Wagner

Die Walküre

Varnay, Symonette, Ernest, Sommer, Talvela, Naaf; Quennet
Düsseldorf, 1966

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Die Walküre

By the time of this performance, Astrid Varnay was nearing the end of her soprano career, yet she proves herself still a formidable Brünnhilde. Her voice retains impressive power, and her interpretation—shaped by over 25 years of experience in the role, including early collaborations with Melchior and Traubel—brings remarkable dramatic insight. Ditha Sommer is a welcome surprise as Sieglinde, her sound both effortless and full-bodied; had she sung today, one could easily imagine her gracing the world's major stages. Martti Talvela, as Hunding, is the very definition of luxury casting, his cavernous bass adding weight and menace to every scene. While the sound lacks depth and suffers from occasional drop-outs, the vocal performances make this a compelling listen.

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3.0 Based on 1 review
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David R.✓ Top Reviewer

United States

Overall rating

Good Walkure, but With Cuts and Missing Music!

The sound here is very listenable with most singers consistently on mic (except at the end of Act Two where Siegmund and Brunnhilde are up stage). The singers are all good. Varnay's timbre by this point is a little sour and unsteady, but she more than makes up for it with her passionate involvement. Ditha Sommer is excellent, better here than she was in Swarowsky's studio recording a few years later. Ernest is competent, the voice rather wooden, but with good diction. Talvela is a luxury. For what ever reason (indisposition?) Hoffman is replaced by Dagmar Naaf who is an adequate Fricka, no more. The Act Three Valkyries are good, less squally than some. Symonette continues to frustrate. His voice is impressive, but uneven. He makes little of the words.Quennet makes several cuts: a chunk of Wotan's monologue in Act Two and two chunks in Act Three. In addition, a few "brief drop outs" in this case includes almost all of Wotan's final scene: very little of it remains. Given Symonette's lack of involvement it's not that big a loss.If you're collecting this entire Ring, you'll want this, missing music and all.
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