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Rusalka
Hildegard Behrens lacks, perhaps, the shimmering vocal quality associated with great Rusalkas, but she makes up for it by presenting the most complete character arc I have ever heard in this tragic fairy-tale. The "Song to the Moon" is impressive, but Behrens really shines in the anguish of Act I and III as Rusalka's downfall becomes complete. The prince she dooms herself for is no prize, especially when executed by Werner Götz's pinched, nasal tenor. Gwynn Cornell does well with the half-comic, half-terrifying Jezibaba, and the supporting cast ranges from decent to very good, with an alluring Wood Nymph trio taking vocal honors. Peter Schneider seems most comfortable in the ethereal forest scenes and the sparkling ballrooms of Act II, leaving Behrens to shoulder most of the opera's dramatic weight on her own.
Track List
Act I
Tracks 1 - 9
Act II
Tracks 10 - 14
Act III
Tracks 15 - 17
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3.7
Based on 3 reviews
✓ Top Reviewer
United States
Good Performance, Misidentified Singers
This cast was also on the Gala label; whether that performance is the same as this one, I don't know. Malcolm Smith is listed as the Water Gnome, but the voice heard here is unquestionably Kurt Moll's. Furthermore Gwynn Cornell (who died far too young) sounds suspiciously like Helga Dernesch. Behrens sings very beautifully in this performance, showing why she came to prominence. Rusalka does not strain her every nerve like so many of the hoch-dramatisch roles she preferred to sing later on. She floats some lovely piano notes, especially in the final scene.I liked Werner Gotz as the Prince more than Andy did. He created Edmund in Reimann's Lear, but his music and singing are far more mellifluous here.Peter Schneider leads Dvorak's stunning score with great authority.The sound is good most of the time, the voices recessed, but listenable. Unfortunately, there's a bad patch towards the end of Act One where the tape got twisted (or something) and it makes listening a bit of a trial.Worth having for Behrens and Moll.
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✓ Top Reviewer
United States
Addendum to Review Below
The cast on this recording is NOT the one listed above. It is from Munich, March 23, 1981 with Hildegard Behrens as Rusalka, Kurt Moll as the Water Gnome, Helga Dernesch as Jezibaba, and Mikhail Svetlanov as the Prince under the baton of (Adam?) Fischer. The comments about the sound still apply. If you're a fan of Behrens, Moll, Dernesch, or Svetlanov, you should get this!
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✓ Top Reviewer
Germany
Karl Heinz Konrad
Die Aufnahme ist interessant, da die junge Hildegard Behrens diese Rolle in Düsseldorf zu Beginn ihrer Karriere oft gesungen hat.
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