Classical Music

Classical Music

Includes work(s) by various composers. Ensembles: Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra. Conductor: Leonard Slatkin.

WAGNER: ORCHESTRAL HIGHLIGHTS

Hans Knappertsbusch is regarded as one of the great Wagner conductors of the past and his Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg does not disappoint! This recording was performed at the 1960 Bayreuth Festival with the choir and orchestra of the festival. The cast is full of extraordinary performances by Theo Adam (Veit Pogner), Karl Schmitt-Walter (Beckmesser), Gerhard Stolze (David), and more. Josef Greindl's debut in the role of Hans Sachs is a true highpoint in this production. Evan is portrayed by the superb Elisabeth Grümmer who sings with perfection, touching emotion and convincing youthfulness. Knappertsbusch's interpretation of this magnificent work by Wagner is very cultivated and restrained, supportive of the voices, and overall exciting and festive!

"This recording captures the opening night of the 1960 Bayreuth Festival in Wieland's (in)famous "Mastersingers without Nuremberg" production... Orfeo have released this performance to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the death of legendary Wagner conductor Hans Knappertsbusch (1888-1965).

The Sachs of Josef Greindl is the highlight of the singing cast... He manages a magnificent combination of worldly wisdom, weariness and warm humanity, all the while managing to sound about as lyrical and beautiful as you could hope for in this part. His Fliedermonolog is deeply reflective and enormously moving, and there is a glint of mischief in his voice during the Act 2 skirmish the Beckmesser. The great monologues of the third act are all superb, be it the weariness of Wahn, the deeply moving quality of his address to the people after Wach Auf, or the slightly finger-wagging final pages.

The mono sound is remarkably good for its age... Anyone who seeks out this recording will do so mainly because it captures several legends in full flow." - MusicWeb International

In this historic performance in stereo, Theo Adam joined the cast on short notice creating a sensation.

Classical Music

A remarkable record of a live performance, capturing a collection of Wagner greats and a few surprises.

This disc captures, unadulterated and unadorned, the opening night of a new production of Lohengrin at the Vienna Staatsoper. One glance down the cast-list will tell you that this is something special. It must have been even more special to have been in the theatre, for not only was Karl Böhm in the pit but Wieland Wagner himself was directing the staging, something illustrated generously in the accompanying booklet. The sound, recorded for broadcast by Austrian Radio, is in mono, which is undeniably regrettable, but it’s surprisingly good for its age. The only place where it brings real losses is in the chorus scenes, which are many in this opera. The natural point of comparison for this set is Kempe’s classic set, which shares the same orchestra, the same Lohengrin and the same Ortrud, and was recorded two years previously. The comparisons are fascinating.

The most interesting contrast, and the factor which impels this release, is the conducting of Karl Böhm. Where Kempe is rapt, Böhm is driven. Like his live Ring and Tristan from Bayreuth, he prefers fast tempi, and this drives the drama along at an exciting pace. You can tell that when you compare the timings: Böhm is more than 20 minutes faster than Kempe. In fact he achieves the feat of making this one of the very few Lohengrins on disc (perhaps the only one?) to fit each act complete onto a single CD. Yet Böhm never feels unduly rushed. Instead, the strength of his vision convinces the listener that this is an entirely appropriate view of the piece. Furthermore, he knows how to relax when he needs to, and he does so liberally, particularly for the Grail music. The Act 1 Prelude is markedly slower than what follows it. He broadens out the soundscape after Lohengrin’s arrival in the middle of the act, the excitement of the crowd giving way to a gently meditative first utterance from the knight.

That first utterance is, in fact, something pretty special. Jess Thomas is on top notch form here and he sounds sensational in his farewell to the swan in the first act, as in his declaration of love for Elsa. He is, perhaps, a little anonymous in the second act, but he is moving and remarkably sympathetic in the bridal chamber scene. In fernem Land, similarly slowed down by Böhm, unfolds at an unhurried pace and in one single-minded direction. He was an extraordinary swan knight for Kempe, and it’s exciting to hear him in the live context here. Claire Watson is also on her very finest form as Elsa. There is clarity and purity to her voice that, to my ears at least, comes close to making her the equal of Elisabeth Grümmer - high praise indeed. She is helpless and vulnerable in the first act but brims over with optimism at the start of the second, and her address to the breezes is a delight. Perhaps you don’t get quite the same sense of impending doom in the bridal chamber scene, but she summons up the correct sense of terror as that scene reaches its climax and she is full of pathos in her sense of loss in the final scene.

