shared flat of the two, they find out that they all share a love of music. Anna and Ida can sing great together and Hum shares the contact with his friends who play in a band. A timid and touching love story develops between Hum and Anna. Both are looking forward to the first performance of the band, in which Anna now sings. But shortly before the performance, Hum is to be deported. Neither his love for Anna and music nor his imagination can save him from the everyday life of a refugee.

To celebrate the 100 years of the festival Arena di Verona and the 200th birthday of Giuseppe Verdi, two separate productions of Aida were staged. This modern version was staged by La Fura dels Baus.

Richie Bravo, once upon a time a successful pop star, chases after his faded fame in wintry Rimini. Trapped between permanent intoxication and concerts for busloads of tourists, his world starts to collapse when his adult daughter breaks into his life.

The daughter of the Parisian countess Lafitte, named "Baby", is supposed to go to an English boarding school, but she's much more interested in variety shows. Nevertheless, she travels with her friend Susette to London, who also wants to make a career for herself as a showgirl. During the journey, Baby is mistakenly considered to be a showgirl and she does nothing to dissuade two young English lords from believing so. The girls continue to live under false pretenses even when they arrive in England, with Baby being a soloist with the group "Babies" and Suzette passing herself off as the Contessa Lafitte for school exams. At the end -- a double marriage.

The legendary director Ruth Berghaus created this staging of Carl Maria von Weber’s Der Freischütz as a gripping theatrical experience for the Zurich Opera in 1993. Its revival in 1999 was a roaring success. With sets by Hartmut Meyer and costumes by Marie-Louise Strandt, Berghaus’ staging avoids the local peasant colour conventionally associated with Weber’s opera. Chorus and orchestra of the Zurich Opera House are conducted by Nikolaus Harnoncourt, universally celebrated for the structural transparency of his interpretations, his intellectual penetration and his emotional understanding of both music and opera plot. And last but not least an all-star cast made this production a highly memorable event: the dramatic soprano Inga Nielsen as Agathe, one of her best roles, the Swedish soprano Malin Hartelius as Ännchen, the sought-after Heldentenor Peter Seiffert, who gives a convincing passionate Max, and many others.

Three families struggle to find their true selves and their soulmates in a world full of expectations, pressure and obstacles. Inspired by real events, this film shows how they pursue their dreams and potential without losing themselves.