Terrific Performance in Excellent Sound!

“This performance was available on the Golden Melodram label for awhile about twenty years ago. There was also a studio recording made about this time with Varady and Fischer-Dieskau in the leads and Sawallisch conducting, but with a different supporting cast that was licensed to EMI before it finally emerged on CD on the Orfeo label.Varady is a dream as Arabella. She sounds lovely and captures the spoiled, fantasy-driven young woman to perfection. One hears her audibly mature emotionally in the last act. Her final scene with her husband is glorious. Fischer-Dieskau sounds a little bumpy here and there (not inappropriate to the character), but he too matures before our ears. Mathis is an enchanting Zdenka, her first act duet with her sister one of the highlights of the performance. It is a luxury to have Töpper and Böhme as the parents. Hopferwieser is a very good Matteo. Uhrmacher is a more raucous Fiakermilli than usual, but she makes it work. Sawallisch knows just where to push forward and hold back in this opera.The sound is from a stereo broadcast with no glitches that I heard.Highly recommended to all Strauss fans!”

Thomas

“I discovered opera-music live when I attended a classical concert in Paris “Salle Pleyel” during the autumn 1967.It was a serie of concerts called “Prestige de la Musique” organized by a famous radio producer Jean Fontaine. I heard Miss Weathers performs different arias and among them Puccini’s “Un bel di, vedremo” from “Madama Butterfly”. I had never been so deeply moved by a singing performance ! Each time I hear this aria I remember that precise evening and I’m forever thankful to Miss Weathers for opening my ears and heart to the wonderful world of opera where I spent so many fantastic hours eversince !!!”

Tremendous Ring Cycle

“What a great performance this is in every way. It was Wolfgang Wagner's second production of the Ring and I think much underrated. He was always in the shadow of his brother Wieland and like you I have always enjoyed the classic Bohm recording from 1966/67. This recording however and the one from the following year with Ligendza as Brunnhilde are fast becoming favourites of mine. I remember seeing *** and Lindholm in the Friedrich Ring Cycle at Covent Garden in the late seventies and they were great there but here they are tireless and in much fresher voices. It's also wonderful to have Thomas Stewart in a complete performance as Wotan. I have always appreciated him in the Karajan recording but he doesn't appear in the Rheingold and he is much better here caught live. It's great to also have Gwyneth Jones as Sieglinde and Norman Bailey as Gunther. Being British and a regular visitor to ENO and the Royal Opera House I grew up with them as Brunnhilde and Wotan. Horst Stein has always been one of my favourite Bayreuth conductors much underrated at the time. Now this era seems like golden age of Wagner singing the likes of which we rarely hear today. There doesn't appear to be a weak link in this cast. As I said a tremendous performance and I highly recommend it. You won't be disappointed, I promise.”

A largesse of riches.

“When Die Walküre is conducted like this there is no greater Wagner opera. It’s hard to beat the ending of Act III under almost any circumstances but when it goes beyond the usual tear-jerking on the part of great singers and becomes an all encompassing cosmic experience it becomes something else. So much for Wolfgang Sawallisch being dismissed by the English critics for years as a mere competent kapellmeister.If you only need one reason to add this recording to your already stuffed Wagner library Wolfgang Sawallisch is it.The cast is superb, into the bargain. The star is James King! His “Wälse!… Wälse! at the end of Act I is amazing. No one in my experience has held those notes as long and powerfully, nothing show-boating about it but completely at the service of the moment. He has done many fabulous recordings but this takes the cake. Hildegard Behrens is a lovely Sieglinde. The soft vulnerable type, beautifully sung.I prefer more ferile Sieglindes, like Julia Varády on the Sawallisch cycle on EMI 12 years later, but the softer type Sieglinde when sung as beautiful at Behrens’ and they are not just simpering victims, like Karajan’s Janowitz on his DG set is a delight to the ear.Fassbaender is a marvelously goddess-like Fricka, truly a fractal of the Asautru goddess Frigge. Kurt Böhme’s Hunding is surprisingly young sounding and virile.Gwyneth Jones and Theo Adam are also marvelous. They are let-down slightly by the staging which places them, him especially, too up stage, which mutes his astonishing domination of the implacable god, the same happens to her in the Todesverkundigung in Act 2, But her delivery of this amazing part is mysterious and solemn sung with great beauty of tone. I would say that the sound runs from great to ok. This recording deserves a professional remastering and release commercially and you’d have a classic of the gramophone.Aside from these caveats, as it stands, this is a great performance of Sawallisch pulls off one of those rare feats in Wagner. Magic.Highly recommended.”