Kempe’s set gave us the finest Ortrud on disc in Christa Ludwig, and she is every bit as sensational here. If anything, the live event inspires her to give of herself with even more commitment. The dramatic temperature of the whole set rises when she enters at the start of Act 2. There is something darkly insidious in her vocal presence, and the way she seems to pour scorn on her husband is magnificently dramatic. She then inveigles her way into Elsa’s confidence with the skill of the greatest of con artists, and the power of her invocation at Entweihte Götter! is so great that it brings the house down, forcing Böhm to halt proceedings for about twenty seconds. She then chews up the scenery in the great crowd scene at the end of Act 2 and manages a wonderful groan of defeat when the swan is revealed as Gottfried at the very end of the opera. Her husband both on and off the stage, Walter Berry, isn’t quite the match for Fischer-Dieskau either in vocal beauty or in acting - he sounds overly gruff in the first act - but he rises to a climax at the start of Act 2 and is never less than a convincing stage presence. It’s a real treat having Martti Talvela as the King, his rich, fruity bass giving the part an extra level of character that it doesn’t always get. Eberhard Wächter is luxury casting as the Herald.

I doubt that anyone will take this as a top choice, especially not over any stereo sets, because sound quality is important in this opera. However, it’s a remarkable record of a live performance, capturing a collection of Wagner greats and a few surprises, and it will be especially interesting for anyone who knows and loves the Kempe set.

Incidentally, this whole production was double cast. The other cast that alternated with this one included the likes of James King, Gustav Neidlinger and Astrid Varnay. Having not one but two such legendary casts available for one opera in the same city seems like an extravagant dream to us nowadays, but what fun to dream it!

-- Simon Thompson, MusicWeb International

Although Wagner himself made it quite clear to King Ludwig II of Bavaria that the Flying Dutchman was among those works of his deemed fit to be performed in Bayreuth, the “Romantic Opera in three Acts” was not staged there till 1901, as the last of those ten. 1959 was a special year in “New Bayreuth”: by producing the earliest, Wieland Wagner had now presented all ten works under his own direction, in the first “Ring-free” year since the 1951 reopening – an abomination to hard-bitten old-school Wagnerians, for whom only the Ring and Parsifal genuinely belonged on the “green hill” of Bayreuth. There was once again heated discussion over the guiding principles governing the presentation of the festival – as reported, along with much else, in the well-informed and lively booklet note by Peter Emmerich. But Wieland confounded and convinced his critics with a rediscovery of his directorial idiom, described by him as “magic realism.” Musical success was achieved on the grand scale by the brilliant exponents of Senta and the Dutchman- and by the musically modern slim-line conductor, who had made his Bayreuth debut not long before in the new production of Tristan. Leonie Rysanek, whose singing gave vivid meaning to all the drama’s emotional aspects, also had the figure for the part- in her own words, she was the “slimmest Senta in the world.” With his powerful voice and darkly glowing male timbre, the inimitably elegant and empathetic George London remains without peer on this recording as elsewhere. Just as convincingly cast in its other roles, the work soon established itself in this second “New Bayreuth” staging even in its spiritual home. We would make a special point of observing that this historic audio document was captured not at the premiere performance, but during a second live recording on August 5, 1959.

Neeme Järvi is back conducting the Royal Scottish National Orchestra in the third of four albums featuring Henk de Vlieger's bold arrangements of operas by Wagner. Of the first album (CHSA 5060), Classic FM wrote: 'Dutch composer Henk de Vlieger builds a penetrating symphonic poem that reflects the dramatic depths of The Ring.' In Volume 3, De Vlieger turns to Wagner's tragic romantic opera Tristan und Isolde, which is here treated symphonically. The key themes of anticipation, longing, rapture, separation, hope, death, and transfiguration are expressed solely through orchestral forces. A particularly striking feature of the lovers' duet, a movement entitled 'Nachtgesang', is the conspicuous presence of the violin and the clarinet, which pick out the sung parts of the two lovers. The movement ends on an unresolved chord followed by a compelling caesura, which symbolises the painful realisation that it will never be possible for them to fulfil their great love. This disc also includes the overture to Wagner's Die Feen. This was the composer's first great romantic, although less well-known, opera. The overall style of the work, based on La donna serpente by Carlo Gozzi, owes its essentials to Beethoven, Marschner, and Weber - something that Wagner himself never hid in the least. However, the opera also displays clearly audible foreshadowings of the composer's later works, Tannhäuser and Lohengrin, in particular. Wagner based Das Liebesverbot on Shakespeare's Measure for Measure, and included on this disc is the overture to the opera. It is perhaps the most Mediterranean-sounding of the composer's operas, something especially apparent in the brimming vitality of the overture in which the tone is set straight away by the sparkling contributions of castanets, triangle, and tambourine. Described as a 'große komische Oper', it was composed in 1834, and Wagner conducted the premiere at Magdeburg in 1836. The first performance poorly attended and involving a lead singer who forgot the words and had to improvise, the opera was a resounding flop and its second performance had to be cancelled after a fist-fight broke out backstage between the prima donna's husband and a leading tenor before the curtain had even risen. The opera was never performed again in Wagner's lifetime.

This is a Lohengrin for the ages.

This performance has been in circulation for years. In Fanfare 6:5 back in 1983, William Youngren reviewed the Melodram LP issue, concluding, “This is a Lohengrin to treasure for years to come, as stylish and moving a performance as I can imagine.”

