Here are the items that we found.
Featured Artist
Sylvia Fisher
This week, I came across a fascinating series of recordings featuring the great Australian soprano Sylvia Fisher.
Fisher was beloved for her gleaming, silvery soprano, ideally suited to the demands of Richard Wagner, as well as for the clarity of diction that made her an ideal proponent of Britten’s operas, particularly in the title role of Gloriana. Her recorded legacy is comparatively limited, making surviving broadcasts and live performances especially valuable documents of an important dramatic soprano.
Sylvia Fisher
New Titles Added
120 New "Coming Soon" Titles
I have added 120 new titles to our “Coming Soon” collection, including several recordings that have never been available before.
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Bach (J.C.): Lucio Silla
Gaifa, Geszty, Varady, Hermann; Kehr. Schwetzingen, 1974
Britten: Albert Herring
MacDonald, Fischer, Sinclair, Vyvyan; Davies. English Opera Group, 1962
Britten: Gloriana
Fisher, Hillman, Garrard, Hammond-Stroud, Andrew; Bernardi. Aldeburgh, 1968
Charpentier: Louise
Neblett, Alexander, Devlin, Bible, Riegel, Densen; Wendelkon-Wilson. 1971
Massenet: Thaïs
Pilou, Edwards, Riegel; Buckley. Miami, 1976
Spotlight: Ernst Kozub
From Our Collectors
Five-Star Reviews
Opera lovers share their discoveries from the catalogue.
Un superbe Otello
“Magnifique version, malgré un son parfois confus et quelques coupures. On connaissait déjà Ramon Vinay, Otello de référence, et on découvre Gino Becchi, Iago démoniaque (peut-être un peu trop parfois), et Maria Caniglia, Desdémone incandescente. Et la direction vive et dramatique de Victor de Sabata réalise une synthèse unique de Furtwängler et Toscanini, tous deux enregistrés dans cette même œuvre.”
Karajan on the top
“This is an interesting document of Maestro von Karajan‘s Salzburg TRISTAN. His conducting and the playing of the Berlin Philharmonic are fabulous! The musical texture of this incomparable masterwork is transparent in a way that makes astonish.Vickers is a wonderful Tristan, but at the end of act three his voice is nearly at an end. Dernesch makes great impression with her Isolde, but is not able to hold on the last note of the Liebestod, which is very disappointing.Ludwig and Berry are top, so is Ridderbusch as Marke.Luxury is also present at the small parts with perfect performances of Peter Schreier, Gerhard Unger and Bernd Weikl.The sound is good.”
Superb Performance in Excellent Sound!
“God love Wolfgang Windgassen! He had left Bayreuth briefly and had to dash back to replace a suddenly indisposed Ramon Vinay. His singing itself is excellent (though the part really lies too low for him), yet it's also obvious he hadn't rehearsed with Knappertsbusch before the performance. He had a habit of getting ahead of the beat anyway and here it happens several times (the most glaring instance is during "Ein Schwert verhiess mir der Vater" in Act One.) In all fairness, Windgassen isn't the only one who has some trouble staying in sync with the orchestra. Brouwenstijn (a glorious Sieglinde and a fine musician) gets behind Knappertsbusch's beat a few times. This isn't all the singers' fault since the great Kna doesn't always seem to have his mind on the performance. Nevertheless Act Three is a triumph. By taking the infamous Ride of the Valkyries slower than usual he gives the singers a better opportunity to articulate the text and the laughs which are usually slurred or messy at a faster tempo.The Usual Suspects (Varnay, Hotter, Greindl, and Milinkovic) are all terrific and very involved. The Valkyrie ensemble boasts some very fine voices. The sound is excellent; only a brief moment of file corruption (clicking) in the last minute of Act Two is disappointing (Disc 2 has an exceptionally long playing time). I would have preferred Andy spread the performance over four discs to eliminate the problem.Onto Siegfried!”
