Richard Wagner

This should clinch it: Jonas Kaufmann is the pre-eminent Wagner tenor of this generation. (Slated to sing Manrico soon, and judging from his Werther, he may just be the pre-eminent tenor, period.) For those who haven’t heard him, the voice is dark and manly, with easy ascents above the staff at all dynamic ranges (including some crooning that can become more like a mannerism than a service to the music), a top that rings loud and clear, phrasing that confirms great musicianship, a smooth legato, and flawless diction.

This is a fine album for Wagner fans who want to check out the composer's non-operatic output. The Symphony in C (written at age 19) may be familiar, and is actually available in other CDs. However, the Symphony in E, Wagner's uncompleted creation from age 21, may not. This CD features Wagner's 1882 revision of the Symphony in C which was performed two months before his death. Wagner completed the first movement of the Symphony in E but only 29 bars of the second movement. In 1887, a performance version based on these 29 bars was prepared by conductor Felix Mottl at the request of Wagner's widow Cosima. This performance version of the second movement is included on this disk.

Richard Wagner - Parsifal (2012) [4CD BoxSet] {PentaTone Classics}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 0.99 Gb | MP3 @320 -> 601 Mb
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© 2012 PentaTone Classics / Deutschlandradio Kultur | PTC 5186 401
Classical / Orchestral / Opera

The third issue in PentaTone's ambitious project to record ten mature Wagner operas by the time of the composer's bicentenary in 2013 proves to be the finest so far released. The live recording was made on April 8, 2011 in the Philharmonie, Berlin, with an exceptional international cast of soloists under the direction of Marek Janowski and the superb contribution of the Rundfunkchor, Berlin, a vital component in the success of this undertaking… From the opening bars of the Prelude one is struck by the luminous and pellucid sonic quality that the engineers have achieved. The ethereal string playing benefits from the unexpectedly spacious acoustic, and when the brass enter they are rich and weighty in tone. Janowski imparts a wonderful sense of purpose to the music and the clarity of execution that he achieves from his orchestra is remarkable.

Wagner's genius is often associated with his unique feeling for orchestration. Yet the transcriptions and paraphrases for piano solo recorded here lay bare the beauty and boldness of his harmonic language, with an evocative power unrivalled at the time. Nikolai Lugansky, at once narrator and virtuoso, immerses us in a world where the heroes of legend tell us - and with what loftiness of spirit! - of the torments and aspirations of humanity.

This 1928 recording–with several cuts, particularly in the last act, which is cut in half–is a great curiosity. (As a bonus, the third CD, after the abbreviated last act, contains about 40 minutes of the last act in an excellent 1927 performance starring Walter Widdop and Gota Ljungberg and a brief but enlightening discussion of Wagner's leitmotifs and their uses by scholar Ernest Newman.) The two leads, Gunnar Graarud as Tristan and Nanny Larsen-Todsen as Isolde, are more lyric-voiced singers than we're used to in this music, and so the performance seems somehow more intimate (I doubt they would have been as effective in the theater as they are on this recording). Anny Helm is a thrilling Brangaene, and the others are good.

Bailey's … is the most rounded portrayal to date … the set as a whole is a considerable achievement, a worthy addition to the Decca/Solti Wagner discograohy.

When we turn to live recordings, we enter another world, one in which the performances have, on the whole, a greater consistency of thought and execution. That applies in spades to the famous Bayreuth set of 1966. Karl Böhm's swift, incandescent, very theatrical interpretation isn't to everyone's liking. Yet, for all the fast speeds, the charge of superficiality is misplaced. Böhm's direct, cogently thought through reading, in which tempo relationships, inner figures (as one might expect from a Mozart and Strauss specialist), and instrumental detail are all carefully exposed and related to each other, offers rich rewards. Expressive intensity is here married ideally to a transparency of texture.

Sir George Solti's renditions of Wagner's operas often defined the standard interpretation practice in the post-World War II musical world, and he is at his best in this late 1980s digitally mastered recording partnered with his long-time collaborators, the Vienna Philharmonic–perhaps the most emotionally satisfying orchestra in the world for these challenging scores. Domingo, in the title role, shows himself as a true Heldentenor (i.e. a baritone with high notes), and his earlier weakness in German diction is not apparent. Norman's Elsa is musically perfect though at times a bit chilly and distant. The mature compassion of the role of Henry the Fowler is admirably captured by Sotin.

Lise Davidsen has recorded Wagner’s Der fliegende Holländer in a live performance at her home opera house, Oslo. Her first full length opera recording on Decca Classics. These live performances were the only time she will ever perform the role of Senta, and this album forms an important part of her future legacy. Gerald Finley stars as The Dutchman, a role in which he has won international acclaim for his superb acting and lieder-like vocal finesse. The concert marked the inauguration of Edward Gardner as the new Music Director at Oslo Opera House.