Charlie Edwards

“Pretty amazing how consistent Böhm is in Bayreuth 15 years after the Buenos Aires performances - his direction was always so intense and driven, the only caveat being thet the Todesverkündigung scene is too fast and perfunctory (1965). I wish there was more of the glorious Grob-Prandl - I've actually never heard anything to compare with her combination of athletic,tireless singing and warmth of expression - a cross between Nilsson and Flagstad! And any recording with Suthaus is worth hearing - such virility and tragic utterance. By the way it's definitely NOT Greindl as Hunding in Buenos Aires - doesn't even sound like a native German speaker. King, Rysanek and Nilsson in 1965 are pretty astonishing too.... though better known from the 1966/7 recordings - here it's a little more hectic and messy but pretty exciting. King is SO much better here than in Solti's studio-bound effort the same year.”

SCALDING PERFORMANCE THOUGH NUANCED

“I was present for this performance. Vickers turned in a powerful amd very nuanced performance. His and Tebaldi's voices presented with tremendous presence which seemed to threaten the physical integrity of the opera house itself! Tebaldi's Desdemona is a beautifully voiced and exhibits a gentle woman as was always her strength. But, her vehement answer to Otello's unfounded accusations is truly terrifying. The audience around me was shaken. The in-house sound is vibrant. This is a singular experience.”

Walter Hartman

“This is a performance that demonstrates what wonderful performances Zylis-Gara, Mathis, Taddei and Schreier gave in the theater. They are well known for these roles from various studio released recordings and all live up to their excellent reputations here. The novelties are to hear Paskalis and Marton as Giovanni and Donna Anna. Both are very persuasive and satisfying.It is wonderful to hear Marton when she had such control and finesse in her singing. Paskalis sings well and creates a strong characterization.”

SAWALLISCH'S TRIUMPH

“The hero of this performance is Sawallisch. He was considered to be a good Kapellmeister but this performance proves that during the years he became a great conductor. He is able to find the ballance between comedy and tragedy. He can show us all nuances of this masterpiece. And there is an excellent ensemble around him. The ladies are beautiful: one is better than the other. Raimondi and Dean are also a very good duo. Fissore who is total unknown for me is surprisingly good as Masetto. Moll is terrific as the Commendatore. The weakest link of the cast is Winkler. He is good in the ensembles but his voice is too heavy for the aria"Il mio tesoro". "Dalla sua pace" his aria from the first act is missing from this performance. But I think there is no total perfect performance. This one is close to perfect.”

A must-hear, must-own, must-listen-many-many-times-and-study-every-syllable performance

“Gustav Neidlinger was typecast for the "howling-and-spitting" villain-roles very early in his career. Everyone thinks of Alberich and Klingsor when his name is mentioned. But he was in fact a versatile, smart singing actor equally capable of singing buffo parts and playing benevolent nice-guys. His Hans Sachs retains his characteristic massive vocal power, dark tone, and, his spontaneity, his uninhibited singing straight from the gut. His nasty side works well when he's "marking" Beckmesser, but he's also astonishingly tender when he talks with Eva in Act 2, and his monologues and avuncular interactions with David. The only flaws in this performance are his occasional tendency to rush a phrase, reaching the end of the line a little sooner than the orchestra; also, he runs out of gas a little bit during the singing lesson with Walther in Act 3.Tenor Walter Geisler is a big surprise, sweet, smart, and powerful. Everything else Andy said is right, about Eliz Grummer and Gerhard Stolze, but Andy neglected to mention that Josef Greindl has one of his best nights as Pogner, a role he first sang at Bayreuth in 1943 and apparently never got tired of. Andre Cluytens' conducting is very smart and sensitive.”

A GREAT "PETER GRIMES"

“A starry cast leaded by the dedicatee of the main role, Peter Pears (Benjamin Britten's "muse"), arguably the best Peter Grimes, under Kubelik's perfect guidance... A must!”