My Response to the Siegfried-Brünnhilde Review
“Thank you Opera Depot for my Bayreuther Siegfried Brünnhlde. I am overjoyed that my Brünnhilde has not been lost forever in oblivion and overwhelmed by the wonderful review of my performance. Thank you deeply for your kind words. I must respond, however, in order to correct history and the long journey of my career! When I began my career in the opera world, I had just graduated from college. Over the next years, singing Elektra and Salome in my early 20’s, I received excellent, positive press. But there was also criticism that I, in their opinion, was singing on my natural, uneducated voice and the consensus of this opinion was that I was going to ruin my voice within two years. The truth is that I had studied voice since I was 11 yrs., training with the best vocal technique, maintaining that a voice has to be trained so well, that finally it would sound “natural”. I have survived a good number of years and have retained the lightness, range and technique in my singing - at last count, c. 165 Elektras, 160 Salomes, 70 Färberins, 65 Ortruds, etc. Wolfgang Wagner engaged me personally, having heard my Färberin in Nürnberg.Although I suffered in Bayreuth from incessant intrigues without manager, record company, agent, Horst Stein was wonderfully supportive. As GMD at the Hamburg State Opera, I was engaged for 9 yrs. and sang many memorable performances under his baton (Elektra, Senta, Ortrud, etc.) www.brendaroberts.net”
Brian Morgan
“In 1966, Anja Silja recorded excerpts, in German translation, of \""Tosca,\"" for Decca, under Lorin Maazel. However, the only time the singing-actress sang the opera on-stage was in 1975, in Italian, in a production by Jean-Pierre Ponnelle.This reviewer has heard many performances of \""Tosca,\"" and this \""live\"" recording is one of the most exciting of his experience. Mme Silja, devoid of a \""beautiful\"" voice, is almost intolerably intense as the diva of the title, and we can be grateful to Opera Depot for publishing this set.The remainder of the cast are very fine, and the conducting of the late, underrated Klauspeter Seibel is first-rate.”
A Giovanni for the ages
“One of the best - of many - performances of the opera that I have ever come across. Whilst individual performances or playing or conducting might (pace Wunderlich, Price and Berry) be more stylish, dramatic, accurate on other recording, as a complete all-round, ensemble experience this takes the laurel.”
Excellent performance
“This is a fine studio performance from the BBC in Manchester from 1976. The singing from all the cast is very fine, with standouts being Lorna Haywood as Adriano and John Mitchinson in the title role. However, the star is Edward Downes, a much under-recorded conductor, who holds this mighty, sprawling piece together and transforms it into a gripping drama.”
Daniel Zara
“If you forget about it being Wagner, you can enjoy this as a wonderfully tuneful, very dramatic, robustly sung Italianate 5-acter. The less than state-of-the-present-art sound somehow adds a certain attractive clunky panache to the proceedings, a sort of street-band oompah. All the singers sound at high peak, with Di Stefano especially stentorian, rock-steady, and full out.”
Excellent and reliable Seller: definitely recommended.
“«Un Ballo in Maschera» (one of the most beautiful M° Verdi’s Operas) needs a refined and incisive Conductor, and M° Rudel stands out in particular for the very attentive accompaniment of the Singers and the sensitive knowledge of the Italian Romantic vocal style, in which are distinguished Mme Rolandi in the risky role of Oscar, sung with a very remarkable technique and brilliant characterisation; and M° Elvira, for his beautiful soft-tone voice, appropriate for the several emotions of the noble and troubled role of Renato.”
Sensitive Tosca
“Under the many Toscas I heard live Pilar Lorengar was the most sensitive one.She has sung this role many toimes at Deutsche Oper Berlin, and often her partners were F.Tagliavini and Wixell, under the direction of Maazel. So the record is a wonderful evidence for harmony and quality of the performances at DOB.”
