These lists show the audio and visual recordings of Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria ("The Return of Ulysses to his Homeland") by Claudio Monteverdi. The opera was premièred in Venice in 1640, initially in five acts, and was then performed in Bologna before returning to Venice for the 1641–42 season. The music was subsequently lost; modern opera productions have been based on editions derived from the sole manuscript score, a three-act version discovered in Vienna in the 19th century. Performances were rare until the 1970s when the work entered the operatic mainstream after stagings in Vienna and at Glyndebourne, both of which were recorded. Since that date recordings have been issued regularly, in five-act, three-act, and two-act versions.

Recording history The first recording of the opera was issued in 1964, a version incorporating substantial cuts. The first complete recording was that of Nikolaus Harnoncourt and Concentus Musicus Wien in 1971, the first of three Harnoncourt versions in audio and video. Raymond Leppard's 1972 Glyndebourne version was recorded in a concert performance in the Royal Albert Hall; the following year the same Glyndebourne cast was recorded in a full stage performance. These recordings were issued many years later, in compact disc and DVD format. Leppard's third Glyndebourne version was issued in 1980, the heavy orchestration with strings and brass drawing some adverse critical comments.

In 1978 Roger Norrington, with Kent Opera, recorded the only English language version of the opera. A two-act version prepared by the German composer Hans Werner Henze was performed under Jeffrey Tate at the 1985 Salzburg Festival and issued on videotape. After several years, the 1990s and 2000s saw a proliferation of recordings in audio and video formats, including performances under Alan Curtis, René Jacobs, Sergio Vartolo, and William Christie. More than thirty years after his first recording, Harnoncourt produced his 2002 version in DVD format, a live recording from Zürich Opera.

Audio YearCast: Ulisse, Penelope,Telemaco, Minerva,Eumete, IroConductoropera house/orchestraLabel and year of issueNotes1964Gerald EnglishMaureen LehaneWilliam WhitesidesAntonia FahbergHelmut KretschmarBernhard MichaelisRudolf Ewerhart Santini Kammerorchester (Münster)LP: Vox DLBX211 (1965)First recording of the opera but with significant cuts, including the Prologue; Iro's monologue; the scenes with Melanto and Eurymaco.1971Sven Olof EliassonNorma LererKai HansenRotraud HansmannMax van EgmondMurray DickieNikolaus HarnoncourtConcentus Musicus Wien/Junge KantoreiLP: Telefunken SKB23T (1971)CD: Teldec 2564 69614-2 (2008)1972Benjamin LuxonJanet BakerIan CaleyAnne HowellsRichard LewisAlexander OliverRaymond LeppardLondon Philharmonic Orchestra and Glyndebourne ChorusCD: Oriel Music Society OMS099/3(2001)Live recording of concert performance, Royal Albert Hall, 3 August 19721978Werner HollwegTrudeliese SchmidtFrancisco AraizaHelrun GardowPhilippe HuttenlocherArley ReeceNikolaus HarnoncourtMonteverdi Ensemble der Zürich OperaCD: Teldec 8 35807 (1989)Recording of a TV film1978Neil JenkinsSarah WalkerNeil MackieAnne PashleyWynford EvansJack IronsRoger NorringtonKent OperaCD: Oriel Music Society OMS018/3Sung in English. Recording of live performance at Guildhall School of Music 26 July 19781979Richard StilwellFrederica von StadePatrick PowerAnn MurrayRichard LewisAlexander OliverRaymond LeppardLondon Philharmonic Orchestra and Glyndebourne ChorusLP: CBS Masterworks 79332 (1980)For full details, see Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria (Raymond Leppard recording)1985Thomas AllenKathleen KuhlmannAlejandro RamirezDelores ZieglerRobert TearCurtis RayamJeffrey TateORF Symphonie-Orchester (Wien); Tölzer Knabenchor: Ensemble SpinanoCD: Orfeo C 528 003 (2000)Recorded at the Salzburg Festival, 18 August 1985 (Hans Werner Henze version)1991Leroy VilleneuvaGloria BanditelliMark TuckerGuillemette LaurensGiovanni Battista PalmieriGian Paolo FagottoAlan CurtisOrchestra - Sonotori de la Gioiosa MarcaCD: Nuova Era 7103-5 (2004)Live recording of a performance in the Teatro dei Rinnovati, Siena1992Christoph PrégardienBernarda FinkChristina HögmanLorraine Hunt LiebersonMartyn HillGuy de MeyRené JacobsConcerto VocaleCD: Harmonia Mundi (France) HMC 901 427-29 (1992)Five-act version1998Furio ZanasiGloria BanditelliJean-Paul FouchécourtMaría Cristina KiehrRoberto AbbondanzaGian Paolo FagottoGabriel GarridoEnsemble ElymaCD: K617 K617091/3 (1998)Five-act version2005Loris BertoloGabriella MartellacciMakoto SakuradaAngela BucciGiovanni GregnaninDavide CicchettiSergio VartoloInstrumental ensembleCD: Brilliant Classics BRIL 93104 (2006)Five-act version2009Kobie van RensburgChristine RiceCyril AuvityClaire DebonoLaura CoronadoRobert BurtWilliam ChristieLes Arts FlorissantsCD: Premiere Opera Ltd. CDNO 3525-3 (2009)Live recording of a performance in the Teatro Real, Madrid, 25 April 20092012Anicio Zorzi Giustanini Josè Maria Lo Monaco Makoto Sakurada Roberta Mameli Paolo Antognetti Luca DordoloClaudio CavinaLa VenexianaCD: Glossa Music (2012)2015Fernando Guimaraes Jennifer Rivera Aaron Sheehan Leah Wool Daniel Auchincloss Marc MolomontMartin PearlmanBoston BaroqueCD: LinnNew performing edition by Pearlman2018Furio Zanasi Lucile Richardot Krystian Adam Hana Blažíková Francisco Fernández-Rueda Robert BurtJohn Eliot GardinerEnglish Baroque Soloists and the Monteverdi ChoirCD: Soli Deo Gloria (2018) Three-act version2023Leonardo De LisiSeoyeon Choi,Francesco Nocco,Mira Dozio,Francesco MarchettiSaverio BambiFederico Bardazzi Ensemble San FeliceCD (2023) Bongiovanni