John Stanton

“Attila is a beautiful opera with great arias and two particularly memorable scenes. Verdi was in his "Galley" years and the opera ends in a way that suggests hei just wanted to finish it all. Musically though it's a feast. The men are all excellent. Raimondi's black sonorous voice is ideal as Attila, the massive voiced Gian Giacomo Guelfi is exciting and elemental as Enzio, the self serving Roman general.Gianfranco Checchele one of the best tenors of his era, disgracefully neglected by the gramaphone companies, has always reminded me of Mario Del Monaco. In my experience he has not been heard to better advantage than here. The comparison with Del Monaco more potent.In this company Stella is rather left behind, and I speak as an admirer. Her voice is beautiful still,( this is a bit late in her career) and she sings the role pleasingly, but without the punch or bite to suggest a warrior maiden.The sound is excellent.”

BEL CANTO ‘DUTCHMAN’

“When this opera was heard by its first audiences in 1843, the genre was dominated by the bel canto movement: ‘Wagnerian’ singers, male or female, did not exist. The first Senta was a success in Bellini roles, and her first Dutchman was a notable Mozartian. This ’L'Olandese volante,’ sung in Italian with an interesting cast, makes a case for hearing the work without the usual Bayreuth expectations. Virginia Zeani, who’d made a European career singing the bel canto repertory, makes an excellent Senta, using her mezza voce to sweeten the gentler parts of her Ballad. More volume produces a wide vibrato at times, but high notes are on the button. Overall, Zeani humanizes the character, and as Senta is, truth to say, living in a dream world, playing her as a heroic Lucia makes perfect sense. Giorgio [Casellato-] Lamberti turns Erik into a robust Latin rival for Senta’s love. The singer finds and sets humming the arioso quality in his part of the Act 2 duet with Senta and makes a bel canto treat out of Erik’s Act 3 cavatina. The ending, in which Lamberti “leans into” the melody, then tosses off the then-customary cadenza with flourishes of coloratura, could well have graced one of the lesser-known Verdi operas that the tenor helped revive. The Helmsman is also good in his high-flying Act 1 sailor’s song: other sources credit this role to Bruno Sebastian, who like Lamberti went on to have a substantial international tenor career.Antonio Boyer is quite a surprise as the Dutchman. He had a longish but undistinguished European career, mainly surfacing in rarities and 20th-century works, with a few secondary parts in more familiar operas (he sang Ford in Verdi’s ‘Falstaff’ at Glyndebourne). Here he is in especially good voice and anxious to make an impression. His lower range is stronger than most baritones in this role, giving the openings of his major scenes the proper dark ominousness (Verdi’s ‘cupo’ quality), But his voice has both depth and expansiveness, and he has the strength to put across the big climaxes. One would have loved to hear him as King Philip in Verdi’s ‘Don Carlo.’ A young Francesco Cristofoli (Danish despite his name) conducts well, keeping the action going but giving the singers room to color their lines. This musician went back to the Danish Royal Opera to a successful career as a Wagnerian. Sadly, the overture is the murkiest part of the recording, with the horn section masking the rest of the instruments. (One suspects that microphone was placed on the stage and the curtain was down during the overture, muffling the sound.) My copy does not show any of the sonic flaws mentioned below by Jim Martin, showing that the remastering has been a success. I would have liked a better balance of singers and orchestra, but this recording is well worth having, showing how Wagner’s mix of novelty and nods to bel canto traditions won him audiences in the beginning of his career.”

Andrea Chenier

“Marvellous! Brought back so many memories of a wet Monday evening in Rosebury Avenue when Peter Glossop electrified us with Nemica d'la Patria . Craig and Victoria Elliott magnificent.”

Fidelio with Solti live from London

“This recording is a very rare example for a recording of Fidelio under the baton of Sir Georg Solti. For Solti fans a must have!! The singers are all well and teh orchestra plays fine.”

Rare delights

“Nowhere else can you find such rare broadcast recordings. Production standard very high. Cannot blame OD for the odd burst of bad radio reception in the originals. The quality of the performances far outweighs these niggles.”