A Stunning Jenufa
“I was at this actual performance and it was wonderful! Pauline Tinsley as always was fantastic and her performance of the Kostelnicka was the best I have ever seen! She was the DEFINITIVE Kostelnicka, Her first appearance was electrifying, when Steva and company were making merry in a drunken revelry, she strode in, leapt upon the table and stopped them all with her first words and a withering glance. In Act II after she had murdered Jenufa's baby she took on a petrified and terrorised motion brought to a climax when the window crashed open! The recording quality is superb almost like a recent one. Thank you so much Andy. For those of you who are not familiar with the voice of Pauline Tinsley, go and buy it. You will hear a revelation and want more of this great lady who is now 89 years of age and a personal friend.”
very interesting perfomance
“I don't know yet, we have so many recordings that in takes some time until the new purchases are heard. But being a Britten-fan, living in Vienna and having heard Dallapozza many times in live performances, it's fine to get a performance which is completely new for me.”
Richard
“The sound on this release IS fantastic, brilliant and clear as a bell. Sutherland is in 95% best form. This was her debut with the Australian Opera, and the pressure must have been immense. The Ds and Ebs are not her very best–she had sung the same roles just 5 weeks earlier at the Met with not the slightest difficulty, but there are some slightly tentative sounds at the very top. This does not detract from the astounding flash of the Doll Song. People who are used to the CRAWL through this aria heard over the past two decades will be amazed to hear the most difficult lines tossed off with abandon, dazzle, beauty and speed. Sutherland’s Giulietta was always underestimated, for she sang the duet with the tenor with passion and force, as she does here. The performance highlight is her Antonia. She sounds possessed in the great trio, never losing tonal beauty, but singing with great energy, warmth and volume. Unfortunately, this is possibly the crudest bunch of male voices with which she ever sang. Wilden and Raymond Myers (who yells all four villains) sing in an unyielding forte throughout–and Wilden’s “Aimé, Dieu puissant” high B in the Doll Scene has to be heard to be believed. Graeme Ewer’s servants are so overdrawn that one wishes Dr. Miracle would finish him off as well. Luckily, Tourangeau, in perhaps her best role, is in wonderful form, and her natural French dialogue is a rebuke to the overacting men.I absolutely recommend this to any Sutherland fan or to the many people who think that today’s Olympias and Antonias have any real virtuosity. The track markings, hélas, are bad. For example, the Doll Song is buried in a half-hour track which includes Coppélius’ and Nicklausse’s arias, plus the entrance of the chorus and Olympia herself. However, in Act III, “Elle a fui”, which begins in the same track as the spoken introduction, has two tracks within the aria itself, each time there is a pause–three separate tracks for a two-verse aria!If you want to hear one of the true greats of the world of song working at her almost-best, do not be deterred by any of my complaints. You will hear a feast of great singing from her, some wonderful work by Tourangeau, exciting conducting by Bonynge (there is enormous clout in his pacing of the Antonia trio, for example), all in magnficent sonics. It is worth the modest price for Joan alone.”
Dag Lyndel
“Three very great Brünnhildes, Lindholm and Ligendza both Swedish. I have made music together with Ligendza’s parents, they were during 30 years leading singers at the Royal Opera in Stockholm and sang everything from operetta to Tristan and Brünnhilde! Nice people. Ligendza did not cancel in Stockholm, so I have heard her in a complete Ring, and as Elisabeth and Elsa. I was impressed, indeed.Lindholm is a favourite of mine. She has a fanpage on http://www.facebook.se and on http://www.wikipedia.se you can find a very impressive discography of hers, almost complete. I will add the Walküre in this Ring soon!Schröder-Feinen was world famous when she got a severe depression and when cured after some years no opera house dared to engage her, afraid of cancellations.”
Conductor and ladies first !
“Schippers is always a success in Aida, this one as a testament with a transcended orchestra. Cruz-Romo in a great night, Bumbry still sensational, Gugalov not ideal with italian and timbre not constantly seduces but musician, Wixell at his best.”
None
“I cannot review it as of this time because I haven’t listened to it yet and have no idea about when I will do so. It may be a month or years. I have hundreds of CDs I haven’t listened to yet.”
