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COMPOSERWAGNER
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PERFORMERRundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Und Chor Berlin, Janowski, Soloists
Wagner: Das Rheingold / Janowski, Konieczny, Conrad, Elsner, Vermillion
Regular price
$24.99
Sale price
$32.99
Unit price
per
- PENTATONE
- May 28, 2013
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RELEASE DATEMay 28, 2013
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UPC827949040665
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CATALOG NUMBERPTC5186406
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LABELPENTATONE
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NUMBER OF DISCS2
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GENRE
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Scene 1: Vorspiel
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 1: Weia! Waga! Woge, du Welle! (Rhinemaidens, Alberich)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Julia Borchert, Katharina Kammerloher, Kismara Pessatti, Jochen Schmeckenbecher
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 1: Garstig glatter glitschiger Glimmer! (Alberich, Rhinemaidens)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Jochen Schmeckenbecher, Julia Borchert, Katharina Kammerloher, Kismara Pessatti
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 1: Wallala! Wallala! lalaleia, leialalei! (Rhinemaidens, Alberich)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Julia Borchert, Katharina Kammerloher, Kismara Pessatti, Jochen Schmeckenbecher
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 1: Lugt, Schwestern! Die Weckerin lacht in den Grund (Rhinemaidens, Alberich)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Julia Borchert, Katharina Kammerloher, Kismara Pessatti, Jochen Schmeckenbecher
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 1: Der Welt Erbe gewann' ich zu eigen durch dich? (Alberich, Rhinemaidens)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Jochen Schmeckenbecher, Julia Borchert, Katharina Kammerloher, Kismara Pessatti
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 2: Einleitung
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 2: Wotan! Gemahl! Erwache! (Fricka, Wotan, Freia)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Iris Vermillion, Tomasz Konieczny, Ricarda Merbeth
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 2: Nur Wonne schafft dir, was mich erschreckt? (Wotan, Fricka, Freia)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Tomasz Konieczny, Iris Vermillion, Ricarda Merbeth
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 2: Sanft schloss Schlaf dein Aug'! (Fasolt, Fafner, Wotan, Freia)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Günther Groissböck, Timo Riihonen, Tomasz Konieczny, Ricarda Merbeth
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 2: Zu mir, Freia! Meide sie, Frecher! (Froh, Donner, Fafner, Fasolt, Wotan, Freia, Fricka)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Kor-Jan Dusseljee, Antonio Yang, Timo Riihonen, Günther Groissböck, Tomasz Konieczny, Ricarda Merbeth, Iris Vermillion
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 2: Endlich Loge! Eiltest du so (Wotan, Loge, Fricka, Froh, Donner, Fafner, Fasolt)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Tomasz Konieczny, Christian Elsner, Iris Vermillion, Kor-Jan Dusseljee, Antonio Yang, Timo Riihonen, Günther Groissböck
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 2: Immer ist Undank Loges Lohn! (Loge, Wotan, Fasolt, Fafner)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Christian Elsner, Tomasz Konieczny, Günther Groissböck, Timo Riihonen
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 2: Taugte wohl des goldnen Tandes (Fricka, Loge, Wotan, Donner, Froh, Fafner)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Christian Elsner, Iris Vermillion, Tomasz Konieczny, Antonio Yang, Kor-Jan Dusseljee, Timo Riihonen
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 2: Hor', Wotan, der Harrenden Wort! (Fafner, Fasolt, Wotan, Freia, Froh, Donner, Loge)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Timo Riihonen, Günther Groissböck, Tomasz Konieczny, Ricarda Merbeth, Kor-Jan Dusseljee, Antonio Yang, Christian Elsner
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 2: Jetzt fand ich's: hort, was euch fehlt! (Loge, Fricka, Wotan, Donner, Froh)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Christian Elsner, Iris Vermillion, Tomasz Konieczny, Antonio Yang, Kor-Jan Dusseljee
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 2: Verwandlungsmusik
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 3: Hehe! Hehe! Hieher! Hieher! Tuckischer Zwerg! (Alberich, Mime, Wotan, Loge)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Jochen Schmeckenbecher, Andreas Conrad, Tomasz Konieczny, Christian Elsner
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 3: Wer halfe mir? (Mime, Loge, Wotan)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Andreas Conrad, Tomasz Konieczny, Christian Elsner
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 3: Mit eurem Gefrage (Mime, Loge, Wotan, Alberich)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Andreas Conrad, Christian Elsner, Tomasz Konieczny, Jochen Schmeckenbecher
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 3: Was wollt ihr hier? (Alberich, Wotan, Loge)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Jochen Schmeckenbecher, Tomasz Konieczny, Christian Elsner
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 3: Habt acht! Habt acht! (Alberich, Wotan, Loge)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Jochen Schmeckenbecher, Tomasz Konieczny, Christian Elsner
