Search - Max Lorenz, Berlin Philharmonic, Bayreuth Orchestra :: Legendary Wagner Singers of the 1930s (Telefunken Legacy Series)

A mandatory set for Wagnerians and lovers of great singing. Here are some of the leading lights of German opera in recordings made between 1929 and 1939. The absence of the great Wagnerians of the period, such as Melchior, Schorr Lieder, and Flagstad, should trouble no one, since their recordings are easily available and their lesser-known contemporaries are very close to their exalted level. It would be hard to imagine, for example, better Wagnerian baritones than Rudolf Bockelmann, whose big, bold voice is compelling in arias from Tannh&aauml;user and Das Rheingold, and Herbert Janssen, who marries a beautiful voice to verbal sensitivities that make his Tannh&aauml;user excerpts so overwhelming. The set abounds in terrific tenors, too--Franz Völker, whose magnificent Lohengrin excerpts are highlights; Helge Roswaenge, whose bright, forward voice makes "Am stillen Herd" from Die Meistersinger another highlight; and the often erratic but always passionate Max Lorenz, heard in the Ring excerpts. There are welcome surprises as well. Baritone Hans Reinmar's Sachs and Wotan may lack the tonal colors of his rivals, but he sings with feeling and sensitivity. Willi Storring's Siegfried scenes are done in a gleaming, thrustful, lighter voice than we're used to, but it's no less effective, even matching Lorenz, whose recordings of the scene follow. The women are almost as good--the famed Konetzni sisters, Maria Müller, and Maria Reining (especially touching in "Euch Lüften" from Lohengrin all contribute mightily. Bryan Crimp's transfers are superb, taming distortion and rendering the voices with a weight and presence that defy time. --Dan Davis