A TOSCA FOR THE TIMES…but beware it’s ½ step Sharp!
“For the first time I was disappointed in OPERA DEPOT. The historical significance of this performance cannot be denied (hence the 5 Star rating!). It being an “In-house” recording (actually an In-Tent recording!), the sound quality is what it is. BUT if one is going to sell something then one SHOULD repair what is repairable. The copy I received was almost ½ step (semi-tone) sharp. This can be fixed and should have been or, at the very least, it should be noted in the description. That being said, this is a welcome addition to the STEBER canon. Cassilly & Cassel are documented in a performance that is truly extraordinary and overseen by the amazing Robert LaMarchina. Definitely a keeper!”
JÁNOS KÁDÁR
“Excellent performance (with the traditional cuts) due to the wonderful singers and the legendary conductor. Gwyneth Jones shows herself here a true Verdian singer with a crystal clear voice, wonderful pianos and full of passion. Cossotto gives her usual quality in one of here best roles and Sereni is a very good count. His famous aria, "Il balen del suo sorriso" is sung very fine. Mc Cracken makes also a good job as Manrico."Di quella pira" and the final scene are the high points of his performance. But according to my opinion the hero of this performance is the conductor. In the hands of Argeo Quadri this well-known opera takes a new lease of life.”
Date Correction
“Further to my review above, I spoke with Margaret Curphey today and she confirmed that the recording will have been taken on 29 September 1977, which was her first public performance of the Siegfried Brünnhilde. Perhaps the cover might be corrected for the future. It's a wonderful disc: thanks again for issuing.”
Eda-Pierre excels
“This is a splendid rendition of Delibes' opera, almost as good as Opera Depot's Ruth Welting recording. Christiane Eda-Pierre is more of a Flower Duet Lakmé than a Bell Song one, but her limpid tones and sinuous phrasing put her near the forefront. It does not hurt that she is surrounded by first-rate colleagues as well, making the opera more of an ensemble piece than usual. John Stewart's liquid, sweet tenor is just about ideal for Gérald and Jacques Mars is a fine *basse chantante,* at his best in Lakmé, ton doux regard. William Elvin is a sympathetic Frédéric, and orchestra and chorus give conductor David Lloyd-Jones their best. I can't think of a single reason *not* to have this recording. Even if you are deathly allergic to Delibes, this might change your mind.”
Gene in LA
“I had the good fortune to see the New York City Opera’s production in L.A., with Norman Bailey as Sachs, Johanna Meier as Eva and the great, greatly-missed John Alexander as Walther. Julius Rudel conducted. I believe NYCO was borrowing the English National Opera production, done in Andrew Porter’s English as The Mastersinger. It was quite possibly the greatest single opera performance I’ve ever seen.”
Theodore Shulman
“A very beautiful, note-perfect MEISTERSINGER. Gundula Janowitz is like no other Eva, unbelievably beautiful, like the sound you get when you dip your finger in wine and then stroke the edge of the glass, that eerie, penetrating harmonic. Franz Crass as Pogner is also very beautiful, lyric. Sandor Konya completes the poetical, lyric-sounding cast”
An Extraordinary performance
“There’s so much to enjoy in this recording. First of all, it’s one of the most gripping, dramatic performances that you could wish for. How glorious it must have been to have sat in the Festspielhaus that evening. The orchestral playing is thrilling throughout and Erich Leinsdorf (a hugely underrated Wagnerian) has a complete grasp of the opera’s shape and structure. Then there’s Gwyneth Jones, who sings both Venus and Elizabeth - an amazing feat few if any others have attempted. At this point in her career she was brilliantly able to characterise the two opposing female characters, finding an astonishing pure tone for Elizabeth in Act II, after an Act I Venus that is sultry, wild and passionate. The dramatic aspect of this performance is utterly absorbing and having one woman sing both roles somehow gives a humanity to Tannhauser’s own struggles over which path he should choose. There’s a wonderful Wolfram to enjoy too from a young Bernd Weikl and a sonorous Landgrave form Hans Sotin, one of my favourite Wagner singers. As for the Tannhauser, I was intrigued to hear Hugh Beresford, whose voice was unknown to me. I had read that his performance was booed by the audience, but this recording cuts out the audience reaction, so the extent of any displeasure is impossible to judge. Beresford (who only died two years ago in his mid 90s) had a long career as a baritone, before moving up to a Heldentenor. He sings with great clarity and intensity on this recording and never holds back, although the vocal strain of the role begins to show quite a bit in Act III. But that is not unusual and there’s something compelling about his performance throughout. He does not play safe. The lasting glories of this recording however are Jones’s stupendous characterisations of Venus and Elizabeth and Leinsdorf’s magnificent interpretation of an opera many now regard as problematic. This is the most viscerally exciting Tannhauser I have heard.”