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 3: Riesen-Wurm winde sich ringelnd! (Alberich, Loge, Wotan)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Jochen Schmeckenbecher, Tomasz Konieczny, Christian Elsner
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 3: Verwandlungsmusik
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 4: Da, Vetter, sitze du fest! (Loge, Alberich, Wotan)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Christian Elsner, Jochen Schmeckenbecher, Tomasz Konieczny
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 4: Wohlan, die Nibelungen rief ich mir nah' (Loge, Alberich, Wotan)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Christian Elsner, Jochen Schmeckenbecher, Tomasz Konieczny
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 4: Zu deiner Losung musst du ihn lassen (Loge, Alberich, Wotan)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Christian Elsner, Jochen Schmeckenbecher, Tomasz Konieczny
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 4: Bin ich nun frei, "Alberich's curse" (Alberich)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Jochen Schmeckenbecher
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 4: Lauschtest du seinem Liebesgruss? (Loge, Wotan, Froh, Donner, Fricka)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Christian Elsner, Tomasz Konieczny, Kor-Jan Dusseljee, Antonio Yang, Iris Vermillion
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 4: Halt! Nicht sie beruhrt! (Fasolt, Fafner, Wotan, Loge, Froh)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Günther Groissböck, Timo Riihonen, Tomasz Konieczny, Christian Elsner, Kor-Jan Dusseljee
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 4: Nicht so leicht und locker gefugt! (Fafner, Loge, Wotan, Fricka, Donner)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Timo Riihonen, Christian Elsner, Tomasz Konieczny, Iris Vermillion, Antonio Yang
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 4: Freia, die Schöne, schau' ich nicht mehr (Fasolt, Fafner, Loge, Wotan, Freia, Fricka, Froh, Donner)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Günther Groissböck, Timo Riihonen, Christian Elsner, Tomasz Konieczny, Ricarda Merbeth, Iris Vermillion, Kor-Jan Dusseljee, Antonio Yang
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 4: Weiche, Wotan, weiche! Flieh' des Ringes Fluch! (Erda, Wotan, Fricka, Froh)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Maria Radner, Tomasz Konieczny, Iris Vermillion, Kor-Jan Dusseljee
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 4: Hort, ihr Riesen! (Donner, Freia, Wotan, Fafner, Fasolt, Loge)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Antonio Yang, Ricarda Merbeth, Tomasz Konieczny, Timo Riihonen, Günther Groissböck, Christian Elsner
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 4: Furchtbar nun erfind' ich des Fluches Kraft! (Wotan, Loge, Fricka)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Tomasz Konieczny, Christian Elsner, Iris Vermillion
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 4: Schwules Gedunst schwebt in der Luft (Donner)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Antonio Yang
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 4: Zur Burg fuhrt die Brucke (Froh, Wotan, Fricka, Loge)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Kor-Jan Dusseljee, Tomasz Konieczny, Iris Vermillion, Christian Elsner
Conductor: Marek Janowski
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Scene 4: Rheingold! Rheingold! Reines Gold! (Rhinemaidens, Wotan, Loge)
Composer: Richard Wagner
Ensemble: Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin
Performer: Julia Borchert, Katharina Kammerloher, Kismara Pessatti, Tomasz Konieczny, Christian Elsner
Conductor: Marek Janowski
Featuring ⌄
Product Details ⌄
Works ⌄
A most impressive sense of drama and excitement.
So to The Ring! Marek Janowski’s epic Wagner cycle enters the final strait as it begins the great tetralogy that crowned Wagner’s life’s work. Few conductors get to record The Ring twice, but Janowski is privileged to have done so. His first recording was from Dresden in the early 1980s, the third out of only five studio Rings to be recorded. It was blessed by the phenomenal playing of the Staatskapelle Dresden and first rate digital sound captured in the city’s Lukaskirche. However, despite some excellent individual turns, the set was often hobbled by the choice of solo singers, most notably Theo Adam’s desiccated Wotan and the rather overwhelmed Brünnhilde of Jeannine Altmeyer. It is interesting that, almost for the first time in Janowski’s Berlin Wagner cycle, we can now make some informed comparisons. I’m pleased to say that this Rheingold shines up very impressively.
I haven’t always praised Janowski’s approach to Wagner’s dramas - I found his take on Tristan maddening - but this Rheingold finds him at his best. He uses his preference for fast speeds to his advantage to make the drama buzz along from one exciting episode to another, pacing the work by tapping right into the sense of quickfire elation. At times it feels as energetic as a soap opera - a compliment - and the opera’s series of conversations has seldom sounded so energised. The Prelude, for example, has a sense of expectation that can hardly wait to get started, but in spite of the fast speed I never found it rushed. The transitions between scenes seem natural and well judged, and the showpieces are never less than excellent. The descent into Nibelheim is thrilling, threatening to overwhelm the listener at the entrance of the anvils, and you can sense the fragility of the rainbow bridge in a sound that is commanding yet ephemeral. Janowski controls the sound of the orchestra impressively, too: I particularly loved the sound made by the strings during Erda’s scene, menacing with a subtle sense of decay, casting a dusky veil over her warnings.