I am not a believer in “best” recordings. Music is not like sports leagues, with won-lost records. Numerical ranking is a concept I find offensive when discussing great art. So I will not claim that this is the recording of Lohengrin to own. But I will claim that any Wagnerian’s library lacking this performance is seriously incomplete. This is a performance of enormous beauty and richness, one that no lover of Wagner’s music can afford to be without.

It all starts with Lovro von Mata?i?, the Croatian conductor who would be a superstar were he alive today. Because he lived and worked at the time of Furtwängler, Klemperer, Walter, Solti, Karajan, Jochum, and so many other giants, he was an under-appreciated talent. But those who know his Bruckner recordings, his wonderful live Andrea Chénier from Vienna with Corelli and Tebaldi, and his studio Pagliacci for EMI with Corelli know of his remarkable ability to combine big-picture vision with great attention to detail. Balances are perfect—something one senses right away in the opening of the Prelude—rhythmic tension and pulse are always maintained, but the overriding impression is of the music simply flowing from beginning to end with utter inevitability and with a deeply felt sense of phrase inflection. This is an unusual score, with elements of fierce drama, noble solemnity, and warm outpourings of lyricism all competing for prominence at different times. Getting that balance of competing elements right so that the score develops naturally is tricky, and many conductors have failed to successfully hold it together. This performance is as beautifully shaped as any on record.

And then there is Sándor Kónya—surely one of the great Lohengrins in the 20th century. His voice rings out when power is called for, but the overriding impression is of a sweet, warm lyrical beauty of tone that stays long in the memory after we’ve finished listening to the opera. Grümmer’s pitch seems to wander occasionally, but her voice just glows with beauty, and she sings with keen understanding of the character. It is not easy to make us believe in Elsa as a real character, but she does. Gorr is an extraordinarily powerful Ortrud, Ernest Blanc a surprisingly effective and idiomatic Telramund, Crass a strong King Henry, and Eberhard Waechter is very luxurious casting as the Herald.

While it is true that this has been around on other labels, what distinguishes this release is that Orfeo has an official relationship with the Bayreuth Festival and with the Bavarian Radio. The original masters formed the basis of Orfeo’s release, which is vastly superior to prior issues, which stem from off-the-air sources. Although there are slight hints of overload, on the whole this is well-balanced, natural monaural broadcast sound from the late 1950s. Informative and engrossing notes are also included, but no libretto. The performance, unfortunately, included the small cut in the third act that was fairly traditional at the time.

For those who love this opera, there are a few other important recordings. One is the 1943 Met broadcast with Melchior’s radiant Lohengrin, the young Astrid Varnay, and Leinsdorf’s idiomatic conducting (though it lacks the majesty and beauty of Mata?i?). The best transfer of that performance is on Naxos 8.110235. The Decca/London monaural live Bayreuth 1953 recording led by Keilberth with Windgassen and Steber is also quite lovely. I own it on Teldec 93674, and there is also a Naxos transfer. Other commercial sets worthy of exploration include the RCA Leinsdorf set with Kónya, Amara, and the glorious Boston Symphony Orchestra (RCA 50164), and Barenboim’s very moving performance with Peter Seiffert and Emily Magee and the Berlin Staatskapelle on Teldec 21484). For the person who cannot get enough of Lohengrin, Kozlovsky’s remarkable performance has been preserved on Melodiya LPs; I still await its transfer to CD (though Preiser did excerpt all of Lohengrin’s role on one disc).

As wonderful as all of those different recordings are, there is not one among them that I would call superior to this Orfeo release. This is a Lohengrin for the ages.

Henry Fogel, Fanfare Magazine

Neeme Järvi conducts the Royal Scottish National Orchestra in the fourth album of their Wagner series. Their performances on the previous three volumes have received high critical acclaim. American Record Guide wrote of Volume 1: ‘This is wonderful playing and sound… Järvi knows exactly what to do to make the music speak. The orchestra sounds better than I’ve ever heard them.’

This disc features a symphonic arrangement by the Dutch composer and percussionist Henk de Vlieger of Wagner’s only comic opera, Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg. It is the only opera by Wagner centred round a specific time and place in history, rather than a mythical or legendary past. The story takes place in Nuremberg during the middle of the sixteenth century, and revolves around the real-life guild of the Master Singers, an association of amateur poets and musicians who developed a craftsman-like approach to music-making.

Wagner left the two early Entreactes tragiques unfinished, the first only partially orchestrated, and they are heard here in orchestrations completed by De Vlieger.

Completing the disc are the seldom performed and recorded Overture to Columbus, and Eine Faust-Ouvertüre by Wagner. Written in 1835, when Wagner was just twenty-two years old, the Weber-influenced Columbus Overture introduces the play by Theodor Apel. His Faust-Overture followed in 1840. Taking its inspiration from Goethe’s famous play, this work, together with Hector Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique, became the main example of nineteenth-century programme music.

Classical Music

Classical Music

The composer's great-granddaughter was keen to stage Cord Garben's abridged version of the cycle at the Teatro Colin in Buenos Aires, but in the event things turned out rather differently. The present documentary provides a thrilling and visually memorable account of the long journey taken by this version from it's inception to the first night.