Wonderful Ariadne.
“It doesn't get any better than Karl Boehm conducting Leonie Rysanek in Ariadne, and with James King as Bacchus and Tatiana Troyanos as the Composer - wow! I prefer a Slavic voice as Zerbinetta (Edita Gruberova in several recordings) , but the New York-born Scovotti sang this at the MET when I was a kid, and she is brilliant, just missing the top note at the end of her big aria. The sound from the Opera Depot is 1967 FM radio quality, so not as good as Rysanek's 1960s recording with Leinsdorf on RCA, but the cast are wonderful and the voices shine through.”
The date of this performance...
“According to the Royal Opera Archives, this was surely the broadcast of the UK premiere 2 December 1963 [not 13 December 1966 as stated]. The cast is identical to that provided by Andy.As far as I can ascertain, the opera in this production was only presented in 1963 and again in December 1964, with largely -but not completely- the same cast. It does not seem to have been revived in 1966.Small points, made out of respect to the singers: I should point out that the Police Inspector is the Canadian baritone Robert SAVOIE (not Sovie...add a 't' and that name would indeed have been topical!) Also that the 2nd Workman is DANIEL McCoshen (not David). Despite being the inferior, revised version -forced upon Shostakovich by Stalin's government- this is a marvelous, musically and dramatically vital performance of an important opera, in excellent sound, with every singer giving their all!”
Corelli als Jose ist immer ein Erlebnis
“Corelli als Jose ist unübertroffen und hier ist eine von seinem besten späteren Carmen.Cortez und Bruscantini machen tolles Job auch, Oliviero De Fabritiis ist ,wie immer, absolut perfekt.Sound ok( es gibt keinen besonderen Wahl - entweder sind die Sängern gut oder ist das Sound gut. Seltener trifft das sich zusammen)”
Celine Papizewska
“This is a fantastic recording of two great Wagnerians. I literally fell in love with the Tristan of this recording. Oh! In ACT III, I wanted to cradle his suffering self in my arms! And Moedl is a force of nature on this. No, this is not a recording of vocal purity, but of untrammeled passion. Me? I like the passion.”
GIOACHINO ROSSINI'S SEMIRAMIDE
“I AM TERRIBLY SORRY FOR THE TYPO MISTAKES... SO... SEMIRAMIDE IS JOAN SUTHERLAND AND JOAN SUTHERLAND IS SEMIRAMIDE. A(NOTHER) MUST HAVE! THE TENOR'S NAME IS RAIMONDI, NOT ROLANDI. THANK YOU SO MUCH!”
Pleasant surprise
“To be honest I bought the set for Ernst Kozub (and he made me wish Siegmund was a longer role). I’d never heard of Dvorakova, or of Fliether—and I was pleasantly surprised with both of them. Sound is fine.”
A fantastic Tristan
“I am amazed by how wonderful is this performance. I think it is one of Nilsson's best ever Isoldes. But the revelation is Helge Brilioth as Tristan. He is a singer I much admire, and the best acted Siegfried I have ever seen. But he surpasses himself in this Tristan. And the quality of the recording is superb. NImsgern is also a wonderful Kurvenal. In fact the only performance which is not superb - but still perfectly adequate - is Beverly Wolff as Brangaene who doesn't quite match the heights of a Ludwig or Minton. But this is definitely now one of my favourite recordings of the opera. Mehta is quite fast, but passionate and exciting.”