Video YearCast: Ulisse, Penelope,Telemaco, Minerva,Eumete, IroConductoropera house/orchestraLabel and year of issueNotes1973Benjamin LuxonJanet BakerIan CaleyAnne HowellsRichard LewisAlexander OliverRaymond LeppardLondon Philharmonic Orchestra and Glyndebourbe ChorusDVD: ArtHaus Musik 101 101 (2006)Live recording of a stage performance at the Glyndebourne Theatre, 24 August 19731978Werner HollwegTrudeliese SchmidtFrancisco AraizaHelrun GardowPhilippe HuttenlocherArley ReeceNikolaus HarnoncourtMonteverdi Ensemble der Zürich OperaDVD: DG 073 4268 (2007)Jean-Pierre Ponnelle (stage director) Recording of a TV film1985Thomas AllenKathleen KuhlmannAlejandro RamirezDelores ZieglerRobert TearCurtis RayamJeffrey TateORF Symphonie-Orchester (Wien); Tölzer Knabenchor: Ensemble SpinanoVHS (1985)Recorded at the Salzburg Festival, 18 August 1985 (Hans Werner Henze version)1998Antony Rolfe-JohnsonGraciela ArayaToby SpenceDiana MontagueDiana MontagueAlexander OliverGlen WilsonOrchestra, Het Muziektheatre AmsterdamDVD: Opus Arte OA 0926D (2005)Pierre Audi (stage director) Live recording of a performance in Het Muziektheatre, Amsterdam2002Kresimir SpicerMarijana MijanovićCyril AuvityOlga PitarchJoseph CornwellRobert BurtWilliam ChristieLes Arts FlorissantsDVD: Virgin Classics 7243 4 90612 9 3 (2004)Adrian Noble (stage director) Live recording of a production originally given in 2000 at the Festival d'Aix-en-Provence. Winner of Royal Philharmonic Society Opera award, 2003.2002Dietrich HenschelVeselina KasarovaJonas KaufmannIsabel ReyThomas MohrRudolf SchaschingNikolaus HarnoncourtOrchester La ScintillaDVD: ArtHaus Musik 100 352 (2003)Live recording of a performance in the Opernhaus, Zürich, February 20022023Leonardo De LisiSeoyeon Choi,Francesco Nocco,Mira Dozio,Francesco MarchettiSaverio BambiFederico Bardazzi Ensemble San Felice2023 / Bongiovanni

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Further reading