Search - Richard Wagner, Julia Varady, René Kollo :: Wagner - Der Ring des Nibelungen (Ring Cycle) / Sawallisch, Bayerischer Staatsoper

A marvelous Ring

J. Luis Juarez Echenique | Mexico City | 10/27/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"We should all thank EMI for releasing in audio these sensational performances. This Ring is quite simply the best since Bohm's, with superb singers and a great conductor who really understands what these operas are all about. Hale, Behrens, Wlaschiha are all stupendous, but I have to single out the ravishing, glorious singing of Julia Varady as Sieglinde, for her alone I would buy this cycle (and at a sensational price!). No matter how many Rings you own, you should get this one immediately!"

A totally involving "real" performance

Mr. DAVID Geer | Sydney Australia | 02/28/1999

(4 out of 5 stars)

"From the very first note through to the end of Goetterdaemerung this performance constantly holds the attention. Yes it is a theatre based "real" performance, yes it is not quite as detailed as some broadcasts of the Bayreuth Ring I heard with Behrens in better voice, No I wouldn't part with it.



Sawallisch's interpretation and the orchestral playing are simply perfect. You feel the rightness of the tempos which are neither too fast nor too slow, the whole has an organic feel which would defy Mark Twains famous observation on Wagner about waiting 2 hours for 20 minutes of excitement (I paraphrase).



The singing seems right though without text it is particularly difficult to distinguish Mime from Siegfried in act one of Siegfried (surprisingly). There are other moments when perhaps a studio might have been better with a different singer. I for one however, think Hale is simply one of the best Wotans I have heard. Behrens is not in perfect voice but gives such a wonderfully intelligent performance her vocal vulnerability somehow merely enhances this. As to Varady as Sieglinde, as one reviewer above says it is an acquired taste, however one acquires the taste very quickly - it is a very Austro-Hungarian sound, but such achingly lovely warmth it is almost worth the set just to have this performance alone. (I haven't heard better even the much admired Norman pales by comparison).



The other principals seem right, with good maidens and norms. The recorded sound though good obviously does reflect the live nature of the performances, usually not enough to detract from enjoyment but occasionally the intrusion is unwelcome. The hissing of the smoke generator at the end of Walkuere being the major offender.



For the price of a ticket to just one of the 4 evenings in the theatre I really don't think you can do better than close your eyes and let the Bayerische Staatsoper carry you on the waters of the Rhine through fire and brimstone to an inevitable conclusion - back where you started, somehow enriched and cleansed on the way through by singing and playing that you would be very lucky indeed to experience in any Theatre anywhere unless you were especially lucky!



PS - The set comes with only summaries of the action rather than full texts - If you can't live without texts & translations, there is a set available through Amazon or the web has German only texts.



Feb 2008 - After rereading this review and listening to the BBC try in vain to pick more than individual widely dispersed performances for its 2008 recommended CD sets of the individual works and then whole heartedly pick Boulez/Chereau for the DVD set I have some addition words to add here. Mostly it boils down to this; when I bought this set there was little to choose from in the range of my pocket and I didn't like the Janowski much, mainly for its almost clinical precision. Since then heaps more Rings have become available and like one of the other reviewers here I would think twice now if this were to be my only set (which it still is but I know the Boulez live well from memory and was not at all surprised that got the nod for a complete DVD production. Gwyneth Jones is fantastical as Brunhilde though I also like Anne Evans for Barenboim.) The above other reviewers lengthy overview says it all I think, nevertheless when you get this out and start playing it it does take you organically to the end, which is what I said before...so, personally I also think the Goodall English Ring was simply superb in the theatre and is not at all bad on disc either so...these days I rarely have the time for the whole kit and kabbuddle and play the Walkuere Excerpts from Barenboim for Evans & Tomlinson though Secunde is not bad as Sieglinde. For Sieglinde I play Varady's recording with Hoffman and Diskeau as conductor! Good listening!"

"Blut-Bruderschaft schwore ein Eid!"

Eric S. Kim | Southern California | 05/15/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This live Ring recording might not be as good as the Karajan, Janowski, and Krauss ring, but it's not at all a hopeless wreck.



I guess you can say that Sawallisch is half-Karajan, half-Janowski. While he does stay true to the orchestral score like Janowski, he also puts in a little Karajan-like lyricism. At some points he loses track with orchestra and singers (as does every live recording) so Bohm has more control in his live bAyreuth recording. Wrong notes in this live recording won't matter, as the entire orchestra gets everything going in all four nights at the opera. The strings never surrender to imperfection, and the winds are marvelously aligned. I just wish that some of the singers would keep up with the orchestra.



Speaking of singers, they just don't match with other essential casts. I may be biased, but Robert Hale just didn't do it for me. He sounded dull and tedious, and his "Leb Wohl, du Kuhnes herrlisches Kind" wasn't enough to astound me.



Hildegard Behrens is just like Nilsson and Crespin. While she's not the best, she is definitely another perfect Brunnhilde of choice. She's at her most dazzling when she performs Siegfried. The only problem I had with her are her low notes: too stuffy and too rough.



Honorable mentions go to Robert Schunk as Siegmund and Julia Varady for Sieglinde. They do very well here, especially Varady. They never back down to tiredness, and they (almost) never lose track of the conductor.



Rene Kollo's Siegfried was a disappointment. In Janowski's version he had no flaws whatsoever when he performed in "Siegfried" and "Gotterdammerung". Here he is not good enough; his tiresome "Forging Scene" is obvious evidence of that.



Ekkehard Wlaschiha is one hell of a vigorous Alberich. I praise him in Rheingold. His performance in Siegfried could've improved with more distrustfulness towards Mime and the Wanderer.



Helmut Pampuch as Mime is just like Peter Schreier and Heinz Zednik: he's very VERY good. Nuff said.



Robert Tear as Loge is on par with Gerhard Stolze and Heinz Zednik. Sometimes he takes things too low, but all is forgiven with his management of character development.



As for everyone else, they do a splendid job. The biggest problems I have with this recording are unintentionally loud noises on the theater stage. Yes, loud stomps and thuds and crashes are heard in other live recordings, also, but this one really irritated me. They were louder than most recordings. Noises aside, Sawallisch's Ring is recommendable if you're looking for live performances. And you could also try Boulez and Krauss. Neuhold I've haven't heard yet, but I heard it's also a great live one."