Female Oberon
“In my humble opinion, Britten's A Midsummer Night's Dream is the greatest English opera since Peter Grimes, and one of the greatest of Shakespeare operatic adaptations. But I am biased. I was Moth (and later Cobweb) over a period of three years from the London performances with Solti onwards. I have the distinct recollection of a nightmare moment when the gauze curtain failed to rise on the final scene of Act III, leaving the fairies uncertain whether to sing "Now, now the hungry lion roars". Disaster was averted by the stern tones of Ms Veasey (as Oberon) hissing "SING!!!!!", and we obeyed the command. Ms Veasey may have been a late replacement for countertenor Grayston Burgess.This did not occur at Covent Garden or Edinburgh, so it must have been at the New Theatre Coventry or the Grand Theatre Leeds - and definitely before 1966 because I was a tenor by then! I don't believe any of us thought a mezzo Oberon felt quite 'right', no matter how well it was sung. As someone has already pointed out, the other-worldly quality was missing. There had been much fuss about the importation of Russell Oberlin (what a lovely guy he was!) but he sang it superbly in 1961. It is his sweet but clarion voice I hear in my head, even today.”
Joseph Brand
“This is amazing. Despite its age the singers seem to leap out of the speakers into your room and though there are stage noises one is aware this is a living real performance of stature. For lovers of this masterpiece these cds are essential. It was probably the 1st ever performance of the complete Boris without any input from Rimsky. But more than that it seems to contain every note Mussorgsky wrote for the different versions even if that means hearing some of the music twice. I actually saw one of these 1958 performances and I can tell you it was shattering. The whole cast is superb and Christoff beyond praise. The overall sound is remarkable.”
Karl Heinz Konrad
“Leider ist der 1. Akt nicht vorhanden. Trotzdem war es genussvoll die besten Sänger der damaligen Zeit zu geniessen. Kozub, Lindholm und Varnay in einer Aufführung -- was will man mehr?”
One of the best live sounds I have ever heard
“Apart from the outstanding cast (singers, orchestra, conductor, and so on), the sound is really amazing, probably the best one I have ever heard in a live recording. Totally recommended, even if this is going to be your first Ring version or if you already own a dozen of them.”
Milanov and Corelli--An Enigmatic “Tosca"
“Milanov is magnificently fragile, passionate and imperious while Corelli’s heroic ardor is beautifully nuanced. Guelfi provides a more than adequate Scarpia. There is a “Tosca” for most every taste but the enigmatic teaming of Milanov and Corelli makes this performance a superb choice.”
PAVAROTTI IS HOT, SILLS NOT SO MUCH
“This very interesting performance combines the star quality of Beverly Sills, then at the height of her powers after breaking into international celebrity, with a glimpse of the growing talents of Luciano Pavarotti. The tenor was hardly “unknown,” as he had made his debut at the Metropolitan Opera the previous year to good notices, but he was then seen as a tenore di grazia, with his burst into international fame two years in the future. Sills is in good voice, with accurate fioriture and high notes full of sparkling color. But her voice, as always, was rather small, heard more to advantage in smaller houses like her NYCO home, and during recitatives and low-lying passages one has to strain to hear her. The beginning of the Mad Scene is an example. Pavarotti by contrast has the larger voice and more vivid personality, and there is a telling moment when he takes over the melody in the Act One duet “Veranno a te.” The melody lies right in the tenor’s most honeyed register, and you can hear him leaning into it, his voice audibly filling the hall. The audience’s reaction amps up here, and at each subsequent time Pavarotti is on stage. In Act Three he throws a ferocious curse at Lucia, and while the audience gives a generous reception to Sills’s Mad Scene, Pavarotti’s intense rendition of “Frà poco me ricovero” audibly brings the house down. House baritone Roberto Banuelas is a strong Enrico, his voice picking up tenor-like qualities on the high notes. The recording is a good document of the live performance, with a helpful track list.”