The orchestra and the clarity of its recording have been two of the principal assets of this series, and so it proves here. They take every opportunity to reveal Wagner’s score in all its astounding, delectable colour, as if holding it up to the light for fresh examination. There are lots of highlights - the trumpet at the first appearance of the gold, the clearly delineated semiquavers on the violins as the water ripples around the rejoicing Rhinemaidens, the delicate flecks of harp as we arrive in Valhalla, the rhythmic, almost comical, swagger of the giants’ theme, the ominous brass depth of the dragon, the stunning trombones of the curse - but we can summarise it by saying that the orchestra do a magnificent job of bringing the colours of Wagner’s score to the surface. Likewise, the Pentatone engineers have captured the whole performance brilliantly, both in stereo and surround.
So what of the singing? Well, I admit this doesn’t get off to a good start, probably due to the limitations of the live concert setting. The opening is not auspicious, with a rather hollery group of Rhinemaidens and an Alberich that, initially at least, struggles with accurate pitching. However, things settle down once everyone has warmed up. The Rhinemaidens’ invocation to the gold is very effective, and Schmeckenbecher manages a thrilling renunciation of love. What is more, by this time a momentum seems to have taken over the scene, so that Alberich’s curse on love launches us headlong into the swirling eddies of the transformation music that transport us, via some daring timing from Janowski, up to the cloudy heights of Valhalla, clearly and atmospherically enunciated from the brass. Elsewhere Schmeckenbecher is fantastic in the Nibelheim scene. His fantasies of world domination are played as the furious rantings of a deranged mind and it’s very effective to listen to. However, he then sounds remarkably pitiable when he pleads for Wotan not to take the Ring from him and he sings a masterclass curse that begins as a resentful whimper but grows into a powerful denunciation.
Tomasz Konieczny is a slightly gritty Wotan. He doesn’t have the grandeur or poetic beauty of, say, Hans Hotter or, more recently, René Pape, but he is undoubtedly dramatic. This feels like a lived-in performance, not a “mere” concert. He is brilliant at depicting the god’s conflicted sense of inner dilemma. Even when he is at his most contented, surveying his new home in the final scene, you can sense the unease that plagues the god, and the sense of entrapment that encircles him in the second and fourth scenes is well worth hearing. Christian Elsner makes a slightly nasal Loge, but I found him very effective. The vocal colour reinforces his role as the outsider among the gods and helps to enrich his character as the slightly disreputable fixer among the immortals. He is delightfully derisive during the passages after Freia’s departure when the gods begin to age and his interaction with Alberich in the Nibelheim scene is a case-study of wheeling and dealing. You can even sense a touch of pity for the despairing Alberich in the fourth scene. Elsewhere among the men, Andreas Conrad makes a surprisingly humane, sympathetic Mime, and the same is true for Günther Groissböck’s Fasolt. Timo Riihonen has enough darkness in his voice to mark out Fafner as the nastier of the two brothers.
The women are also very strong, led by a marvellously imperious Fricka from Iris Vermillion. Ricarda Merbeth does a good job with what limited material she has as Freia, but Maria Radner’s Erda is extremely impressive. She actually manages to sound quite youthful, even affectionate, avoiding any of the elderly warble that sometimes afflicts singers of this role. Her warning of the “dark day” that dawns for the gods is made all the more impressive by the spellbinding playing of the orchestral strings. The trio of Rhinemaidens grow into the first scene and sound good from offstage towards the end.
So the final chunk of Janowski’s Wagner cycle has got off to a good start. I would certainly choose to listen to this Rheingold over his Dresden one, mainly because of the conductor’s more impressive sense of drama and excitement. Now let’s see how the rest of this Ring is going to unfold.
-- Simon Thompson , MusicWeb International
So to The Ring! Marek Janowski’s epic Wagner cycle enters the final strait as it begins the great tetralogy that crowned Wagner’s life’s work. Few conductors get to record The Ring twice, but Janowski is privileged to have done so. His first recording was from Dresden in the early 1980s, the third out of only five studio Rings to be recorded. It was blessed by the phenomenal playing of the Staatskapelle Dresden and first rate digital sound captured in the city’s Lukaskirche. However, despite some excellent individual turns, the set was often hobbled by the choice of solo singers, most notably Theo Adam’s desiccated Wotan and the rather overwhelmed Brünnhilde of Jeannine Altmeyer. It is interesting that, almost for the first time in Janowski’s Berlin Wagner cycle, we can now make some informed comparisons. I’m pleased to say that this Rheingold shines up very impressively.