FrankItaly

“Dear Jim Martin i couldn’t agree more. This is a fantastic performance. It might be something for Olivero and Siepi’s fans that comment is acceptable, because the acustics, place, orchestra, chorus etc. are all but perfect…however, as for for Magda Olivero, she is the best in this role nothing possible to say agaist it I’m sorry. Pronunciation is perfect, technic is perfect, a memorable actress and well her sense of style is superb. As for the words “spoken”…they are not really spoken but produced with incredible artistry because this is verismo and it MUST pay tributo to the thatre also…but she had the luck of studying with the men that possessed all the original music sheets of these operas, where all variations accepter by composers are preserved, where everything is written. Don’t be fooled, she takes no liberty. And it should be time that we aks ourselves why verismo operas now are never emotional when so called singers who would better stick to “elisir d’amore” try to sing them…so this permormance is very precious. DRAMA is there, complitely. This is the way these operas must be sung. Olivero’s timbre might be a bit too mature for the role (previous recordings in Amsterdam and Rio de Janeiro show a complitely differen approach), but this is still coherent to the maximum degree.”

Nicholas Allen

“The greatest, most deeply conceived Isolde I ever heard, every syllable crysal clear - in itself worth five stars. strange how she has become reognised so soon after her death, I sppose she got a bit eclipsed by Nilsson. OF course Nilsson was unique, voicewise, but Varnay has it over hr every tme for drama, clarity and utter thrill. Another fine performance from Opera Depot - thankyou.”

Thank you for making this famous performance available

“Haven’t been able to listen to much yet. I saw the actual performance and I will never forget it! Had to stand in line for 6 hours to get a Stehplatz ticket then stood for the opera, which is very long. It was pure magic.”

Edmund Barham

“Craig was a very underrated tenor in his own country but hghly cherished abroad,especially in Munich where they did not suffer bad tenors quietly.I have yet to hear a better high C in his opening ara,especially live where Del Monaco alvayd ducked it and so sometimes did Corelli himself.”

No fly-by-night "Barber"

“Where to start? For one thing, this is an ensemble effort, idiomatically performed by a cast that has the style down to their fingertips and plays with the expert timing of seasoned vaudevillians. For another, it probably hails from Naples' Arena Flegrea, which would account for the periodic airplane flyovers. Opera Depot's sound is so good you think they're right over your house. And the prompter is in such close proximity to the microphone he deserves star billing. Speaking of stars, Alfredo Kraus is on a plateau of his own, comparable to de Lucia and the greats of recorded history, treating us to a heavily embroidered "Ecco ridente" right out of the gate. Renata Scotto has her own refreshing ideas of comedy as Rosina, though one wishes she had substituted a virtuoso number for "Contro un cor," but that is a minor quibble. Aldo Protti's Figaro is surprisingly fluent in divisions, his skill in patter more than making up for the voice's intrinsic lack of allure. Although the audience "disputes" the Don Basilio, the two basses are adept in support of the stars. Vincenzo Bellezza keeps things moving along persuasively.”

FASCINATING AND EXCITING

“Truly excellent singing all round, especially from Gwyneth Jones and Zoltan Kelemen; and Boulez and the magnificent orchestra provide blazing support. The real fascination for me here is Karl Ridderbusch's Hagen. On the face of it, he's a benevolent, kindly, almost Hans Sachs like older half brother, but listen to his exchange with Alberich at the beginning of Act 2. His voice is hollow, the expression almost catatonic while he channels the vicious, poisonous, hateful encouragements from his father, which seem to recharge and harden his resolve to carry through his mission to possess the ring. He doesn't have to snarl and pressurise his half siblings into doing anything as he knows they trust and value his counsel without realising they are being manipulated. The true, evil nature of his actions is only finally revealed when he relaxes his self control completely at the hunting party and plunges his spear into Siegfried's back "Rache rieten sie mir!", when he truly sounds like his father's son. No wonder the vassals sound so genuinely shocked. He does it again when his duplicity is exposed as the wild boar that killed Siegfried, convinced the ring is finally his for the taking. I loved it. Thank you so much for making this fabulously theatrical performance available.”

Anthony WILLIS

“Considering my only Nabucco is the 1949 Callas recording anything would be a benefit! I love it though and enjoyed it. Pauline Tinsley was so vastly under-represented in the recorded music field.”

Really, really good ...