Considering this was a touring
“Considering this was a touring production, it was excellent. Meant to present Neblett's voluptuous voice and form it did so on both counts. Her's was the best sung Thais I've ever heard. I heard it in Baltimore. I was told her form was best in New Orleans where the production originated. It would be! Patrick was excellent as was the rest of the cast”
John Stanton
“Rysanek and King were both nearing 50 by the time of this concert but their luminous voices were undeminished. To quibble: the Tosca excerpts have King sounding more like Sigmund than Cavaradossi, his E Luvevan Le Stelle is a Wagnerian primeval cry than the sad sexual fantasy that is. The bronze voice nonetheless rings out most impressively. Rysanek makes a moving Tosca, singing with glorious tone and long phrases. (Although she disappointingly cuts the final phrases of Vissi D'Arte short robbing them of much of the poignancy. She is heard to better advantage in this in the 1953 German version, available from Opera Depot)The second disc devoted to Wagner is superb.The concert is interspersed with orchestral offerings from opera, making this altogether a most enjoyable concert.The sound is excellent.”
long awaited on CD
“Back in the stone ages I purchased this recording on VHS. Back then VHS recordings of live performances were just getting started. Needless to say the video quality was dreadful. The sound quality however was not. I am delighted to now have this performance on CD in excellent sound quality. Granted Tebaldi and Corelli were nearing the end of their prime but hey! They are who they are! One big reason I was glad to have a CD of this was I adored the way Corelli sang "O BEL OCCHI DI FATA!" by Denza. This is NOT available on any CD of his whether studio or live until now. Thanks Opera Depot for making an old lady very happy.”
Grand Discovery
“This is a superb performance of the Donizetti Comedy with Bonisolli and Grist in their youthful prime supported by the great Corena in one of his Buffo roles. The sound is very good, if a little boxy, but then that is to be expected given that it is live and the period. I never tire of listening to Com' e gentile followed by Tornami a dir. They blend beautifully in the latter, and I have never heard a better version of it..Sometimes we read about mannerisms of Bonislllis singing in the 80s but in a live concert in 1988 in Vienna he does Com' e gentil (Two verses), and Pourqoi me reveiller from Werther in the same lyric fashion as the Pasquale The only quibble I had with him in the later years was the annoying habit of interpolating high Cs where they did not seem right.. However that is a debate for another time. To sum up--A delightful performance which I'm so happy to own.”
Nicholas Allen
“I saved up to travel to London to attend Jurinac's debut as MNrschallin after 20 years as "The Octavian of the Century". I should add that the great Luchino Visconti directed subtly in stunning art nouveau sets. In a telegram afterwards, Hofmannsthal's son acclaimed Jurinac's warmly humoured Marschallin as the closest ever to his father's intentions - a very Maria Theresia-like interpretation as opposed to Schwarzkopf's all-too Parisian version which never received acclaim in Vienna - lovely but wrong. It was a great evening. Sadly, Decca enforced Regine Crespin on Solti for the commercial recording so this is doubly welcome! Thankyou.”
Thrilling
“This is a very exciting performance of Trovatore, everyone is in fine voice, and the conducting by David Atherton is highly energized while also alert to the poetics of the score. Listen to the winds doubling Leonora in the second iteration of her theme in the concertato, as one example. Elizabeth Vaughan is a name new to me, and sings splendidly, with absolute technical assurance in this difficult role; more, she convinces that Leonora's erotic longing for Manrico is the driving force behind the drama (listen to her arching phrases in "Tacea la notte"!). Quibbles: Gorr lacks a trill in "Stride la vampa " (so do many); MacNeil (what a voice!) is rhythmically uncertain at times. McCracken is a pertinent and confident Manrico, and Michael Langdon a marvelous Ferrando. Altogether, a delightful surprise.”