I haven’t always praised Janowski’s approach to Wagner’s dramas - I found his take on Tristan maddening - but this Rheingold finds him at his best. He uses his preference for fast speeds to his advantage to make the drama buzz along from one exciting episode to another, pacing the work by tapping right into the sense of quickfire elation. At times it feels as energetic as a soap opera - a compliment - and the opera’s series of conversations has seldom sounded so energised. The Prelude, for example, has a sense of expectation that can hardly wait to get started, but in spite of the fast speed I never found it rushed. The transitions between scenes seem natural and well judged, and the showpieces are never less than excellent. The descent into Nibelheim is thrilling, threatening to overwhelm the listener at the entrance of the anvils, and you can sense the fragility of the rainbow bridge in a sound that is commanding yet ephemeral. Janowski controls the sound of the orchestra impressively, too: I particularly loved the sound made by the strings during Erda’s scene, menacing with a subtle sense of decay, casting a dusky veil over her warnings.
The orchestra and the clarity of its recording have been two of the principal assets of this series, and so it proves here. They take every opportunity to reveal Wagner’s score in all its astounding, delectable colour, as if holding it up to the light for fresh examination. There are lots of highlights - the trumpet at the first appearance of the gold, the clearly delineated semiquavers on the violins as the water ripples around the rejoicing Rhinemaidens, the delicate flecks of harp as we arrive in Valhalla, the rhythmic, almost comical, swagger of the giants’ theme, the ominous brass depth of the dragon, the stunning trombones of the curse - but we can summarise it by saying that the orchestra do a magnificent job of bringing the colours of Wagner’s score to the surface. Likewise, the Pentatone engineers have captured the whole performance brilliantly, both in stereo and surround.
So what of the singing? Well, I admit this doesn’t get off to a good start, probably due to the limitations of the live concert setting. The opening is not auspicious, with a rather hollery group of Rhinemaidens and an Alberich that, initially at least, struggles with accurate pitching. However, things settle down once everyone has warmed up. The Rhinemaidens’ invocation to the gold is very effective, and Schmeckenbecher manages a thrilling renunciation of love. What is more, by this time a momentum seems to have taken over the scene, so that Alberich’s curse on love launches us headlong into the swirling eddies of the transformation music that transport us, via some daring timing from Janowski, up to the cloudy heights of Valhalla, clearly and atmospherically enunciated from the brass. Elsewhere Schmeckenbecher is fantastic in the Nibelheim scene. His fantasies of world domination are played as the furious rantings of a deranged mind and it’s very effective to listen to. However, he then sounds remarkably pitiable when he pleads for Wotan not to take the Ring from him and he sings a masterclass curse that begins as a resentful whimper but grows into a powerful denunciation.
Tomasz Konieczny is a slightly gritty Wotan. He doesn’t have the grandeur or poetic beauty of, say, Hans Hotter or, more recently, René Pape, but he is undoubtedly dramatic. This feels like a lived-in performance, not a “mere” concert. He is brilliant at depicting the god’s conflicted sense of inner dilemma. Even when he is at his most contented, surveying his new home in the final scene, you can sense the unease that plagues the god, and the sense of entrapment that encircles him in the second and fourth scenes is well worth hearing. Christian Elsner makes a slightly nasal Loge, but I found him very effective. The vocal colour reinforces his role as the outsider among the gods and helps to enrich his character as the slightly disreputable fixer among the immortals. He is delightfully derisive during the passages after Freia’s departure when the gods begin to age and his interaction with Alberich in the Nibelheim scene is a case-study of wheeling and dealing. You can even sense a touch of pity for the despairing Alberich in the fourth scene. Elsewhere among the men, Andreas Conrad makes a surprisingly humane, sympathetic Mime, and the same is true for Günther Groissböck’s Fasolt. Timo Riihonen has enough darkness in his voice to mark out Fafner as the nastier of the two brothers.
The women are also very strong, led by a marvellously imperious Fricka from Iris Vermillion. Ricarda Merbeth does a good job with what limited material she has as Freia, but Maria Radner’s Erda is extremely impressive. She actually manages to sound quite youthful, even affectionate, avoiding any of the elderly warble that sometimes afflicts singers of this role. Her warning of the “dark day” that dawns for the gods is made all the more impressive by the spellbinding playing of the orchestral strings. The trio of Rhinemaidens grow into the first scene and sound good from offstage towards the end.
So the final chunk of Janowski’s Wagner cycle has got off to a good start. I would certainly choose to listen to this Rheingold over his Dresden one, mainly because of the conductor’s more impressive sense of drama and excitement. Now let’s see how the rest of this Ring is going to unfold.
-- Simon Thompson , MusicWeb International
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