“There´s not much to add to Richard´s detailed summery (and I own - as of now - 92 Salomes, abot 15 ... 20 of them actually get reruns from time to time. And 2 Fidelios, which get no reruns). Tynes was new for me as well, and she does her job in a really admirable way.Andersons prophet fulfills the necessity of credibility, which is the most important feature in delivering this role. I don´t expect (or believe in) most beautiful singing from a guy, who lived off sand and the occational scorpio- or spider-bit. He´s convincing ... and so is the complete performance under the supervision of Mr. Shippers. Will get a resumption, with headphones, this summer, in a deckchair at a beach.”

Martin Ramor

“This is a great Tristan. Glad to have it. Shuard is wonderful, her rendition is simply beautiful, her Liebestod almost brakes your heart. Perhaps for a moment or two she is shouting a bit, but it would be nice to die in arms of such Isolde. Dowd is with his light voiced Tristan very interesting and not bad at all. Others Veasey, Shirley Quirk (for me especially), Langdon and Tear are all great. It is also nice to hear BBC Symphony Orchestra and to to have SIr Colin Davis conducting them, since I am not used to listen to him in Wagner.”

Vital for Goodall fans

“It will surprise no-one that the Rhine flows rather sedately at this stage of its progress through the opera houses of Europe, but generally slow tempi yield carefully managed momentum at many points. In particularly, the 3rd scene is an absolute triumph. Overall, this is a performance that develops powerfully, in typical Goodall fashion. The first scene does not quite achieve a playful or seductive atmosphere, particularly at these speeds, but there is ample recompense in what follows. Orchestrally, there are one or two wobbles in exposed passages, but nothing to trouble any but the most fastidious of listeners. Ensemble work is a major strength - Hammond-Stroud, Bailey and Belcourt in particular strike sparks in their exchanges. All three are in excellent voice. The sound also is impressive- lower strings very much to the fore, but with overall clarity, very little stage noise, and nothing to suggest an audience, until the concluding applause. The only villain of the piece is the translation - the mixture of archaism, colloquialism, and Scrabble hacks gains nothing by familiarity from other Goodall performances. Huge thanks to Andy for making this recording available.”

Die Entfuhrung

“Excellent sound and soloists.What more could you want than Solti, Rothenberger and Blegen?There is one thing- a dvd of the German TV film by the same artists.Now that would something!Anonymous”

Wonderful Keepsake!

“Wonderful to have this record of some great voices (British and otherwise) from the ‘70s. Hope Opera Depot is soon able to make performances from the ‘80s available to us too. Performance recordings have an energy that most studio recordings just can’t seem to create.”

Great that you share this recording

“Wonderful! Especially as I created editions of Kozub and Watson with the Hamberger Archiv für Gesangskunst in the past. At this time this great recording that was completely missing. Best greetings! T.”

“Exactly as I remember it all those years ago (and exactly on my no longer playable reel to reel recording of the performance, less the car ignition noise at one stage from outside)David \Ward was alweays wonderful in this sort of part and in those wonderful days when there ws a Covent Garden company they were very good all round. KenMacdionald sadly missed - died gar too earlyJoseph Ward perfect castingand Kempe .....!Those were the days”

satisfied

“They recordings were fine. I always prefer as much audiece reactio as possible. I do need to ask you about Ring from Soutj America 1962 and 1967. If pitches have been corrected. My copies are copletely off pitch and need to be replaced.”

James Mertins

“This performance is better than Britten's .It's alive, very much so.Fisher again shows how great a singer she was. Ken MacDonald shows that wonderful way of making his voice suit the role, he did that in everything he sang.I heard him sing Arturo in Puritani with Sutherland at the Garden.Harold Blackburn the great Scottish Bass in one of a few live performance from him on disc.The whole cast brims with fun and you can hear the audience enjoying themselves.This is the only time I've enjoyed this opera and shall listen often to this recording.”

Donald H

“Orchids to you for offering this — I would listen to this obviously great performance too often to be able to put up with that sound. I simply have too many [????] gr8 Aida’s to listen to, to tolerate that. …but it’s a very close call, and now that I know that you have it…”

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.”

Joseph Brand

“A great performance from everybody. Gedda is in far better form than on his commercial recording and the unjustly little recorded Vaughan is a delight as Teresa. The opera is absolutely complete as well. Unmissable.”

