Manilla Road - Open The Gates - VINYL LP

High Roller Records, reissue 2025, ltd 250, 425gsm heavy cardboard cover, insert printed on uncoated paper

Michael Spyres is a singer who challenges and reshapes perceptions - as his albums BariTenor and Contra-Tenor have shown. Now, preparing for his debut at the Bayreuth Festival in Summer 2024, he searches In the Shadows to reveal more about Wagner and the origins of his music dramas. InchWagner evokes a varying spectrum of emotions - awe, ecstasy, even trepidation,Inch explains Spyres. InchThis album endeavours to illuminate the composers who languish in the shadows, who formed the foundation of Wagner's compositions and sculpted the framework of vocal writing for the Wagnerian tenor.Inch In the Shadows culminates with three arias by Wagner - from Lohengrin and the lesser-known Die Feen and Rienzi. Preceding them are early 19 th century arias by composers of the French, German and Italian schools Méhul, Beethoven, Rossini, Meyerbeer, Weber, Auber, Spontini, Bellini and Marschner. Spyres' distinguished companions in his exploration are the players of Les Talens Lyriques and their conductor Christophe Rousset. Michael Spyres's new album seeks to illuminate the composers who Inchlanguish in the shadowsInch those who formed the foundation for Wagner's compositions and sculpted the vocal writing framework of the Wagnerian tenor. In performing and exploring works by pre-Wagnerian composers such as Auber, Bellini, Berlioz, Mehul, Meyerbeer, Rossini, and Spontini, he shines a light on the influences that shaped Wagner into the legendary composer he became. For Michael Spyres, Mehul and Spontini laid the groundwork for Wagner's orchestral and dramatic palette; Meyerbeer, Halevy, and Rossini shaped his understanding of compositional form, overtures, and the structural nuances of storytelling. On the his most recent album, Contra-Tenor, Gramophone wrote Inch... it's an enthralling disc as one might expect, and the best of it is sensational indeed.Inch

High Roller Records, picture vinyl, ltd 500, handnumbered, deluxe plastic bag, cardboard insert, mastering by Patrick W. EngelSide A 1. The Dream Goes On 2. Cat And Mouse 3. Far Side Of The Sun Side B 4. Street Jammer 5. Centurian War Games 6. The Empire