Thomas Newby
“I have had this performance for more than thirty years from many soources, but the sound has never been this good. I purchased ten albums, but this was the best of all. I would say that the recordings was worth a great deal more than I paid.”
Memorable Salome first night
“This was the premiere of a new Salome directed by Wieland Wagner. His relation to Anja Silja was well-known, and it would prove that he had less than one year to live. Several of the singers take their roles also in other recorded performances, but I found this to be well worth adding to my collection. It is well conducted and in good broadcast sound (although I don't hear it as stereo).Nils-Göran”
Glorious Ring recording.
“I have close to 50 Ring cycles and numerous one-offs of individual Ring operas in my collection. A number of them are great performances featuring many of the singers in this Ring from Bayreuth in 1958 conducted by Hans Knappertsbusch, my favorite conductor for all things Wagnerian and Brucknerian.This cycle is hands down the one I will listen to in my last hours on Earth this time around.I won't belabor the details of this superlative (dare I say perfect) cast.Knappertsbusch conducts like Odin Himself were on the podium. Equal to his contribution are the performances of Hotter Windgassen, Vickers, Madeira, Greindl, Varnay, Rysanek, Stolze, Gorr, Andersson, Grümmer... There isn't a weak link anywhere in the singing cast.Die Walküre and Siegfried are amazingly well-done, esp Act I of the former and Acts 1&2 of the latter. There is no better Siegmund than the young Jon Vickers. This is Rysanek's greatest Sieglinde by my reckoning. And Windgassen was in astounding form in 1958.Varnay sounds younger and more vigorous than ever, surpassing her work for Krauss in 1953. Hotter IS Odin; dangerous and unapproachable but deeply moving in Act 2 of Walküre and a frightening force to be reckoned with during the riddle scene in Siegfried.Greindl's call to his Viking vassals is hair-raising, thrilling, better even that Matti Salminen for Janowski I and Levine.I won't go on. If you are a Wagnerian you must buy this. I don't know the provenance of the Opera Depot recording but it is in outstanding clear and immediate sound. The voices/stage/pit balances are perfect. The audience all but aurally invisible, no tuberculosis ward nonsense.”
Elektra
“An excellent performance. Mostly a cast I have never heard of, but excellent singing. Recording quality very good for a live 1977 production. The only recording I know of sung in English. Highly recommended.”
Very exciting performance
“I was immediately struck by how exciting this performance is. The singing, conducting and playing are all first rate. It’s too bad there was not a commercial recording with this cast. But fortunately, we have this live recording in perfectly acceptable sound. Other reviewers have commented on Cristina Deutekom. It’s true that the way she produced her coloratura is a little odd, but I have always found her thrilling. I don’t know how I missed this recording until now.”
Another memorable Parsifal from Kna!
“Hans Knappertsbusch owned the Bayreuth Parsifal podium following the post-war reopening of the Festspielhaus. This is another first-rate performance demonstrating his attention to detail in each bar along with his grasp of Wagner's extended dramatic paragraphs. Yes, the overall timing is slow compared to later versions, but the incandescent beauty of the score is well conveyed. Windgassen is slightly more baritonal than one would expect from his forays as Siegfried, he has the part thoroughly under control, and he injects true drama into his portrayal. Mödl is a strong yet feminine Kundry - the hysterical pain of her 2nd Act cry of lachte is heart-wrenching. Hans Hotter's Amfortas is spectacular, beautifully sung, acted with conviction. Compared to his usual granitic bass turns as Hagen and Hunding, Greindl is a warm and sympathetic Gurnemanz, lyrical in the Karfreitag scene. Neidlinger, as always, clearly conveys Klingsor's malice and self-loathing. The recording is very good: the microphone placing was most fortunate in capturing both singers and orchestra in good 1954 mono sound, and the mastering for CD is excellent. Even if you have other Parsifals in your collection, this release is definitely worth exploring. Highly recommended.”