Richard Inverne

“This most exciting performance (which even includes one verse of Leonora’s ‘Tu vedrai’, the Act 4 cabaletta) has a bonus in using the alternative 1857 Paris version of the finale. When Manrico is taken off to execution, the usually swift conclusion is replaced by a reprise of the Miserere, with monks offstage, and led by Azucena in a kind of lament for her son (lots of “Oh mio figlio”s etc.!) Then we are taken back to (a slightly different) version of the familiar ending. It’s most interesting, and worth hearing, even if (as with, say, the Paris version of the Otello Act 3 ensemble) it’s not for everyday consumption. See Julian Budden’s summary in his marvellous 3-vol. Verdi book (by the way, he doesn’t like it!)”

The stars aligned to capture Sutherland, Simionato and Rossini!

“Enough cannot be said to describe the vocal mastery that transpires here. Sutherland and Simionato, each is resplendent, together miraculous! Ganzarolli is excellent, dark and fluid throughout. Raimondi is so striking, the omission of his arias is regrettable. Several ensembles and choruses are also cut. Santini may lack “elan vital”, but he partners the singers with care. Sound is very good.”

None

“You cannot ethically review anything unless you have used items or services, eaten food products or in restaurants, watched movies or concerts, and in my case listened to the recording which I haven’t done as of now. I have so many Opera CD recordings I haven’t listened to yet, so I don’t know when I will listen to this one.”

the best VOCAL VERSION I have ever heard

“🔹🔹🔹 It is a Stellar cast. All the performers are geniuses. Franco is at the peak of his genius. Hard to believe he used no amplification to generate that power of sound. He possessed an incredible instrument. Being a big Franco aficionado i must have this in my collection. The Orchestra sometimes is not well heard. It is a live recording at Verona arena and sung in Italian. Even though i am used to Carmen being sung in French this recording is all about voices. But if the voices is what you are looking for - then you got it. Hear unbelievable vocal technique with all performers being equally outstanding both technically and artistically. Simionato has huge dark voice and Scotto is fascinating Michaela her timbre perfectly matching Michaela’s character. Bastianini was a great baritone who unfortunately died young, so not too many recordings are available.Often i have recordings with NOT ALL singers BEING AT the SAME vocal technical LEVEL. The PERFORMANCES at open arenas are more of an entertainment with visual effects. Then they are just a musical (like a Broadway musical?), i.e. a show accompanied by good music but not vocal technique. This will not impress if you really distinguish the notes, range, pitch, timbre, tessitura etc. This recording allows to focus on those. This particular set - even though the orchestra is sometimes not well audible and the sound itself imperfect with some noise interferences -is able to eternalize the vocal genius of the great Italian singer Corelli and his superb contemporaries making this the best VOCAL VERSION I have ever heard. 🔹🔹🔹🔹”

Michael Shmith

“This performance of Siegfried all those years ago was my first experience of a Ring opera. Such luxury! In fact, over the succeeding nearly 40 years, I have never heard anything to better this. What’s more, the diction of all the singers was second-to-none. Even hearing the excerpt just now brought back that heady night at the London Coliseum.I have one quibble with your description of the estimable Gregory Dempsey, whom you refer to as embodying “everything that is great about a superb English tenor and a superb character tenor”. Indeed, Greg was a superb character tenor, whose other roles at the ENO were just as ingenious and musical; but English? Certainly not! Greg was – and, I am delighted to say, still is – thoroughly Australian. He was born in Melbourne, sang here in the 1950s and 60s before going to London, and returned to live here in the 1980s.This aside, bravo for finding this performance and issuing it to the world.Michael Shmith, Melbourne, Australia.”

This is a marvelous "Ring"

“I have been listening to this recording almost non-stop for the last few weeks. The audio quality is superb, especially given the limitations of 1953 recording equipment. Mödl's Brunhilde is wonderful, Keilberth's conducting is great, Windgassen is in fine, fresh voice. The big moments, like "Leb wohl," the sword forging song, and the Immolation scene are transcendent. I go back and forth between this recording and the 1953 Clemens Krauss "Ring" with Astrid Varnay, and I can't help but think that the 1953 summer in Bayreuth was a rich time for Wagner devotees and "Ring" aficionados.”

Admirable dramatic soprano

“I have been lucky enough to hear many performances with Swedish Court Singer Berit Lindholm at the Royal Opera in Stockholm. Her Brünnhilde in the Kempe Ring (1975) will forever live in my memory as the best I have ever heard. And I have experienced many well-known Brünnhildes! I also remember a very dramatic and beautiful Tosca together with Nicolai Gedda. And her Leonore (Fidelio), Chrysotemis etc.”

Kevin Dunn

“Knappertsbusch's last year at Bayreuth, and this is a really exceptional recording. Vickers is a great Parsifal and Ericson (whom I'd never heard before) a gorgeously seductive Kundry. The other principals will be familiar from other Bayreuth recordings of the period, and all are on good form.”

Un Enlèvement de référence

“Magnifique interprétation, dominée par la merveilleuse Christiane Eda-Pierre, trop méconnue, et l'inusable Kurt Moll. Les autres rôles sont bien tenus et Karl Böhm fait jouer l'orchestre de l'Opéra de Paris comme des viennois ! Le son est excellent.”

Dido and Aeneas with Janet Bake

“A superb performance from Dame Janet. Somehow, she seems more involved than either of her two studio recording which are both fabulous and involving. If this seems confusing, it won't to those who, like I, venerate Dame Janet. The present performance finds her in stupendous voice. Thomas Hemsley does take some getting used to as he sounds startlingly like Peter Pears. John Pritchard conducts what is obviously a loving performance. The sound is taken from a television video tape, so sometimes that low rumble from video tapes intrudes but does not in any way spoil such a magnificent performance. Purchase this, pour a glass of wine, sit back, enjoy and thank heaven this exists!”

Note to Mr. Janos K. , Perfomance with Marion Lippert as Turandot in Budapest

“MINDENBEN AGYETERTEK VELVEK - MARION LIPPERT KIVETELESEN NAGY NEMZETKOZI RAGN SZOPRAN VOLT. OPERAHAZ BUDAPEST, ERKEL THEATRE, NEPOOPERA (ERKEL SZINHAZ). EXCUSE ME, MY HUNGARIAN. THE TEATRO COMUNALE BOLOGNA GIVE THEAT GUEST. EXCELLENT PERFOMANCE WITH COMPLET ENSEMBLE WITH MARION LIPPERT AS TURANDOT AND ANOTHER PROTAGANIST.”

Mozart Cycle, Cologne 1975

“Thank you very much for this performance. I heard it as a quite young fellow. It was the time of the Cologne Mozart Cycle with the seven great Operas under the direction of Jean-Pierre Ponnelle.This must be the performance of June 8th 1975, not July.Ferrando was sung by Rüdiger Wohlers, not by Peter Seiffert. Where did you get this information ?Thanks again,best wishes,Martin”

Brian Morgan

“Here is a truly historic recording, of excerpts from the world première of Richard Strauss' "Capriccio," in 1942, starring Viorica Ursuleac, the composer's favorite soprano, and conducted by her husband, Clemens Krauß.Ursuleac is sublime in the rôle of the Countess. Her unconventional voice alternates between sounding congested and squally, then a top note will appear with steady brilliance. But it is as musician and singing-actress that she scores a triumph; the kaleidoscope of colors the Kammersängerin utilizes are bewitching.The work itself is charming and sophisticated, though, as has been noted before, this delicacy was served to the German public whilst World War II was raging. What happened to the composer who had penned the towering masterpieces "Salome" and, especially, "Elektra"?Ursuleac heads a magnificent ensemble that includes Hans Hotter, and Krauß's comprehension of the composer's æsthetic is most evident.”

Meistersinger-Varviso-Bayreuth-73

“La fecha es -25-Julio, 1ª función de 7, estreno de esta producción de Wofgang Wagner , según archivo del Festival.También lo dice en "Wagnerdisco.net", que no se como sonará esta grabación.Si es un poco molesto, pero casi no se nota, de todas formas, ya aparecerá alguna grabación mejor.No puedo comprobar la de "Wagnerdisco.net", porque vendía por PayPal, y cambió el sistema de venta a no se que de tarjeta Master o algo parecido y ya no pude comprarle mas, al ser mas complicado.”